Energy renovation: three executives sentenced to prison for deceptive business practices

The convictions handed down at the end of June 2026 followed an investigation conducted in 2023 and 2024 by agents of the Departmental Directorate for the Protection of Populations (DDPP) of Indre-et-Loire. The investigations focused on a network of energy renovation companies suspected of having organized deceptive business practices against consumers.

An investigation triggered by consumer reports

In 2023, the DDPP of Indre-et-Loire received several reports, notably through the SignalConso platform, concerning brands with similar names: "Compagnons de France", "CDF 49", "CDF 86" and Ekonovia.

Consumers reported fraudulent door-to-door sales tactics, aggressive sales tactics, and financial aid claims that were being withheld. Analysis of the complaints and the connections between the various companies allowed investigators to identify a network structured around a single leader.

The investigation was conducted with the Chinon research brigade, under the authority of the Tours public prosecutor's office, with the support of the National Investigation Service (SNE) and the Economic Fraud Intelligence Unit (CRAFE) of the Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF).

Documents and several thousand data points analyzed

Searches carried out with the Chinon gendarmerie and the Urssaf services resulted in the seizure of customer files, telephone call logs, professional cards, exchanges made on WhatsApp as well as data stored on company servers.

Investigators analyzed thousands of data points and interviewed numerous victims and employees. According to the DGCCRF (French Directorate General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control), this evidence revealed an organized system based in particular on:

• telephone scripts concealing the commercial nature of the solicitation;
• professional cards suggesting an affiliation with a public body;
• the use of the RGE designation without the companies having this qualification;
• a confusion maintained with the workers' association of the Compagnons du Devoir;
• payments received before the expiry of the legal deadlines;
• Internal exchanges demonstrating, according to investigators, the intentional nature of the practices.

Alleged aid blocked to force the signing of work contracts

The modus operandi described by the DGCCRF (French Directorate General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control) involved informing consumers that the financial aid they were expecting for their renovations was blocked. This situation then prompted a visit from a supposed "technician" who presented certain works as essential for releasing the funds.

Consumers were then asked to sign order forms whose amounts included a deduction corresponding to fictitious subsidies. This presentation artificially reduced the remaining balance due at the time of signing.

Prison sentences with warrants for immediate detention

At the end of June 2026, the Orléans Court of Appeal definitively sentenced the three leaders to prison terms of three years, two and a half years and eighteen months respectively, each accompanied by a warrant for their arrest.

They were also ordered to pay a total of €70.000 in fines. The court permanently banned them from managing a company and from engaging in any commercial or sales-related activity for five years.

Two salesmen and two telemarketing managers were also given suspended prison sentences.

During the investigation, the court ordered the seizure of real estate, vehicles, and cash totaling €700.000. One of the company's directors filed an appeal to the Court of Cassation, challenging only the seizure of one property.

More than 150.000 reports received since 2023

Energy renovation is subject to a reinforced monitoring plan by the DGCCRF. Since 2023, the administration reports having received more than 150.000 complaints concerning this sector.

These reports relate in particular to door-to-door or telephone solicitation, false promises of public aid, misuse of the RGE qualification, commercial pressure and failure to respect the right of withdrawal.

The French Directorate General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) has announced it will maintain its inspections in the energy renovation sector in 2026. Consumers who encounter suspicious practices can report them on SignalConso . The Ministry of the Economy has also published a practical guide to avoid fraud during energy renovations.