From March 31, heated terraces will be prohibited in France. Resulting from the Climate Law, this measure will come into force after numerous postponements due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Restaurant owners and bar owners fear the application of this ban which could penalize their turnover, as in the 15th arrondissement of Paris. But there are solutions.
The terrace of Le Relais Charbon restaurant has 15 seats. It is good there because the heaters are on. Soon, they will be removed, which angers the boss, Stéphane Malet:
“ We had already been told that gas was more polluting than electricity, we put in electric heaters, so we have them now; we have electric heaters, and now we are being stopped! I don’t really understand the measure, there are thousands of private jets flying every day, they are theirs alone, and they have more means than us, to make the effort to take the train or to drive an electric car or what. It is always us, the merchants and craftsmen who pay the bill for the others. »
Opposite, the boss of Lutetia fears losing customers. Elisabeth Auriac is already planning to adapt: “ We are going to take out plaids, blankets, there we are arriving on sunny days so it should be fine but we will see in the months of December 2022 and January 2023 how it will go. »
To get around the ban, Guilluame Debray, owner of a restaurant in Normandy, invented and markets a heated bench. Much more economical than electric heaters, soon to be illegal outside establishments. “ It still saves 50 euros a day, just in electricity, and it will also be able to bring more people to the terrace. This will allow restaurateurs to also donate a slightly more ecological image at their establishment. »
If they do not remove their outdoor heaters, restaurateurs can be fined from June 30.