19.06.2012

ANCOM applied a RON 30,000 fine to S.C. DIRECT POST SERVICES S.R.L. from Cluj Napoca, which provided postal services consisting of correspondence items weighing between 0 and 50 g, charging less than RON 2/item. The company thus breached the exclusive right reserved to the Romanian Post National Company S.A. (CNPR) in its capacity as a universal service provider in the postal sector throughout Romania.

This is the second fine ANCOM applied to DIRECT POST, after the RON 5,000 fine enforced this year, in January, for the breach of the same legal provisions.

Besides the fine, ANCOM also decided that the contracts which do not observe the legal provisions in force, the reserved rights of the universal service provider in this matter, have to be amended within 30 days.

“ANCOM’s main concern is to make sure that all the postal providers observe the legislation rather than to apply sanctions. Nevertheless, in cases of repeated breaches despite the enforced fines, we will appeal to all legal instruments in order to ensure the proper functioning of the postal service market and we will not hesitate to withdraw the right to provide postal service from the providers that insist in operating beyond the legal boundaries”, the Director of the Monitoring and Control Executive Division within ANCOM, Mr. Cristin Popa, said.

Four fines totalising RON 110,000 have been enforced this year for the breach of the right reserved to the universal service provider.

Any authorised postal provider is allowed to provide services within the scope of universal service under the condition they comply with the rights reserved to CNPR in terms of weighing and tariff limits, including when they grant tariff discounts to the sender. The conclusion and execution of a contract under which the price per item is below RON 2 for items of correspondence weighing between 0 and 50 g, delivered to the addressees’ postal boxes, is a contravention.  

CNPR benefits from reserved rights since, in its capacity of universal service provider, it also has the obligation to cover with postal services the entire national territory in order to enable each inhabitant to have access to postal services, regardless of the locality where she/he lives. Hence, the universal service provider has the obligation to provide services throughout Romania, at the same tariffs, including in the hard accessible or low density geographic areas, where the correspondence volume is low and therefore the activity is not profitable. As well, CNPR has the obligation to make available for the users at least one postal box and at least one contact point in each locality on the Romanian territory.