UK Postcomm to rule on PIP within fortnight
Postcomm is to announce its long-awaited verdict on Royal Mail’s pricing in proportion (PIP) scheme within the next two weeks.
The regulator has told interested parties to expect an imminent decision on the controversial scheme, ending months of speculation about the timing of its launch.
A deadline was never formally set, but had been mooted for the beginning of August. The industry is eager to know whether PIP will be introduced alongside new price controls next April.
Postcomm has meanwhile published further details of its licensing system for the competitive postal market, including a code of practice to protect ‘mail integrity’ – post security and staff recruitment – as well as a framework for all operators except Royal Mail, and common operating procedures.
But Postwatch has greeted the document with scepticism. It says Postcomm has “missed an opportunity”, in light of Channel 4’s recent Dispatches programme (PM July 15), which exposed unvetted, untrained staff sorting delivery without proper supervision.
Postwatch chairman Peter Carr states: “Postcomm has failed to include, in the mail integrity code of practice, an obligation on operators to advise customers when mail is stolen. If a postal company fails to provide the service which has been paid for, it should inform the customer. Failure to do so will do nothing to help build confidence in the postal service.”
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