An Post ‘bullying’ shops with new stamp rules

Shop owners have accused An Post of acting like “corporate bullies” over its recent decision to restrict the sale of stamps to retailers.

RGDATA, the group representing 4,000 family owned grocery stores, said its members were incensed at a recent ban on the sale of stamps in local shops.

Since Mar 1, stamps are only available to shops which agree to install an electronic terminal provided by PostPoint — a subsidiary of An Post.

The equipment allows customers to pay for a range of services including top-up mobile phone credit, utility bills, TV licence, and bin collection charges.

RGDATA said many of its retailers already had similar terminals provided by rival operators such as PayZone.

Tara Buckley, RGDATA director general, said An Post’s new policy was causing major inconvenience to shop owners and customers seeking to buy stamps.

“It is disgraceful a state-owned company, that is supposed to have a social and community dimension to its operations, should operate in such a high-handed and appalling manner.”

She claimed it was the “worst example” of a state-owned monopoly abusing its position.

She said RGDATA had lodged formal complains about the issue with the Competition Authority, ComReg, and Communications Minister Pat Rabbitte.

An Post, meanwhile, said changes resulted from stamps being included in a suite of services operated under PostPoint because bulk-buying discounts previously offered to retailers were no longer viable.

An Post also announced it had revised postal rates for items weighing in excess of 50g.

The change will lead to both price increases and reductions.

A spokeswoman said the majority of letters and postcards would be unaffected by the latest changes as the basic 55c stamp rate for post under 50g remained unchanged.

However, she confirmed An Post had also applied to ComReg for an increase to this rate later in the year.

The new tariffs, it was claimed, would include a range of incentives to help small companies and to encourage online sales and represented the first change in these prices since 2008.

The spokeswoman said the company’s mail business was incurring significant losses as a result of its universal service obligations due to a general decline in mail volumes, which have fallen 23.5% since 2007, including a 7% fall last year.

An Post has also vowed to defend legal proceedings being taken against it by ComReg over its failure to meet delivery targets of its postal service.

ComReg issued legal proceedings against An Post earlier this year seeking a High Court order to direct the company to comply with the 94% next-day delivery target for mail.