Royal Mail has turned the tables on Ofcom – after it launched a probe of the postal operator’s price hikes last month – by demanding an immediate investigation into the growing competition from TNT Post.
The row has been sparked by the fact that mailers using rival operators for everything but final mile deliveries would not be eligible for the bulk discounts under Royal Mail’s new charging structure – in fact those using so-called “downstream access” would end up paying more.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, this has gone down like a lead balloon with TNT Post bosses, who have forced Ofcom to investigate. However, this in turn has irked Royal Mail which claims TNT Post’s invasion of final mile deliveries is putting the Universal Service at risk.
Royal Mail said: “We are again calling for Ofcom to commence immediately a full review of how it will protect the Universal Service from the serious risk presented by unfettered direct delivery competition. It should take action as soon as possible to safeguard the finances of the Universal Service. This is necessary to give clarity and certainty to all market participants.
“We believe [our pricing] changes are fair, reasonable and fully within the guidance provided by Ofcom’s March 2013 document on end-to-end competition,” Royal Mail said.
TNT Post UK first launched its final mile services in West London in April 2012, and now has about 3,000 delivery staff operating through various parts of west and central London, in Manchester and most recently Liverpool. The company ultimately wants to have 20,000 delivery staff around the UK within five years.
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