Royal Mail has abandoned it's efforts to quash a decision by Postcomm to reject Royal Mail's application to introduce “zonal pricing” for a number of its bulk retail services.

In April 2008, Royal Mail brought judicial review proceedings against Postcomm, seeking to quash the decision. Postcomm had rejected the Royal Mail Letters’ application at the end of 2007 on the basis that the proposal would introduce a zonal pricing structure for bulk retail services that appeared to have a number of discriminatory features and that it would have been introduced in a manner which would have resulted in unreasonable changes for Royal Mail’s customers. The proposal involved a structure based on five zones.

Separately Royal Mail Wholesale submitted an application to Postcomm to modify the Conditions of its licence to enable it to introduce a new four- zone pricing structure for access services.

After careful consideration of this application, consultation with stakeholders and constructive engagement between Postcomm and the Royal Mail Wholesale team, Postcomm decided on 14 May 2009 to modify the Licence to enable Royal Mail Wholesale to offer the proposed new zonal access pricing structure from April 2010.

However, Royal Mail has now indicated that it wishes to withdraw its judicial review application in relation to retail zonal pricing, with each side paying its own legal costs.

Postcomm has accepted this proposal. Royal Mail's new approach to the pricing structure for access services could provide the basis on which Postcomm’s main objection to the proposed bulk retail zonal pricing structure could be resolved.

Postcomm said that against this background, continuing with litigation would involve considerable legal cost, and would not be in the interest of postal users who ultimately would have to meet that cost. The judicial review proceedings therefore have ended.

Source: Postcomm, UK Postal Regulator

© Hellmail.co.uk (22 June 2009)

See Also >>

Hellmail content is covered by copyright and may not be reproduced without a return link to the article.

This article can now be Stumbled, E-mailed to a friend or displayed in an easy-print format.