(b) the service would fall within the description of a service set out in that
order but for the fact that—
(i) in the case of a service consisting of the delivery or collection of
letters or other postal packets, the delivery or collection is not
made on each of the days required by section 31 (see
requirements 1 and 2),
(ii) the service is not provided throughout the United Kingdom, or
(iii) the service is not provided at an affordable price in accordance
with a public tariff which is uniform throughout the United
Kingdom, or
(c) in the opinion of OFCOM the service is of a kind that, from the point of
view of users of postal services, could reasonably be said to be
interchangeable with a service of a description set out in that order.
(2) In this section any reference to a service includes a part of a service.
41 Notification condition
(1) OFCOM may impose a notification condition on—
(a) every person providing, or intending to provide, a service within the
scope of the universal postal service, or
(b) every person providing, or intending to provide, a service within the
scope of the universal postal service of a specified description.
(2) A notification condition is a condition requiring the person to give OFCOM—
(a) advance notice of the person’s intention to provide a letters business on
a specified scale (whether or not the person is currently providing a
letters business or any other postal service), and
(b) where the person is already providing a letters business on a specified
scale, advance notice of the person’s intention to expand the business
by a specified extent.
(3) A specified scale or extent may be determined by reference to any specified
factor.
(4) The Secretary of State may at any time direct OFCOM to impose a notification
condition.
(5) The direction may (but need not) specify some or all of the provision to be
contained in the condition.
(6) Where a notification condition applies to a person at a time when the person is
not providing a postal service—
(a) Schedule 7 (enforcement of regulatory conditions) is to have effect as if
paragraph 7(2) and (3) were omitted and as if, for the purposes of
paragraph 11, the person were providing a postal service, and
(b) Schedule 8 (information provisions) is to have effect as if the person
were a person falling within paragraph 1(2) and as if, for the purposes
of paragraph 8, the person were providing a postal service.
(7) In this section—
“advance notice” means written notice given at least a specified period of
time before the person intends to do as mentioned in subsection (2)(a)
or (b),Postal Services Act 2011 (c. 5)
Part 3 — Regulation of postal services
27
“a letters business” means a postal service which consists in the delivery
of letters, and
“specified” means specified in the notification condition.
42 General universal service conditions
(1) OFCOM may impose a general universal service condition on—
(a) every postal operator providing a service within the scope of the
universal postal service, or
(b) every postal operator providing a service within the scope of the
universal postal service of a description specified in the condition.
(2) A general universal service condition is—
(a) a condition containing such obligations as OFCOM consider necessary
to impose for, or in connection with, securing the provision of a
universal postal service in accordance with the standards set out in the
universal postal service order, or
(b) a condition containing such obligations as OFCOM consider necessary
to impose for the purposes of section 46.
(3) A general universal service condition may require a person—
(a) to make contributions in accordance with any scheme established
under section 46, and
(b) to take such steps as may be required by any such scheme as regards
contributions made by users of services within the scope of the
universal postal service.
(4) At any time when there is a universal service provider, nothing in subsection
(2)(a) is to be read as authorising the imposition of a condition requiring a
person—
(a) to deliver or collect letters or other postal packets as mentioned in
section 31,
(b) to provide a service throughout the United Kingdom, or
(c) to provide a service at an affordable price in accordance with a public
tariff which is uniform throughout the United Kingdom.
43 Recovery of administrative charges incurred by OFCOM
Schedule 4 makes provision authorising OFCOM to impose charges on postal
operators providing services within the scope of the universal postal service to
meet costs incurred by OFCOM in carrying out their functions in relation to
postal services.
Financial support for universal postal service
44 Review of costs of universal service obligations
(1) OFCOM may from time to time review the extent (if any) of the financial
burden for a universal service provider of complying with its universal service
obligations.
(2) In carrying out a review under this section OFCOM must consider the extent
to which, in their opinion, the provider is complying with its universal service
obligations in a cost-efficient manner.Postal Services Act 2011 (c. 5)
Part 3 — Regulation of postal services
28
(3) If—
(a) regulations under section 35 require the financial burden of complying
with universal service obligations (or proposed universal service
obligations) to be taken into account in determining whom to
designate, and
(b) the regulations provide for a particular method of calculating that
burden to be used for the purposes of that determination,
that must be the method of calculation applied on a review under this section.
(4) If subsection (3) does not apply, the financial burden of complying is to be
taken to be the amount calculated by OFCOM to be the net cost of compliance
after allowing for market benefits accruing to the universal service provider
from—
(a) the provider’s designation, and
(b) the application to the provider of universal service obligations.
(5) After carrying out a review under this section OFCOM must either—
(a) ensure that the calculations made by them on the review are audited by
a person who appears to them to be independent of universal service
providers, or
(b) carry out an audit of those calculations themselves.
(6) OFCOM must ensure that a report on the audit—
(a) is prepared, and
(b) if not prepared by OFCOM, is provided to them.
(7) OFCOM must publish—
(a) their conclusions on the review, and
(b) a summary of the report of the audit which was carried out as respects
the calculations made for the purposes of that review.
(8) The publication must be in such manner as OFCOM consider appropriate for
bringing it to the attention of the persons who, in their opinion, are likely to be
affected by it.
(9) The Secretary of State may at any time direct OFCOM to carry out a review
under this section.
(10) Unless directed to do so by the Secretary of State, OFCOM may not carry out a
review under this section before the end of the period of 5 years beginning with
the day on which this section comes into force.
45 Fairness of bearing burden of universal service obligations
(1) This section applies if OFCOM—
(a) have concluded on a review under section 44 that complying with its
universal service obligations imposes a financial burden on a universal
service provider, and
(b) have published that conclusion in accordance with that section.
(2) OFCOM must determine whether they consider it is or would be unfair for the
provider to bear, or to continue to bear, the whole or a part of the burden of
complying with its universal service obligations.
(3) The determination by OFCOM of