Vectra’s inflation increases enraged customers. The number of complaints is growing. The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection provided the numbers

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection has already received approximately 300 complaints about Vectra and its Multimedia Polska company. And we are only talking about complaints about the increases introduced on the basis of the provisions of the so-called inflation clauses, allowing the price for the service to be increased during the term of the contract. Interestingly, only since September the number of dissatisfied customers has increased significantly.

More price increases and more complaints about Vectra. UOKiK: there are already about 300 of them

Vectra introduced inflation increases for the first group of customers in January 2023, and Multimedia Polska decided to use the clauses a month later. Enterprises then increased their prices by 14.4%, i.e. the inflation rate for 2022 provided by the Central Statistical Office. Successive groups of customers, which caused considerable dissatisfaction. The last one took place in January this year.

As we have now learned from the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, the office has already received approximately 300 complaints against Vectra and Multimedia Polska, of which the last 100 were submitted in the period from September 2023. After one complaint, the regulator also received two other companies that (to varying degrees) decided to take advantage of the provisions of the inflation clauses – Orange Polska and T-Mobile.

Wirtualnemedia.pl would like to remind you that the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection is conducting explanatory proceedings regarding the introduction of the above-mentioned clauses from November 2022. In addition to Vectra and Multimedia Polska, the provisions used by Orange Polska, T-Mobile Polska and P4 – the operator of the Play network – were scrutinized. However, no charges have been brought in these cases yet. Therefore, the position of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection regarding inflation increases remains unknown.

However, the Office wants to make sure that the provisions in the documents were clear to consumers and legal. – The provisions used in contracts must be clear, precise and understandable to the average consumer. It is important that consumers know the rules on the basis of which services are to be provided under a fixed-term contract and are aware of the price they will pay for telecommunications services – explained Tomasz Chróstny, president of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, quoted by the website.

Inflation clauses are controversial provisions that were included in (newly signed) contracts with customers of several operators in 2022. They give enterprises the opportunity to increase the amounts included in ongoing contracts by a maximum of the official inflation rate, which until recently remained at the level of several percent. The operators explained that the clauses were intended to provide security for companies in a situation where inflation remains high for a long time, and therefore operating costs are constantly increasing. Customers are obviously not happy with this practice because they cannot terminate the contract with the operator without any costs, even if the operator takes advantage of the clauses to increase prices during the contract period.