Vectra denies allegations regarding inflation clauses. He talks about rising costs and “realization of prices”

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection stated, among other things, that the provisions used by the company are “ambiguous and illegible” for customers, and Vectra did not specify in the contracts how large price increases may ultimately occur. According to the office, the method of calculating the amount of increases was also unfair to customers.

Vectra responds to the allegations of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection. The office “questions any form of price adjustment”

In a statement sent to the editorial office of Gazeta.pl, Vectra does not agree with the allegations and assessments of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, which – as the company writes – “were made at such an initial stage of the proceedings.” The company explains that “like the rest of Poles”, it has been struggling for years with “a huge increase in costs”, which significantly affect the company’s operations and, as a result, “the quality and availability of basic services for customers”.

Vectra also stated that the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection “has been questioning any form of price adjustment for years.” She added that – as the company’s legal expertise showed – the prepared contracts (inflation clauses) and activities in this area “were and are consistent with applicable regulations.” It was also stated that the reasons for introducing increased prices included, among others: “inflation, a sudden increase in costs and the obligation to incur expenditure in order to maintain the expected quality of services.” These reasons were also presented to the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection.

The operator noted that it had “several attempts to agree with the office on how to make such a change” and was still open to “constructive talks” that would help clarify the situation. Additionally, people expressed surprise that the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection “restricts selected industries from taking actions aimed at adapting prices to market realities.”

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection wants a huge fine for Vectra. The government received hundreds of complaints

The case of the so-called Vectra’s inflation increases have been going on since January 2023, when the operator increased subscription prices by the official inflation reading from 2022 (as much as 14.4%) during the term of the contracts. As a result, over the next 12 months, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection received several hundred complaints about the operator’s actions. In its statement on Wednesday, the office stated, among other things, that increasing the price by the official inflation rate could result in “transferring the entire responsibility for the changing economic situation to consumers,” which is unfair.

The president of the office, Tomasz Chróstny, explained that inflation clauses – if introduced – should “protect both parties and cannot be used only to the benefit of entrepreneurs” and added that customers should know what services they will receive under the term contract and what price they will cost. pay before signing the document. In the case of Vectra, customers also did not have the option of terminating the contract without consequences in response to an increase in the price of the service.

Several examples of complaints from customers who received information about price increases shortly after signing the contract were also provided. Some complained that the price was increased by the 2022 inflation rate, even though they only started using Vectra’s services in early 2023. The company may face a penalty of a maximum of 10%. turnover. The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection is also conducting similar explanatory proceedings in the case of several other operators – Orange Polska, P4, T-Mobile Polska and Multimedia Polska.