Biznes Fakty
Allegro vs. InPost. The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) speaks out.
The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) has been alerted to potential limitations on users’ freedom to select delivery options on Allegro, as communicated to the business editorial team at the tvn24.pl portal. It was mentioned that these reports are under review as part of an ongoing investigation. Rafał Brzoska had previously accused Allegro of having a „conflict of interest.”
Recently, a post surfaced on InPost’s official social media channels, highlighting that several Allegro users expressed dissatisfaction over their inability to choose a parcel locker as their delivery option. This issue primarily stemmed from the default configuration. InPost’s CEO, Rafał Brzoska, discussed the „clear conflict of interest” on Channel Zero.
Marcin Gruszka, the communications director and spokesperson for the company, assured tvn24.pl in response to inquiries: „Customers always have and will continue to have complete authority over where and how they receive their orders.” „The ultimate choice resides solely with them,” he clarified.
The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection is examining the situation
We have reached out to the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) for a statement regarding this issue.
„The Office has received signals from the market suggesting a possible limitation on the freedom of delivery method choices available to users of the Allegro.pl platform, including Allegro’s preferential promotion of its own service – Allegro Delivery,” stated the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) in its response.
„These reports are currently being examined for potential breaches of competition regulations during the investigation,” it added.
Furthermore, the authority emphasizes that the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) has been monitoring Allegro’s operations for an extended period. „In December 2022, the company was penalized over PLN 200 million for exploiting its dominant position by favoring its own store on the platform,” clarified UOKiK.
„The company favored its own online store (Allegro Official Store) on the platform operating under the allegro.pl domain, disadvantaging independent sellers offering the same or comparable products. Consumers may also have felt the impact of this practice, as it could have limited their ability to find the best deals,” commented Tomasz Chróstny, President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK). For the abuse of its dominant position, the President of UOKiK imposed a penalty exceeding PLN 206 million (PLN 206,169,786) on Allegro.
Read more: Allegro under scrutiny by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection. High fine >>>
By the end of 2024, the Allegro group had 4,562 parcel lockers in Poland, operating under the One Box brand. In December, InPost announced that it had 25,000 parcel lockers across Poland.
