Since the European Commission announced its ambition to reform the regulatory postal framework last year, stakeholders have been invited to contribute to various consultation processes to share their views on potential policy options currently considered for a new EU Delivery Act.
In this context, before the summer break, Ecommerce Europe’s President, Mr Gero Furchheim, represented the association at the Implementation Dialogue on the new EU Delivery Act. The meeting was hosted by the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné (Prosperity and Industrial Strategy). It covered several critical questions that will need to be addressed ahead of a potential reform of the postal framework, including the future of the universal service, fair competition, cross-border deliveries, user rights, and simplification.
During the meeting, Ecommerce Europe shared its views on the future of postal services and the universal service obligation, stressing its importance as a key enabler of e-commerce. Many businesses, especially SMEs, rely on it to expand their reach, serve remote areas, and offer affordable delivery. The universal service must therefore be maintained and governed by clear principles: affordability, sufficient geographical coverage, and reliability. At the same time, it should remain adaptable to each Member State’s realities, as requirements detached from national circumstances risk being unsustainable and undermining the service’s reliability and user trust. This flexibility, however, must never come at the expense of the universal service’s core role as a safety net, particularly for vulnerable users and remote areas.
When discussing other aspects of the upcoming reform, many participants cautioned against extending postal regulation to the already competitive commercial parcel sector, favouring horizontal laws instead of sector-specific over-regulation. Consumer representatives pushed for the ability to choose delivery providers based on quality and price, and for stronger redress mechanisms, while participants broadly urged simplification to avoid a “regulatory tsunami” and careful assessment of impacts on end-users and SMEs.
On the European Commission’s side, Séjourné announced that the proposal will be published in Q1 2027. He also reiterated that the act aims to modernise and simplify delivery in the EU, with a focus on the consumer perspective. Finally, he stressed the need to strike a balance between flexible national interpretation of the universal service and the need to ensure the required service level, especially given that implementation levels already vary across Member States.
Ecommerce Europe continues to closely follow the development of the EU Delivery Act and to engage with the Commission and co-legislators to ensure that the reform is workable for e-merchants across the sector.