Prohibition on charging illegally high fees for invoices issued to consumers

According to the Norwegian Consumer Protection Authority, the companies Convene AS, Telenor Norge AS and Telia Norge AS illegally demand high invoice fees from consumers. The Norwegian Consumer Protection Authority has notified companies that we will adopt a decision prohibiting illegal practices.

In the fall, the Norwegian Consumer Protection Authority had four different supervisory cases regarding the amount of the invoice fee. We have now notified Convene, Telenor and Telia that we will adopt a resolution prohibiting these companies from charging illegally high fees when invoicing consumers.

– We seriously believe that many entrepreneurs do not comply with the legal provisions that limit the amount of fees for invoices. In this case, there are, of course, many industries and companies that need to familiarize themselves with the regulations as soon as possible and change their practices to avoid breaking the law, says Trond Rønningen, director of the Norwegian Office Consumer Protection.

The Act states that the fee for receiving an invoice cannot exceed the actual costs of issuing the invoice borne by the company.

What fees can a business charge a consumer as part of its invoice fees?

Invoice fee limits apply to anyone who issues invoices to consumers.

It is permissible to charge an invoice fee, but this fee cannot be higher than the actual costs of issuing the invoice.

When companies calculate their actual cost of issuing and sending an invoice, only the costs associated with each customer's chosen invoice as a payment method can be included. It is unacceptable to include the costs of remuneration, IT systems and equipment when calculating the invoice fee.

Restrictions on what costs can be included in the fee apply regardless of whether the trader issues an invoice to the consumer himself or uses a subcontractor for this purpose. If you use a subcontractor, you can only charge consumers the subcontractor's actual costs, not the profit the subcontractor makes from its work.

One company founded

In addition to the three companies, supervisory proceedings were also initiated in the fall against the telecommunications operator Ice Communication Norge AS. However, in accordance with the guidelines of our supervisory department, the company decided to change its practice.

– It's very positive that Ice decided to adapt. Then we don't have to make a decision, says the director of the Consumer Protection Office, Trond Rønningen.

If the remaining three supervised companies change their practice by January 18, 2024 at the latest, we will not make a decision. If they do not change their practices, companies that continue to break the law will face heavy fines. We have notified Convene of a fine of NOK 3 per week if they continue this practice, while Telenor and Telia have been notified of weekly fines of NOK 000 and NOK 000 respectively.

Before we make a decision, Convene, Telenor and Telia will have the opportunity to comment on the matter to the Norwegian Consumer Protection Authority until January 18, 2024.

Why these three companies?

For a long time, the Norwegian Protection Authority Consumers received a large number of complaints about companies and industries charging high fees for invoices.

The reason why the Norwegian Consumer Protection Authority will now decide against Convene, Telenor and Telia is because they bill for services that almost all consumers use: healthcare and telephony. These companies are the largest in their industries and, as a result, their practices influence many consumers.

The Norwegian Consumer Protection Authority will in the future check whether companies from other industries also comply with the legal requirements regarding limiting the amount of invoice fees.

“Now that these issues are known, we expect all other companies that bill consumers to also comply with the requirements of the law. If during subsequent inspections we detect violations of the law by other entrepreneurs, our reactions may be severe, says Rønningen.