Dropp says Iceland Post misrepresents its complaints

Dropp has not called for Iceland Post to leave the parcel market, but wants regulators to examine whether public funding for universal service is subsidising its commercial operations, Dropp chief executive Hrólfur Andri Tómasson told mbl.is.

Tómasson said Iceland Post’s board and chief executive gave a misleading account of competitors’ complaints in the company’s interim report. The report says some believe Iceland Post should not compete in the market and that market participants have frequently complained about its operations to regulators in Iceland and abroad.

Dropp’s complaints concern whether state funds intended to support universal service are being used to subsidise competitive services. They also raise allegations of abuse of market position through undercutting or exclusionary business terms, and whether Iceland Post’s role as a universal service provider is being used to distort competition.

Iceland Post says in its interim report that the Competition Authority has decided to open an investigation following a preliminary assessment. A complaint concerning state support is also being examined by the EFTA Surveillance Authority. No conclusions have been reached.

State payments to Iceland Post for universal service rose from 487 million Icelandic krónur in 2023 to 757 million for 2025.

Tómasson said Dropp had no objection to Iceland Post competing for parcel business. The question, he said, was whether its methods and funding comply with rules designed to ensure fair competition.

He said consumers, online retailers and taxpayers all had an interest in the outcome, and called on Iceland Post’s board and chief executive to address the complaints seriously.