The Fair Trade Commission issued administrative guidance to Japan Post last year for failing to adequately respond to a request from its parcel delivery service subcontractor to pass on higher costs, people familiar with the matter said Wednesday.
Japan Post was asked by a subcontractor entrusted with Yu-Pack parcel deliveries to raise the commission fees it paid, in light of rising costs. The company, however, left the subcontracting fees unchanged without discussion, according to the people.
The FTC issued the administrative guidance to Japan Post in June last year, judging that Japan Post’s response could be perceived under the subcontract law as driving down prices.
It was already known that the FTC also issued an administrative guidance in the same month to Japan Post for collecting penalty fees for failed deliveries and complaints about cigarette smell from subcontractors without sufficient explanation, in violation of the same law.
