Hungarian Webshops To Offer Delivery By Hungarian Post

• Published date: 03 April 2024
• Subject Matter: Consumer Protection, Consumer Trading & Unfair Trading
• Law Firm: Schoenherr Attorneys at Law
• Author: Ms Kinga Hetényi and Zsófia Rideg

From 28 March 2024, businesses operating in Hungary will be required to offer services by the state-owned enterprise Hungarian Post ("Magyar Posta") as a delivery option for consumers using their online stores. The text of the new provision is concise and has raised several questions.

It is clear that the new provision will only apply to B2C relationships, i.e. when the purchaser is a consumer. Every private individual (including self-employed person) who acts outside the scope of their profession or business activity is a consumer. The new regulation also only applies to products that are not excluded under Magyar Posta's general terms and conditions ("GTC"). For example, dangerous goods under the ADR are excluded as well as hot meals prepared for delivery on the same day, and all products that require continuous refrigeration throughout their delivery.

The Government Decree that introduced the new rule does not contain any official reasoning or explanation, nor has the government published a justification for its adoption. The Ministry of National Economy (the "Ministry") and Magyar Posta have both collected frequently asked questions on this topic and provided some practical answers. However, as their publications are not legally binding instruments, they can only serve as soft guidelines when interpreting the new rule. For example, the Ministry has stated that even though the scope of the Government Decree covers businesses selling goods in Hungary in general, the obligation only applies to deliveries dispatched from Hungary (e.g. from a Hungarian warehouse) and does not apply where the goods are dispatched from a state other than Hungary. This is due to the scope of Magyar Posta's GTC, which stipulate that it provides a delivery service only for items posted in Hungary.

Magyar Posta...