Bakom comes under fire for faulty Serafe invoices
The Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM) underestimated the risks involved in introducing the new radio and television levy. This is the conclusion of a report by the Business Audit Committee of the Council of States (GPK-S).
The Bakom had largely fulfilled its supervisory duty in the changeover of the collection of radio and television fees. This is stated in the report published by the GPK-S on Thursday. However, the changeover to the collection per household had been underestimated.
When the new collection agency Serafe sent out the first bills for reception fees at the beginning of 2019, several thousand Swiss households received incorrect fee invoices. Bakom pointed out that the incorrect bills were due to faulty household data from the cantons and municipalities. The municipalities' residents' services and Serafe were then flooded with complaints.
Bakom reacted quickly and declared Serafe the sole point of contact, the report says. In addition, Bakom has been working to reduce the number of false invoices per month since the problems began.
Unclear cost implications
However, the commission regrets that several thousand households still received an incorrect bill each month, the parliamentary services announced on Thursday. Most recently, it was revealed in June this year that 224,000 households received two bills for reception fees in May. The commission said it expects Bakom to review the cooperation between the municipalities and cantons and Serafe and take further improvement measures.
The commission also notes that the costs for the incorrectly sent Serafe invoices are not yet known. The GPK-S therefore demands that the Federal Council now clarify how much this additional expenditure costs and who has to pay for it.
The commission has asked the Federal Council for a statement by January 25, 2021. The Commission reserves the right to reopen the dossier in the event of new incidents and to take action if necessary. (SDA)
