Deco Qualifies 50% Increases for Via Verde as Abuse of Exclusivity – Cars

Deco Protest accuses Via Verde of “hiding” the new tariff “in an alleged restructuring of the offer” and “denying the company’s proclaimed business practice which exposes customers to increases of up to 50%, well above the 3% expected for inflation to maintain access to services previously that they contracted with the operator.

A scenario that, in the view of the Consumer Protection Association, “can only be protected by the unfortunate fact that there is no competition that threatens the absolute dominance of Via Verde in this market.”

In a statement issued this Tuesday, Deco stated that Brisa Group Inc. “has not, after all, added a service to what it has already offered,” so, as of January 5th, “consumers will be paying significantly more with the same set of services they’re already offering.” .

In addition to criticizing Via Verde’s new tariff for providing a “50% increase in subscriptions that integrate usual services”, Deco also objects to Via Verde’s decision to stop selling identifiers”, forcing potential customers to associate with subscriptions they don’t want and which, in many cases cases, it is more expensive for highway users.”

The organization goes further, saying it “fears that when existing ID owners end up needing a new battery, they will have no alternative but to sign up for a subscription.”

From January 5, Via Verde plans to discontinue subscription packages sold under the “Via Verde Livre” and “Via Verde Leve” names, and start selling new subscription modes “at significantly higher prices than their predecessors and, in some cases, with less connected services”, as Indicates.

The catalog includes – templates – three new methods. “Via Verde Autoestrada” – available at a monthly payment of 0.59 € (with a reduction of 0.50 € in the case of subscription to the electronic statement) only allows access to the payment of the fee; Whereas “Via Verde Mobilidade” – a subscription at a monthly price of 1.49 EUR (with a reduction of 0.50 EUR in the case of an electronic statement subscription) which gives access to the payment of fees and supplementary services (such as the payment of parking fees or fuel supplies). This is when Deco reports that the monthly fee for this service package is currently €0.99.

Finally, the “Via Verde Mobilidade Leve” includes the same services as the “Via Verde Mobilidade”, with the difference that the monthly fee of 1.75 euros is paid exclusively in the months in which the service is used. Services that correspond to a monthly fee of 1.20 euros refer to Deco.

According to the consumer protection organisation, “Via Verde will contact all subscription customers and inform them that from January 5th they will be automatically transferred to the new offer, with the same set of services previously available., but with an ‘adjustment’ in the price.” He notes that something “only occurs if the customer expresses his opposition in writing within ten working days after receiving the informational communication from Via Verde, which results in the termination of the contract linking him to the operator”.

In fact, there is a transition period foreseen, until March 31, 2022. This means that from April 1 only, new subscriptions will, definitively, be subject to a pricing update, Deco explains, also noting that during this transition period, “customers can also choose To subscribe to another subscription package out of the three available in the new Via Verde offer.

Operating as an operator for decades”Unique in Portugal’s toll-collection system” Via Verde has nearly three million customers, which appears to be the “only option for automatic debit payments,” Deco asserts, and reproduces data from Brisa indicating that payments using Via Verde machines accounted for 84,2% of motorway transactions in 2020.