Establishing when a postal item is considered to be delayed or lost can be defined in regulations or set out in the terms and conditions of the universal service provider (USP). The same provisions may also establish the maximum level of compensation payable in such cases or for damaged items.

Cullen International’s Postal service now includes a new benchmark covering the conditions applying to delayed, lost and damaged items in eleven European countries.

Six of the eleven countries have specific rules defining when a postal item is considered to be late or lost, all set out in the USPs’ terms and conditions. In the remaining five states, there is no precise definition.

The USP's responsibility for late, damaged and lost postal items is regulated at national level in Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Poland, setting out a maximum level of compensation to be paid by the USP to an end user. In the other seven countries, the maximum level of compensation is set out in the USPs’ terms and conditions.