In Ukraine, there may be a legislative requirement for utility providers to ensure full transparency in pricing. The initiative proposes the introduction of a mandatory "tariff declaration" and the use of QR codes in bills so that every citizen can verify the justification of charges.
Tariff declaration as a new standard
Bill No. 15435 has been registered in the Verkhovna Rada, introducing strict rules for utility companies. The document obliges service providers to publish an official document — a tariff declaration. It must detail the economic justification for every penny in the bill.
According to the text of the initiative, the declaration must specify:
- The production cost of the service;
- The company's administrative expenses;
- The amount of profit;
- Tax payments and other price components.
Without the approval and publication of such a document, the introduction of new prices for services will be prohibited. This aims to eliminate the situation where tariffs rise without apparent reasons for the consumer.
Verifying tariffs via smartphone
To allow citizens to easily control the fairness of charges, legislators propose changing the appearance of bills. Each bill will feature a scannable QR code. By scanning it with a smartphone camera, the user can instantly access a website and review the full breakdown of the tariff included in the payment amount.
Fines for calculation errors
The bill also provides mechanisms to protect citizens from incorrect charges. If a utility company or property management company makes a calculation error, they will be obliged not only to refund the overpayment but also to pay a fine.
The fine amount will equal the difference between the erroneously charged amount and the actual cost of the service. At the same time, the fine cannot exceed ten times the actual cost of the service. This incentivizes providers to check data more carefully before issuing bills.
