Dear competition inspectors,
I would like to inquire the council regarding the recent set of events surrounding a controversial arrangement between the telecommunications company Romtelecom and the insurance company Astra Asigurari.
Specifically, in April 2010 the Romanian media unveiled that Romtelecom was forcefully enrolling their existing phone service customers into property insurance plans provided by Astra, while charging for the insurance premium directly through the telephone bills. It is further well known that Romtelecom engaged in this practice without the customer's permission or request for such services, and in fact, a number of complaints to the Autoritatea Nationala pentru Protectia Consumatorilor (ANPC) reveal that customers inquiring and requesting termination of the insurance policy faced a great deal of resistance and even outright refusal from the Romtelecom staff.
