Since July of last year, when the decision of the Agency for Information and Privacy entered into force, requiring water and electricity bills to be distributed to consumers in sealed envelopes, “KRU Prishtina” and KESCO have been fined a total of 65,000 euros for non-compliance. The Agency stated that the decision aims to protect citizens’ privacy, but the companies did not provide specific responses regarding the fines imposed.
For non-compliance with the decision regarding the distribution of bills in sealed envelopes, from July of last year until March of this year, the Agency for Information and Privacy (AIP) fined the Regional Water Supply Company “Prishtina” 45,000 euros, and KESCO was fined 20,000 euros.
The AIP’s decision, which mandates the distribution of bills to consumers in sealed envelopes to preserve privacy, has been in effect since July.
In detailing the imposed fines, the AIP highlighted the lack of information provided to citizens about the importance of privacy protection.
“The Agency for Information and Privacy has set a deadline since last year for public enterprises to issue bills securely, without unauthorized access to citizens’ personal data. We have received several complaints and imposed fines on ‘KESCO’ and ‘KRU Prishtina’. We also imposed a fine on ‘KRU Prishtina’. Unfortunately, citizens do not understand the importance or are not well-informed about protecting their privacy,” stated an AIP response.
When asked about the fines, “KRU Prishtina” did not provide specific responses but mentioned that bill distribution with envelopes is done in areas with higher foot traffic.
“Starting in June 2024, we have continuously started distributing bills in envelopes. This is especially done in more frequented places, such as shopping centers and collective housing. The tender has been open since last year, and we have secured a large quantity of envelopes for bill distribution. The process is going well and continues to be so. Meanwhile, for private homes, the bill is printed and handed directly to the consumer, which differs from collective and public housing,” said “KRU Prishtina” in their response.
The spokesperson for KEDS, Lulzim Krasniqi, did not comment on the fines but mentioned that they are planning to distribute electricity bills in sealed envelopes to approximately 700,000 consumers.
“As we have announced, we are facing major operational difficulties during this process, especially with house and apartment numbers, the lack of correct addresses, and other difficulties. Last year, we placed bills in envelopes and sent them to hundreds of thousands of consumers. However, this is a process that takes time, and finding the best solution requires inter-institutional cooperation, where other alternatives may be considered to find the most efficient solution,” Krasniqi said.
The AIP’s decision applies to all central and local public enterprises. For non-compliance, the lowest fine is 20,000 euros, while the highest can be up to 50,000 euros.
