Statutory Rules 1998    No. 991
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Australian Postal Corporation (Performance Standards) Regulations 1998
I, WILLIAM PATRICK DEANE, Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, make the following Regulations under the Australian Postal Corporation Act 1989.
Dated 20 May 1998.
	WILLIAM DEANE
	Governor-General
By His Excellency’s Command,

RICHARD ALSTON
Minister for Communications, the Information Economy and the Arts
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PART 1—PRELIMINARY
Name of Regulations
	1.	These Regulations are the Australian Postal (Performance Standards) Regulations 1998.
Commencement
	2.	These Regulations commence on 1 July 1998.
Definitions
	3.	In these Regulations:
Act means the Australian Postal Corporation Act 1989.
bulk mail means a letter lodged with Australia Post for delivery under its bulk mail service, and accepted by Australia Post for delivery under that service.
off-peak mail means a letter lodged with Australia Post for delivery under its off-peak mail service, and accepted by Australia Post for delivery under that service.
Note    The operation of the bulk and off-peak services is set out in The Guide to PreSort Letters issued by Australia Post in December 1995.
PART 2—MAIL DELIVERIES
Purpose
	4.	This Part prescribes the performance standards to be met by Australia Post in respect of the frequency, speed and accuracy of mail delivery.
Frequency of delivery
	5.	(1)	Australia Post must service:
	(a)	daily (except on a Saturday, a Sunday or a public holiday in the place where the delivery point is located)—98% of all delivery points; and 
	(b)	at least 2 days each week—99.7% of all delivery points.
	(2)	For subregulation (1), a delivery point is a mail address that, taking account of accessibility, delivery cost and general volume of mail for the address, it is practicable and reasonable to service frequently.
Examples of delivery points
Street and roadside letter delivery boxes, post office private boxes and locked bags, private and community bags.
	(3)	In this regulation: 
service, in relation to a delivery point, means be available to visit the delivery point and, if there is a postal article addressed to the delivery point, deliver the article.
Accuracy and speed of delivery
	6.	(1)	This regulation applies to the delivery of letters (reserved services letters) to which subsection 29 (2) of the Act applies, except: 
	(a)	letters to which section 30 applies; and
	(b)	letters originating outside Australia; and
	(c)	letters lodged with Australia Post for delivery as bulk mail; and
	(d)	letters lodged with Australia Post for delivery as off‑peak mail.
Note   Subsection 29 (2) of the Act sets out the services reserved to Australia Post. Section 30 of the Act sets out a number of exceptions to the reserved services.
	(2)	Australia Post must deliver at least 94% of all reserved services letters lodged with Australia Post: 
	(a)	to the indicated address or, if Australia Post knows that the indicated address is not the appropriate address, to the appropriate address; and
	(b)	within the delivery time mentioned for the address in the following table. 

Address of letter	Delivery time	
Letters for delivery intraState:		
(a)	within metropolitan area of capital city of lodgment	Next business day after day of posting	
(b)	within any other city or town of lodgment, or within adjacent town	Next business day after day of posting	
(c)	outside city or town of lodgment and adjacent towns	2 business days after day of posting	
Letters for delivery interState:		
(a)	within capital city metro-politan area if lodged in capital city metropolitan area of another State 	2 business days after day of posting	
(b)	within capital city metro-politan area if lodged outside capital city metro-politan area of another State 	3 business days after day of posting	
(c)	outside capital city metro-politan area if lodged in capital city metropolitan area of another State 	3 business days after day of posting	
(d)	outside capital city metro-politan area if lodged outside capital city metro-politan area of another State 	4 business days after day of posting	
	(3)	Subregulation (2) does not apply to a letter lodged for delivery to a mail address that is not normally serviced as provided by paragraph 5 (1) (a).
	(4)	In this regulation: 
day of posting means the period of 24 hours ending, for a mail lodgment point mentioned in regulation 8, at the time notified as the latest time each day for posting at that lodgment point;
Note   Posting boxes bear a notice setting out the daily latest time for posting before clearance of the box.
State includes the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory.
PART 3—ACCESSIBILITY OF SERVICES
Purpose
	7.	This Part prescribes the performance standards to be met by Australia Post in respect of the availability and accessibility of:
	(a)	post-boxes and other mail lodgment points; and
	(b)	offices of Australia Post from which Australia Post products or services may be purchased.
Mail lodgment points—articles other than bulk mail
	8.	(1)	Australia Post must maintain the following mail lodgment points in Australia for the lodgment of postal articles other than bulk mail:
	(a)	lodgment facilities at each of its retail outlets; and
	(b)	at least 10,000 street posting boxes.
	(2)	A lodgment facility at a retail outlet may be a street posting box.
	(3)	In this regulation:
retail outlet means an office of the kind mentioned in subregulation 9 (1);
street posting box means a container provided in a public place by Australia Post for the lodgment of standard postal articles for collection and delivery by Australia Post.
Retail outlets
	9.	(1)	Australia Post must maintain, in Australia, at least 4,000 offices (retail outlets) at which persons can purchase Australia Post products and services.
	(2)	At any time, at least 50% of retail outlets in operation must be located in places that, within the meaning of the areas classification report, are in a rural zone or remote zone.
	(3)	A retail outlet must be so located that:
	(a)	in a metropolitan area (within the meaning of the areas classification report), at least 90% of residences in the area are located within 2.5 kilometres of a retail outlet; and
	(b)	in the area comprising the non-metropolitan zones (within the meaning of the areas classification report), at least 85% of residences in the area are located within 7.5 kilometres of a retail outlet.
	(4)	Compliance with this regulation does not require that a retail outlet be capable of retailing all kinds of Australia Post products and services at all times.
	(5)	In this regulation: 
areas classification report means the report titled “Rural, Remote and Metropolitan Areas Classification 1991 Census Edition” published by the Department of Primary Industries and Energy and the Department of Human Services and Health in November 1994.
	
NOTE
1.	Notified in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette on 27 May 1998.