Column: ‘Parcel delivery should be a service to rely on’

The answer will almost certainly be yes, given the vast growth in online deliveries.

It’s usually a fast, convenient and easy way to get the items you need and has been essential during the pandemic.

However, Citizens Advice research suggests that things often don’t go perfectly.

As many as five-and-a-half million (one in ten people) have had a parcel lost or stolen in the last year.

In addition, more than 20million people (38 per cent of all UK adults) have received a ‘sorry you were out’ card, despite being home, resulting in some parcels being left in insecure places like doorsteps and bins.

As a national body, one of Citizens Advice’s roles is to act as the consumer advocate for the postal sector.

We think that the parcels market needs an end-to-end overhaul.

As an individual consumer, it’s easy to lay the blame at the door of hard-working drivers, but these are not isolated incidents; they’re widespread.

The problems we see result from a system that often gives consumers limited practical means of redress – and that must be addressed before things begin to improve.

Gazette columnist Martin Lord

Some of our other findings included:

* Almost seven million people (13 per cent of all UK adults) experienced a parcel issue in a single week, relating to driver pressure. This included the driver leaving before the customer could get to the door or leaving the parcel in an insecure place like a doorstep or bin.

* Almost three million people (six per cent of all UK adults) missed a parcel in a single week because they didn’t have time to get to the door. This figure rises to eight per cent for people who are disabled or have a long-term health condition and nine per cent of parents with young children.

Despite these high figures, redress systems - like compensation - can be challenging to access.

One in three consumers who had an issue said they took no action as they didn’t think it’d make a difference.

The majority of delivery companies receive no penalty for lost or stolen deliveries.

Currently, only Royal Mail is subject to fines if this happens, despite 58 per cent of parcels being delivered by other companies.

READ MORE:

• Letter: 'Wake up... Colchester is not Chelmsford, nor do we want to be'
• Letter: 'Why didn’t you stop bus station fiasco when you had the chance?'
• Letter: 'Colchester is a borough of sanctuary so let's welcome our Afghan allies'

Royal Mail is also the only delivery company to have an Ofcom-regulated complaints process.

Consumers tend to have no choice over which company their parcel is delivered by - the retailer usually makes that choice. As a result, they face a lottery when it comes to fixing problems or getting compensated for lateness or loss.

So, we are calling for some significant changes that will ensure parcel delivery is something we can all rely upon.

It should also be easier for consumers to be compensated for late or lost deliveries.

Redress systems are complicated and nine out of ten people (88 per cent) that attempted to resolve an issue experienced problems.

Ofcom should extend consumer protection rules to cover all delivery companies, not just Royal Mail.

This would mean all consumers received the same level of service if something goes wrong.

We also think delivery drivers need better protections.

Drivers’ employment conditions are often insecure, with unstable incomes and unpredictable working hours.

These can lead to poor practices like leaving before consumers get to the door.

With these changes, we think there are good prospects for improving this essential service for the millions of people who rely on it.

If you need advice about a parcel delivery problem you’re struggling with, call the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 2231133.