Royal Mail strikes lead to surge in returned Christmas presents

Christmas returns have hit an all-time high after Royal Mail strikes meant many gifts arrived too late to give on the big day.

Almost 40pc more packages were returned between Christmas and New Year this year compared to last year, according to figures from ReBound, which processes millions of returns every year from retailers including River Island and John Lewis.

Laura Garrett at ReBound said retailers were dealing with the fall-out from last month’s postal strikes, which meant many online orders arrived too late to give to loved ones on December 25. Postal workers took part in industrial action on December 9, 11, 14, 15, 23 and 24, leading to widespread disruption.

“Strikes certainly contributed to the increase,” Ms Garrett said. “Despite widespread publicity of the strike action by the Royal Mail, there will have been some people who left Christmas shopping to the last minute and presents ended up arriving too late.”

Millions of letters and packages reportedly piled up during the strikes, with union sources telling the Telegraph that rats and foxes had been found chewing Christmas deliveries left outside a depot.

Royal Mail did not respond to a photo of a fox on top of post bags at the time but said backlogs were moving “very quickly through the centre and on to the next stage in their journey”.

In a bid to avoid disappointment for customers, retailers warned shoppers in the run-up to Christmas that they should be coming into stores if they wanted to guarantee that they would have gifts in time.

Waterstones brought forward its last delivery days for Christmas, while others such as the Entertainer were forced to scrap next-day delivery offers as 100,000 Royal Mail workers staged a series of walk-outs.

ReBound said swirling concerns over household finances likely also contributed to the sharp increase in returns.

Ms Garrett said: “The cost-of-living crisis will have impacted some returns decisions. Previously some may have kept a present they didn’t really want, but now with finances tighter than ever, this will have influenced decisions to return gifts.

“The strain on budgets will also impact the urgency to return products. Whereas previously customers may have waited a few days to return, the need for a refund will have jump-started some into action.”

Shoppers wanting to return items are facing steeper costs, with a growing number of retailers bringing in fees for sending parcels back. 

Moss Bros chief executive Brian Brick told the Telegraph late last month that the suit retailer had decided to introduce fees for some returns and Mountain Warehouse has started levying a £2 charge for the return of orders made after October 29, which “reflected the increasing cost of collecting and processing these returns”.