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People living in the Scottish Highlands have vented their frustration over “rip off’ delivery charges for mail order and internet purchases that are on average 21% higher than the south west of Scotland and 25% higher than Glasgow.
Most of the Scottish Highlands are on the British mainland, but they are considered less accessible than the rest of the UK.
For this reason, many retailers and couriers categorise the region separately – in effect as if the area is not part of the UK. Some firms simply refuse to deliver, although the problem is more pronounced in Scotland’s isles.
Mail regulator Ofcom said retailers have control over how they manage their delivery costs and whether they are passed onto their customers and said it has limited powers to act.
Mary Eenzaam, who lives in the Lochaber area, said: “The English education system should focus on geography….what constitutes mainland UK”.
Another Highland resident said: “I just send companies a curt email saying last time I looked I was in UK not outer space.”
One internet shopper said he was shocked to be asked to pay £190 for delivery of a 1-metre long, 30cm-wide wooden window sill.
Chums, which makes clothing for “older men and mature women” has a standard delivery charge of £5.95 for the UK but people in the Highlands will pay £2 extra.
This is defined as postcodes within: BT, IM, ZE, HS, KW, IV, GY, JE, AB36-38, AB54-56, FK17- 21, PA20-80, PH15-50, KA27-28, TR21-25.
Those postcodes are also excluded from the firm’s Express Delivery service.
A spokeswoman for the firm said it understood the frustration of customers but added: “Unfortunately the cost for the company is higher to deliver to the Scottish Highlands.”
Out of Eden, which stocks hotel supplies, offers free delivery over a £50 spend to customers but those in the Highlands have to spend double to qualify.
Grosvenor Furniture based in Cheshire has a £65 surcharge for chair orders that come in multiple boxes while PlumbNation charges customers £74.95 for the delivery of bulky items that qualify for free delivery in most other areas.
Four of the five biggest delivery companies in the UK use third-party operators, which can increase costs.
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Geoff Nixx, who lives in Lochaber, said: “On several occasions I have challenged these companies about their delivery costs.
“The simple answer is that their contracted couriers ‘out-compete’ the competition by offering lower pricing for the majority of areas in the UK which are low cost (i.e ‘cherry picking’) which leaves most of us in the wilderness.
“I have found companies whose premises are geographically closer to us than (for example) Penzance who do benefit from ‘free’ delivery.
“The contracted couriers pass on goods to ‘local’ delivery agents who rightly charge fees which are passed onto us.
“We are more often than not considered not to be UK mainland.”
Kate Forbes, SNP MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, said it was “ridiculous” that Highland customers paid more “when we know that Royal Mail delivers parcels to every corner of Scotland every day”.
She added: “In the run up to Christmas we’ll all be ordering parcels and we’ll be again reminded of the injustice of paying more.
“So many businesses advertise free or low-priced delivery, only for them to exclude the Highlands at the checkout.
“That means that customers who purchase goods online regularly pay over the odds and line the pockets of retailers and delivery firms who think nothing of over-charging Highland consumers.
“This isn’t something that the Scottish Government can resolve so it is high time the UK Government fixed it.”
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Festive shoppers in the Highlands will be asked to pay double if they want deliveries of brie or Camembert from the award-winning Cheese Society, which is based in Lincoln.
American donut firm Krispy Creme is among the bigger firms that does not deliver to Highland postcodes.
While surcharges are more likely to be imposed by smaller firms, some of the major companies are also penalising Highland customers.
A John Lewis spokeswoman said surcharges apply to larger items “being delivered to non-UK mainland locations (including the Scottish Highlands and Islands).
IKEA has no added charges for the Highlands, according to its website but will currently only deliver to Skye off the mainland.
A spokesman for B&Q said it does not independently set any surcharges for delivery to remote location “but these may be added by our delivery partners” and said this is made clear when customers are placing an order.
UK e-commerce law requires that before an online sale is concluded, information about ‘all additional delivery charges and any other costs or, where those charges cannot reasonably be calculated in advance, the fact that such additional charges may be payable’ should be provided.
Failure to do so is likely to breach consumer law but Highland consumers told The Herald they had experience of this.
Heather Maclean said: “I get really get really peeved when you get all the way to checkout and then {find out] they won’t deliver here.
“I point out that if I were to send something to them, maybe in England, but also occasionally in Scotland then it would not cost extra, so why should we pay extra for things to be delivered here.”
Another customer added: “Topps Tiles for example will not even post a sample tile.
“They stated that PH49 4JD is a restricted postcode and not covered by their contract with the post office.”
Luxury goods brand Fortnum and Mason will only offer a standard five-day delivery to Highlands and not named day.
Of the major supermarkets Tesco said it offers its grocery home shopping service delivers to most areas of the Highlands and Islands. In some more remote areas, where home deliveries are unavailable, it offers click-and-collect services from a local collection point.
Highlands and Islands Labour MSP Rhoda Grant said she had recently written to Ofcom and believes it could do more to ensure parity for online customers.
She added: “While the Highlands face high delivery charges, some of our islands cannot get delivery at all. This is simply wrong.”
A spokesman for broadcast and postal industry regulator Ofcom said its powers limit the extent to which it can intervene in relation to specific aspects of parcel delivery, outside of the Royal Mail as universal service provider.
Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) said the current testing of drone deliveries in the islands “could be a gamechanger” for people in remote areas of Scotland.
A spokesman for the Department for Business and Trade said: “We expect all businesses to abide by the law and clearly state when additional delivery charges apply to certain locations, so they don’t mislead consumers.
“We encourage anyone to report breaches online to Delivery Law UK who exist to protect consumers rights when it comes to delivery issues.”
Highland Council said consumers who feel misled about delivery issues should in the first instance consult the website www.deliverylaw.uk and report the matter to Trading Standards via www.consumeradvice.scot or telephone 0808 164 6000.
