Parcel firms must make it easier for customers to complain, says regulator

Consumers sending and receiving parcels in the UK should be treated more fairly by delivery companies, the communications regulator Ofcom said as it outlined proposed new protections today.

More than ten million parcels are delivered on an average day in the UK, and Ofcom  – which has responsibility for the postal industry – has found that 64 per cent of customers have experienced problems with deliveries in the last three months.

In a consultation launched today, it is proposing new guidance for parcel firms which would force them to tighten up their complaints handling procedures. 

Under existing rules, all postal operators must have a simple and transparent complaints process in place. 

But the regulator now intends to set additional guidance, under which customers would need to be told exactly who to contact and what channels they could use to make a complaint.

The proposals would also require that customers were told what the complaint process would involve, and how long the issue would take to resolve. 

Complaints would also have to be dealt with by staff who had received appropriate training.

Currently, around a quarter of senders find it difficult to make a complaint, or to contact parcel operators when their delivery goes wrong, according to Ofcom. 

Two in five say their complaints are only partially resolved, while almost one in ten have been left with their complaint completely unresolved.

Ofcom’s evidence also suggests an inconsistent level of service across the industry. 

Customer satisfaction scores on complaints handling range from just 29 per cent for one operator to 71 per cent for another. 

Ofcom said there were 4billion UK parcels delivered in 2021 – more than 10million per day

Under its regulation shake-up, Ofcom also plans to enforce better protections for disabled customers, who it said were 50 per cent more likely to experience significant problems with parcel deliveries. 

It has proposed a new requirement for parcel firms to establish and make public clear policies and procedures for the fair treatment of disabled customers.

This includes ensuring that disabled customers can communicate their delivery needs to the parcel operator, and setting out how couriers will meet those needs when delivering parcels.

If it does not see substantial improvements in customer service and complaints handling, Ofcom said it would consider enforcement action or further regulation. 

The regulator’s annual monitoring report on the postal market showed that people’s reliance on parcels has continued to grow thanks to the coronavirus pandemic.

Some of the most common difficulties people experienced when complaining to parcel operators included not getting through to the right person, the company refusing to take responsibility for the problem, and and the length of time taken to resolve it.

Many people also struggled to find out how to complain in the first place.

In addition, it said disabled people were more likely to experience parcel delivery problems than most.

Issues included couriers not allowing enough time at the door, parcels being left in inaccessible places, and operators not acting on specific delivery instructions provided to them.

A disabled customer told Ofcom: ‘As I am disabled, it takes me a while to get to the front door. If I’m upstairs I need my stairlift to take me down and that isn’t fast, and even though I have a sign on the window next to the front door, they still don’t wait for me to get there.’

Another said: ‘Despite clear instructions, the delivery person did not follow it and left parcels at common place not the safe place. The notes on parcel are never read.’

Lindsey Fussell, Ofcom’s networks and communications group director, said: ‘Parcel deliveries have become increasingly important to our daily lives and customers rightly expect a positive experience.

‘We’re planning to strengthen our rules to make sure people are treated fairly by delivery firms. If we don’t see significant improvements in customer service, we’ll consider enforcement action or tighten regulations further.’

Royal Mail also came in for criticism from Ofcom,  which said it needed to be more efficient

Matthew Upton, director of policy at Citizens Advice, added: ‘The outbreak of the pandemic has brought to life how essential the parcel industry is, especially to disabled people or those told to shield.

‘But our research shows that 36 per cent of consumers experienced a problem with their last parcel delivery, and almost half of them weren’t able to get the help they needed when trying to resolve the problem.

While he welcomed Ofcom’s commitments on complaints procedures and accessibility, he suggested that the punishments for companies that don’t treat customers fairly should face stronger punishments.  

‘There’s still a way to go,’ he said. ‘With almost 600 people dealing with a lost or stolen parcel every hour, Ofcom needs to come forward and lay down fines for companies if their negligence causes problems for consumers.’

Royal Mail ‘must be more efficient’ 

As the universal service provider, Royal Mail is subject to more regulation from Ofcom than other postal operators. 

The regulator sets it strict annual delivery targets and imposes a cap on second-class stamp prices, and it proposed maintaining the current framework for regulating Royal Mail for a further five years.

However, it said it continued to be concerned about Royal Mail’s efficiency performance, and required the company to set out its longer-term efficiency ambition and report publicly on progress.

The regulator said Royal Mail must adapt to the changing market, modernise its parcels operations and become more efficient, if it was to be financially sustainable in the longer term. 

This, Ofcom said, was ultimately within the company’s control. 

Today’s consultation on its review of postal regulation closes on 3 March 2022 and it expects to publish a statement on its final decisions in summer 2022.