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Firms that deliver parcels are to be hit by strengthened regulations in a bid to ensure complaints are taken seriously and disabled customers are treated better.
Delivery companies “must get better” at handling customer complaints after around a quarter of people have had problems when raising issues with deliveries, the regulator Ofcom has warned.
It confirmed that a set of measures first set out last December will come into power from April 2023.
Ofcom said fines or tighter regulation could be on the way if it fails to see “substantial improvements” in parcel firms’ complaints handling and customer service across the industry.
A spokesperson said that penalties could go up to 10 per cent of an offending company’s turnover, but would be “appropriate and proportionate” for each individual case.
The regulator will also introduce more protections for disabled customers, who are more likely to experience delivery problems and to suffer harm as a result.
Companies will be required to “establish, publish and comply with clear and effective policies and procedures for the fair treatment of disabled customers”, Ofcom wrote.
“Under the new rules, postal operators must have policies and procedures in place to ensure disabled customers can communicate their delivery needs to them, and firms will need to ensure couriers will meet those needs when delivering parcels,” it added.
Disabled people are far more likely to have a problem with parcel deliveries in any given week, according to previous research from Citizens Advice.
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The group found that 39 per cent of disabled customers reported a problem with parcel delivery in a single week, compared to 27 per cent of people who do not identify as disabled.
Matthew Upton, Director of Policy at Citizens Advice, said the rules did not go far enough as customers had been “faced with abysmal service in parcel deliveries for too long”.
He added: “We’re glad Ofcom is looking at how people can complain about deliveries and at how to make parcel deliveries easier for disabled people.
“But until the regulator starts monitoring firms’ performances and fining those which fall short, disappointing deliveries will remain the norm.”
A survey of more than 2,000 customers by Ofcom in January last year found that 64 per cent had suffered problems with parcel deliveries in the previous three months.
The poll also showed that around a quarter of those questioned found it difficult to make a complaint or contact parcel firms when their delivery went wrong.
Two in five said their complaints were only partially resolved, while almost one in 10 were left with their complaint completely unresolved, the watchdog said.
Lindsey Fussell, Ofcom’s networks and communications group director, said: “The customer service that some people have been getting when a delivery goes wrong simply hasn’t been good enough.
“So we’re strengthening our regulations to make sure people are treated fairly by delivery firms.
“If we’re not satisfied with how parcel companies respond, they could face enforcement action or tighter rules in future.”
Ofcom’s new rules also contain “strict” annual delivery targets for Royal Mail and a cap on second-class stamp prices, which is currently set at 68p.
The regulator says it wants to ensure that Royal Mail “has the commercial flexibility to deliver efficiency improvements and modernise its operations” as competition grows in the sector.
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