Bid to end rip-off delivery fees is 'a triumph'
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MORE than 1200 people have switched to a new parcel delivery service founded to help those facing rip-off fees in the rural north.
Menzies Distribution is toasting “an incredibly successful start” saying its drivers have delivered over 100 orders since it was set up six weeks ago.
Under its Highland Parcels scheme, which was rolled out on November 5, customers can have their goods delivered to the firm’s depot at Linwood and a Menzies Distribution van will take it to any address in the Highlands for a flat-fee of £4.99.
The scheme was set up to help people who are paying disproportionately high delivery costs because of where they live.
Holyrood business minister Jamie Hepburn commended its approach saying it was “great to see national companies like Menzies working to solve delivery issues in the Highlands where there is a thriving community and a strong local economy”.
Fraser MacLean, general manager of Menzies Distribution’s Parcel Logistics division said it was a real triumph.
He said: “Highland Parcels has had an incredibly successful start and we are delighted that our customers and campaigners for fair postal charges have backed our initiative so enthusiastically.
“We are thrilled to have been recognised by the government as a leading solution to an incredibly unfair situation in the Highlands. Our service is simple for people to use and consumers and businesses are voting with their feet.”
Menzies Distribution is now looking to roll out the flat-fee parcel service model to other parts of the UK where residents are also being classified as hard to reach by some of the other courier firms.
Consumers and businesses in these areas are said to be facing additional charges of around £15 per delivery and are having to wait for up to 35 days to have their items delivered to their homes.
More than one million people in Scotland are being ‘routinely ripped off’ by unfair delivery charges because of where they live, according to Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS).
By analysing more than 3000 customer complaints and more than 500 online companies, the organisation has uncovered a postcode penalty which forces some people to pay around £19 extra for delivery when buying their goods online.
CAS head of policy Susan McPhee said: “Many Scots are being routinely ripped off.
“That is deeply unfair and it cannot be allowed to continue un-challenged.”
