The price of things to come (or be delivered)

[Exos]

The last few weeks I've had some bits and pieces I've been selling, on and off the forum. Most of the time I've simply used the likes of parcelmonkey or parcel2go.

To put some context to my rant, I have two fairly large boxes to send, both amounting to about 16Kg in weight, the items were that big I originally cited them as collection only on Ebay, but finally caved. I was surprised at the price £22 (for both, one 10Kg, the other 6kg), the smaller one was about 100x40x50cm, the other about 100x80x80cm, collected from my choice of location, guaranteed next day delivery by City Link. I could have got it delivered for £18, but it was by Nightfreight.

I've just took a parcel into the post office, bearing in mind it was relatively small, weighing about 1.1kg, probably no more than 30x20x15 and they wanted £12.80 to send it. I mean wtf are they having a laugh!

The guy behind the counter actually said to me they have seen a rapid decline in people posting parcels and not just a couple of percent, at least an 80% reduction, I mean sure this completely outweighs the price increases...

Royal Mail have gotton greedy.

 

[turner brown]

I don't think royal mail have been greedy mate. there the only people to trust with your delivery. I had contracts with city link and dhl and both have crap service
yes the postage prices with royal mail are double but there service is worth every penny .yes I lose business due to high postage costs but people get there items whole
city link and dhl both use private contractors to deliver you items and pay them penny's to handle your items

as the old saying goes you pay for what you get

 

[ManofScience]

Personally, they're all pretty sh1te.

I've had bother with Royal Mail (bending a VINYL record in half to get thru the letter box??? come off it - it says do not bend vinyl enclosed on the packet!!), recorded delivery being lost, the collection office only being open from 10-12 on saturdays and MASSIVE queues - nevermind the 72 hours it takes to get back there! Their prices are now ridiculous, cashing in on the ebay crowd but it's pricing people out of the market. They have the market monopoly so they can charge what they want

Equally, City Link are jokers when u ring their customer service line but all my stuff has always arrived but i always add the extra insurance on incase. i like they collect from you - even though their appointments are vague. Still, collected from your door, to the other door next day for half the price of Royal Mail? no competition.

 

[Exos]

I agree couriers seem to be plagued with more problems than Royal Mail (or is that just perception), and you don't even need to get me started on that shower of sh**e Yodel, but it's the disparity in cost and the issues that face both couriers and Royal Mail are alike. Neither are whiter than white but on the whole I can't see the justification in cost and if someone is going to turn up at my door to collect 16kg of "stuff", for a whole lot less, then I know what I'm going to do...

By all accounts, my parcel(s) costing £18 to deliver, could be costing upwards of £40 with Royal Mail. Does that seem acceptable, for not a lot more assurance and the same level of cover?

Just to also add, I could also get less than Royal Mail through UPS or DHL.

 

[leemoo]

There was something on Watchdog i think last week or the week before about Royal Mail changing the prices and they had items that they classed as Large that could fit in to another parcel that they classed as Medium??!! How the hell does that work out.
I think they do this on purpose to get you confused therefore able to charge you more because you don't have a clue whats happenig by the time the give you dimensions, weights and costs for items.

 

[theblueirish]

, guaranteed next day delivery by City Link.

Takes me a week to get a parcel from the mainland to NI with shitty link even with next day delivery.

 

[Magnu420]

i won a catering boiler from fleabay,arrange with the seller that i will arrange a courier
which cost me £5.75,be delivered in two days,and the dimensions and weight was
80x80x70 5kg,i thought this was cheep compaired to the guy who wanted a tenner
for postage, my hermes was the courier aswell

 

[Exos]

Takes me a week to get a parcel from the mainland to NI with shitty link even with next day delivery.

Generally certain areas are excluded, but to be fair I wouldn't expect anything less.

 

[trevortron]

My only 'sympathy' with RM in all of this is that they are committed to delivering everywhere in the UK, whereas most of the courier companies specifically exclude Scottish Highlands for example, and other 'rural' (i.e. not profitable) areas. It's not a level playing field.

 

[theblueirish]

I used to work in the courier business, most companies will deliver anywhere in the UK but add a premium for anything north of Aberdeen, NI and CI. City link probably the worst of the big guns out there, even Fastway out doing them.