Parcel delivery firms: who are the best and worst?

MSE_Martin

Superdan wrote: »

Hardly a scientific poll though is it. Yodel have the largest market share of home deliveries in the UK so aside from Royal Fail are the most likely to have had interaction with the people voting.

When put into that perspective the result is totally biased against them!


Polls like this prove nothing.

You're quite correct after Royal Mail, Yodel is up there for size. And both have similar number of votes - the difference is Royal Mail is 11% bad, Yodel 79%.

To try and blow that off as if its meaningless with 1,500 voters so far and many thousands more to come - seems a strange conclusion.

So may I ask if you work or represent or have any profesional connection with Yodel by any chance.

If you do it would be appropriate for you to declare it on this thread before continuing your debate.

If not then that's cool - please say too

Kind regards

Martin

jpieter

Only yesterday a neighbour had a delivery from Yodel and they were seen by another neighbour clambering over the back gate just to deliver a parcel!!!!!! Surely they are breaking the law by going into peoples property without there consent? this seems to be the norm for yodel.

Berlin89

Twelve days and counting! That's how long I have been trying to get Yodel to deliver a parcel. When I found out the courier my supplier was using was Yodel my heart sank. I have had so many bad experiences. This time I got a 'sorry (?!) I missed you card' although I was in all day. Since then, umpteen 10p/minute calls to perfectly pleasant operators with only the power to give me the driver's number. He never answers, not even when a manager calls. So I am powerless to explain how he gets from my post box to me at the front door. It's ludicrous.There has to be a way of holding couriers to account. Suppliers must be losing endless business by us being put off ordering online. It must have an impact on our ailing economy. I would love to see the Post Office doing the deliveries. Athe competition element just doesn't work as we, the consumer, can't make choices ourselves. At least a regular local post office knows it's patch and gets to know it's customers so doesn't waste time and resources driving around aimlessly. Perhaps it's just a ploy to make more money for the phone operators.
Surely, it has to be a case of misrepresentation. If you call yourself a courier, you have to be able to deliver.
Meanwhile, my parcel is nowhere to be seen. I've done my bit Yodel. You need to do yours!

aldredd

Be interesting to see this broken regionally - I've had many, many deliveries by Yodel, to various address (all in the same region, served by the same depot) and not had a single problem. Only had 1 failed delivery (I was out because they attempted to deliver 3 days early (due Monday, came Friday)) but were very helpful and kept their office open to allow me to come & collect it on the Sat.

Oblivion

I think results will vary from one area to another, although from all that I've read and certainly experienced personally, Yodel are universally bad. They've given me loads of grief in the past. You have to ask yourself, just where do all those missing parcels end up eh? I'd love to know who's drinking my crate of Xmas Champagne that never got delivered.

Best around here (Epsom) are DPD (brilliant service giving you a one hour delivery slot which has always been accurate) :T and Royal Mail who come a close second.

jpieter

I must say that DPD are brilliant, they have always emailed me with an expected delivery time and have always delivered within the hour slot.

Superdan

Hi Martin,

I wouldn't say my connection with them is proffesional but my best friend is one of there self employed 'neighbourhood' couriers.

As a result of this I know a lot about this side of Yodels business. I also know the set up of this side of the business and management is very poor indeed. But I also know that a lot of people's complaints on here are also due to the nature of the contracts some companies have with Yodel in order to keep delivery costs as low as possible.

On the flip side I also see how ridiculous some customers can be when they clearly think they are the only person in that couriers area that has a parcel delivered and give ridiculous delivery instructions!

I still think your poll is flawed and yes Royal Mail has less votes but they deliver vastly more non-signature parcels and vastly more stuff that will fit through letterboxes so don't have half the trouble with no one to sign and such like.

Its similar to a best supermarket poll and having the big three supermarkets and then including John and Rita's corner shop in the poll. Hardly a fair comparison?

Idiophreak

Superdan wrote: »

But I also know that a lot of people's complaints on here are also due to the nature of the contracts some companies have with Yodel in order to keep delivery costs as low as possible.

This isn't really close to an excuse. If you're saying Yodel are paid too little to provide a decent service, they should just stop doing it...Their reputation is in tatters and whilst they're making a quick buck in the short term, ultimately they'll suffer for the awful service they offer.

Superdan wrote: »

Its similar to a best supermarket poll and having the big three supermarkets and then including John and Rita's corner shop in the poll. Hardly a fair comparison?

It's a perfectly fair comparison, assuming John and Rita's corner shop counts as a supermarket. As long as you provide the sample size so that people can take the figures with an appropriate amount of salt.

In this instance, we're not talking about, say, UPS having two good reviews (a freak result) and yodel having 10,000 bad ones...IMO, the sample sizes are large enough to be considered adequate for identifying trends. The simple truth of the matter is that Yodel suck, this poll's in no way biassed against them.

Superdan

Idiophreak wrote: »

This isn't really close to an excuse. If you're saying Yodel are paid too little to provide a decent service, they should just stop doing it...Their reputation is in tatters and whilst they're making a quick buck in the short term, ultimately they'll suffer for the awful service they offer.

That's true but surely consumer groups and people should be complaining to the company involved and asking them to reconsider who they use to mail parcels. I'm sure what you'll find is that the savings then given on such treats as free delivery would then stop as companies moved to 'better' but more expensive couriers and then as 'money savers' we'd be moaning about that as well.

With regards to sample size in regard to this survey I still think its well off. Companies like DPD and UK mail have no where near the market share of UK home deliveries that Yodel do! How can that be fair?

Totally agree with the regional comments as well. My friend bends over backwards for her customers and they are used to a high standard of service. I'm sure this goes for the majority of Yodels self employed couriers it's just a damn shame they are let down by there support network at the regional depots and by management.

bigstevex

Yodel are very inconsistent!

Example 1... Delivery arrives next day... but hang on its all bashed like it was shot her by cannon!

Example 2... Delivery thrown over back fence

Example 3... Delivery attempted but it 100% wasn't!

Example 4... Delivery next day and parcel spot on (This is very rare though)

I read something the other day saying they have never made a profit, they are making massive loses hoping to hoover up all the courier work in the UK then increase the prices is my guess so they are profitable!

So far they've lost a few big contracts and tried to up the prices on some others i believe

May not be round for longer anyway!