When’s most inconvenient for you?
Posted on
Why is it that deliveries almost always come while we're at work? And why is it that there is so rarely an option to specify a more suitable time when placing an order that needs to be delivered?
While I appreciate that different people go to work at different times, and work different hours, I would be prepared to guess that a substantial majority of the working population would be at work at some point between the hours of 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday. This would mean that nearly all of those people (barring those who work from home) would not be at home during those hours. So, why is it that so many delivery firms insist on delivering items to homes during those periods? And how does leaving a card to say they'll try again the next working day help?
We could assume that it is because they also only want to be at work between those hours. I'd say that's unlikely. More logically I would guess it is because the firms make the majority of their income by delivering to (or collecting from) other companies that operate in those hours. If that's where the money is, I can't really argue with that logic. But it doesn't help the rest of us. And it must still be horribly inefficient to have a residential delivery service that has to make multiple attempts to deliver a parcel, and then staff a collection office for when all else fails.
As someone with a very active calendar, I don't often make time to go shopping. And I find it's usually cheaper to buy items online. The drawback of this is that you don't get your item(s) straight away. They have to be delivered. For me, the cost saving normally balances that out, but every so often it's necessary to order something that won't fit through the letterbox (or that requires a signature), and then it gets more complicated.
In Coventry, we used to have one main sorting office in the city centre that was easy to get to. In the event that a delivery company failed to achieve their one and only objective, one could collect items from there. Unfortunately, it's not there anymore. Amongst a tirade of bright ideas, presumably from the same minds that decided 9am to 5pm is ideal for everyone, it was suggested that they move the collection office to another location that was far less accessible—at least to those like me who don't drive.
The net result is an extra hurdle. If I order something that won't fit through my letter box and I'm not home to receive it, it will be taken to a collection office I can't get to. They leave a card that allows me to arrange another delivery (any time between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday would be ideal). Thankfully, there is also a Saturday option, which is now my default choice. It's annoying if the attempted delivery took place on a Monday, as it means I have to wait the best part of a week before I get my hands on it, but at least it will actually arrive.
I moan, but I won’t stop ordering online. And I'll keep needing items to be delivered. I just don't bother paying for first class any more.