Shoppers ordering online during the coronavirus lockdown are facing chaos, as tens of thousands of items are being delivered late or not turning up at all.
Since the start of April more than 18,000 people have complained about problems with deliveries to dispute resolution service Resolver – most often because an item has not turned up.
Here Telegraph Money nails down what your rights are – whether you’re sending or receiving a parcel.
If you are receiving an item
If you purchased something online for delivery you should take up your issue with the retailer, not the delivery company, said Sophie Kasmi, lawyer and founder of Know Your Rights, a legal advice website.
First check the retailer’s terms and conditions to see whether it has broken these. If not, you might be protected by the Consumer Rights Act (CRA).
“This says that the item must be delivered within 30 days unless longer has been agreed,” Ms Kasmi said. “If you haven’t received the parcel within this time frame, you have the right to cancel the order and get a refund.”
You should log your complaint officially to the retailer, explaining why you’re unhappy. If you don’t get the response you want, you could try asking your card provider or PayPal – whichever you used to pay for the item – for a refund under the chargeback scheme.
“This is only available if you paid for a service that wasn’t provided or the company you purchased from went bust and didn’t deliver your parcel,” Ms Kasmi added. Most card providers only give you 120 days in which to claim and they are not legally obliged to give you your money back.The state of the parcel delivery industry
The parcel delivery industry is largely unregulated, according to Citizens Advice, which is calling on the Competition and Markets Authority to investigate.
Firms are bound by the usual constraints of consumer law and must treat customers fairly, but there are few regulatory barriers to those looking to establish a courier service. Ofcom, the telecommunications watchdog, regulates some postal services but cannot investigate individual complaints.
The National Courier and Despatch Association, a trade body, lists almost 70 members on its website – and that does not include major players like Hermes and Yodel.
According to Startups.co.uk, which offers advice to entrepreneurs, it is easy to establish a company to deliver packages with little more than a bike or van.
It even suggests getting ahead of the game by investing in a "challenger drone courier service", to deliver packages by air. Firms like Amazon are developing drone services.
Amazon itself has a network of delivery drivers through its "Amazon Flex" scheme, offering the opportunity to make between £12 and £15 an hour delivering parcels.
Its website boasts that "all you need is a vehicle an Android or IOS phone, and some free time".
Such drivers will deliver parcels in blocks of between one and four hours and work is not guaranteed. Workers count as self-employed and would need to file a tax return.
If you made the purchase using a credit card and it cost between £100 and £30,000 you may be able to get a refund under the rules of the Section 75 consumer protection law.
If you are sending the item
Senders should try to recover any losses from the delivery company. If you’ve dispatched a parcel that is late or lost, you will usually be entitled to compensation under CRA, covering at least the cost of the delivery.
“Contact the delivery company to claim this, and consider whether you’ve paid for insurance or if additional cover was included, such as recorded delivery. If so, there will be a specific claim process that you need to follow,” Ms Kasmi said.
Should the company refuse to refund you, you could try claiming via the chargeback scheme, as outlined above. If all else fails and the delivery company is regulated, try contacting the independent postal redress scheme (POSTRS).
If you were the victim of a scam
Some people have found that, when they try to contact a company about a missing delivery, the firm does not respond or has mysteriously disappeared. In this case you’ve most likely been the victim of a scam.
First contact your bank and the police so they can investigate. Your bank may be able to refund you if it considers you took all possible measures to check the seller was genuine. This is thanks to a new contingent reimbursement model on fraud refunds introduced in May 2019.
Failing this, you could try claiming the money back via chargeback or Section 75.