What to do if you suffer parcel pain on Black Friday

It’s that time of year again when millions of us go shopping online.

Nine out of 10 people buy Christmas gifts on Black Friday and Cyber ​​Monday, according to research from Barclays.

This inevitably goes hand in hand with a sharp increase in the number of complaints about parcels.

Known complaints are items that do not arrive, arrive damaged or are sent to the wrong address. The number of missing packages has increased enormously in recent years.

According to YouGov research, more than eight million packages were lost or stolen between May 2021 and April 2022 – three million more than two years ago.

And many of these will be gone between Black Friday and Christmas – the busiest time for couriers.

Online shoppers often do not know which parcel company will deliver. Here Money Mail explains what to do if your package goes missing.

Delivery company Evri, which was rebranded from Hermes in March last year, says less than 1 percent of the 2 to 3 million packages it delivers each day are damaged or lost.

But that can still add up to tens of thousands of packages per day. Resolution firm Resolver received nearly 61,000 complaints about the delivery company over the past 12 months – with disputes soaring over Christmas.

This is more than rivals DPD, who received 7,083, and Yodel, who received 1,790.

Evri has been inundated with complaints in recent years.

The company received a score of just 1.75 out of five in Citizens Advice’s latest ranking of parcel companies, published last week, and was at the bottom of the list of major delivery companies.

Royal Mail was at the top, followed by Amazon, DPD and Yodel.

The rankings, based on a survey of 8,421 people, assessed each company’s service quality, accessibility, customer service and trust.

What if a package goes missing?

The first thing to do if your delivery hasn’t arrived is to check the address you provided when you placed your order.

If it is correct, please contact the seller. If you call customer service, your complaint will probably be handled more quickly.

Even if the missing package is the fault of the courier, it is the seller’s responsibility to ensure that the item gets to you. It should chase the courier for an update to your order – this is not your responsibility.

Scott Dixon, consumer rights expert at The Complaints Resolver, explains: “A popular fob-off that retailers use is that you have to contact the carrier.

“But the retailer is responsible under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 for ensuring that the goods you order are delivered safely.”

If the seller claims it was delivered or says they don’t know where it is, you can ask for a re-delivery, says Citizens Advice.

…Or if it goes to the wrong place?

If your item has not been delivered to the agreed location, for example if it has been left with a neighbor without permission, it is still the seller’s legal responsibility to ensure that the package gets to you.

If the package is signed for, but the signer refuses to give it to you, contact the seller.

Noor Zouitina, from London, says her packages are regularly delivered to the wrong address, but the courier claims they have been delivered.

The 23-year-old fashion worker says: “Recently, a courier left a message that my package was “delivered to the masala neighbor”.

I realized they left it in the restaurant next door. But it denied having it.’ Noor eventually got the money back from the seller, but had to buy the item again.

If your package has not been left in a safe place and is stolen, it is the seller’s responsibility to replace it.

Jane Parsons, consumer expert at Citizens Advice, says: ‘Be careful if you give details about a safe place or neighbor and something goes wrong. . . it is not the seller’s or courier’s responsibility.”

What if my item is damaged?

Couriers are often self-employed and are paid per delivered package. This often means they are under pressure to deliver as many packages as possible each day, which can result in damaged items.

Scott Dixon says, “Packages are often thrown over a wall or left outside in bad weather.

“You are legally entitled to a replacement or refund if the package is damaged – and this is the seller’s responsibility to fix, not the courier.”

Take pictures of where the package has been left inappropriately and proof of the damage.

Contact the seller and tell them that your package arrived damaged and you would like a replacement or refund.

Let it know about the problem as soon as possible so that it cannot claim that you caused the damage.

…And a refund is refused?

If you have contacted the seller and they refuse to refund or send a replacement product, follow the seller’s complaints procedure, if any.

For packages costing more than £100 and paid for by credit card, you can use Section 75 protection to initiate a refund process with your provider.

For items below that amount, you can also file a chargeback with your carrier within 120 days of ordering your item and call it a “breach of contract” under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

If you paid with a debit card, your provider may still be able to help you by using a chargeback.

Scott Dixon says, ‘By doing this you are disputing the transaction because the contract has not been fulfilled and you have not received the goods ordered. You will have to hold on to this, because a first attempt is very often rejected.’

Can I claim compensation?

There are rare circumstances where you may be entitled to compensation, such as if you missed out due to a delay.

But by law, an item must be delivered within 30 days to be considered delivered on time.

Whether you are entitled to compensation is at the discretion of the retailer or courier.

Royal Mail can offer compensation if your package is missing or damaged, for example. Find the form at: personal.help.royalmail.com/app/webforms/claim

Can I get package protection?

When you buy something from a secondary marketplace like eBay or vintage clothing site Depop, you should be able to request that the item be shipped via tracking, as long as you’re willing to pay the extra cost.

This may not be an option if you are buying from a regular retailer as they usually only offer standard or express delivery options.

As a seller you get protection through platforms such as eBay and PayPal.

However, if you are selling a valuable item, it is vital to ship via trackable delivery and take photos beforehand to avoid any issues.

l.purkess@dailymail.co.uk