Workers Cost Bosses £80 Million by Sending Personal Packages

LONDON, September 19, 2011 -

• One-third of employees send parcels through work to avoid Post Office queues
• Collect+ announces  4000^th store in convenience shop network
• A sixth of us choose to have parcels sent to our work addresses

New research^[1] reveals that workers are making their employers pay to send their personal packages, with one in ten employees sending ten parcels or more a year at their bosses’ expense, costing firms over £80 million^[2]. 15 per cent also admit to clogging up their office post rooms by having their personal parcels sent to their work, rather than home, address.

The research, which was commissioned by parcel delivery and returns company Collect+ to mark the opening of the 4,000^th store in its network of corner shops, found that the reason people had goods delivered to work was frustration with Royal Mail and the Post Office. A third of those surveyed (32 per cent) said that sending parcels through work allowed them to avoid the Post Office and its queues, with a further quarter claiming that Post Office opening hours made it impossible to send items during the working day.

For those receiving parcels at work, however, convenience may not be the only motive. Six per cent admitted having goods sent to the office that were of an embarrassing nature. When asked what the items were, one in ten described marital aids, which could result in some red faces if a post room mix up were to happen. Other strange items people admitted having sent to their office included a life-sized leprechaun, a machete and ecclesiastical items.

Mark Lewis, CEO of Collect+, explains why so many are relying on their employers when sending or receiving parcels:

“For many working people, Post Office opening hours just aren’t convenient and the idea of joining an ever longer queue as the number of Post Offices is reduced isn’t anyone’s idea of a fun lunch hour. With the huge growth in popularity of online shopping and the ease with which items can be purchased, people are also demanding greater convenience in how their parcels are delivered and returned. Collect+’s 4,000-strong network of corner shops allows people to opt for the service that suits them and their lifestyle best.”

The addition of Collect+’s 4,000^th outlet - the Menteith Mini Market in Alloa, Clackmannanshire - is an important miletone for the service, which allows the public to send and receive parcels, and return unwanted goods to retailers, through specially selected local retailers that are part of the PayPoint network. All are open from early until late and the vast majority are open seven days a week, meaning that people can pick up or send parcels at a time convenient to them.  

Jahan Tayyab, Manager of Menteith Mini Market in Alloa, Scotland, says:

“Becoming the 4,000^th corner shop in the Collect+ network is a really exciting prospect for us and we’re looking forward to offering the local community a parcel service that meets the needs of their busy lives. It’s also a great opportunity to attract more customers through the door and diversify the products and services we can give them.”

Collect+ services are securely delivered by Yodel, the UK’s leading parcel delivery company.

Notes to editors

For more information please contact the Collect+ Press Office on:

T: +44(0)207-025-6500

E: collectplusteam@redconsultancy.com

About Collect+

Collect+ is a delivery and returns service giving online shoppers greater freedom and flexibility with the choice of collecting and dropping off parcels at local convenience stores.

With 98% of Collect+ outlets open seven days a week and, normally, early in the morning until late at night, the service offers online shoppers the option to pick up or drop off purchases at a time and place convenient to them. 80% of the UK population lives within a mile of a Collect+ store in urban areas, and five miles in rural areas.

Collect+ services are securely delivered by Yodel, the UK’s leading parcel delivery company, and the retail payment network PayPoint.

About PayPoint

PayPoint is a leading international provider of convenient payments and value added services to major consumer service organisations in the utility, housing, water, telecoms, media, financial services, transport, retail, e-commerce, gaming and public sectors.

PayPoint delivers payments and services through a uniquely strong combination of local shops, internet and mobile distribution channels and handles over £10 billion from 590 million transactions annually for more than 6,000 clients and merchants.  

Retail networks

The PayPoint branded retail network in the UK numbers 23,000 local shops (including Co-op, Spar, McColls, Costcutter, Sainsbury’s Local, One Stop, Londis and thousands of independents). Collect+, a joint venture with Yodel, provides a parcel collection and drop off service at more than 3,700 PayPoint retailers. Its ATM network numbers more than 2,500 ‘LINK’ branded machines across the UK, mainly in the same sites as PayPoint terminals.

In Romania, the branded retail network numbers over 6,000 terminals located in local shops, processing cash bill payments for utilities and mobile phone top-ups. In Ireland, over 500 outlets in shops and credit unions process mobile top-ups and bill payments.

Internet

PayPoint.net is an internet payment service provider linking into all major UK acquiring banks to deliver secure online credit and debit card payments for over 5,500 web merchants. It offers a comprehensive set of products ranging from a transaction gateway through to a bureau service and FraudGuard, an advanced service to mitigate the risk of fraud.

PayByPhone

PayByPhone is a leading international provider of services to parking authorities allowing consumers to use their mobile phones to pay for their parking by credit or debit card.  It has contracts in the UK, France, Canada and the USA.

PayPoint is widely recognised for its leadership in prepayment systems, smart technology and consumer service.

About Yodel

Notes to Editors

• Home Delivery Network Ltd on 1 March 2010 purchased through its subsidiary company, Parcelpoint Ltd, the domestic B2B and B2C businesses of DHL Express (UK) Ltd and rebranded as Yodel in May 2010
• Yodel delivers more than 200 million parcels per year with annual revenues of £650 million
• It is the second-largest parcel delivery business in the UK after the Royal Mail
• Yodel operates from a national network of hubs and service centres and has a fleet of 5,000 vans
• The company is headquartered in Hatfield

1. Research conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Collect+: 2,000 UK adults were surveyed in August 2011

2. This is based on 10% of the total working population and an average parcel cost of £3

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