Royal Mail has announced it beat its delivery targets for the last eight months of 2006, with 94%of first-class post arriving the following working day. A higher percentage of second-class
letters, standard parcels and bulk business mail are also arriving at their destinations on time.A survey of more than 1.2 million letters, parcels and packets, conducted by ResearchInternational, sent between April and December last year to over 9,200 addresses across the UK,showed 94.1% of first-class post arrived on time, beating Royal Mail’s 93% target.
Second-class post beat its 98.5% target – 99% delivered on time – while the UK public postaloperator scored 94.6% for its standard parcel service, well beyond its 90% target.
“Royal Mail is delivering target-beating performance at some of the lowest postage prices inEurope – giving customers real value,” said Tom Melvin, letters operations director.
“In a fully competitive market, providing a consistent high quality and unbeatable value isvital to enable Royal Mail to keep customers and win new business.”
Meanwhile, the group awarded pay rises of between 7% and 20% to light goods vehicle and vandrivers – at a time when it is being heavily criticised by the UK postal regulator, Postcomm, forexorbitant labour costs.
But a Royal Mail spokesman, quoted by the industry magazine Motor Transport, described thedeal as “the best in the market”, one which would “see their total earnings rise, often for workingfewer hours”.
The drivers, members of the Communications Workers’ Union, had threatened strike action iftheir demands were not met.
Postcomm last week strongly criticised Royal Mail for its ”inability to control costs” amidreports that the state-owned company is seeking an 18% rise in the price of stamps.
Its chairman Nigel Stapleton said Royal Mail was losing out to competition through its lackof progress in tackling high labour costs and its growing GBP 6.6 billion pension deficit.
