British postal industry regulator Ofcom yesterday approved the nationwide rollout of Royal Mail’s Delivery to Neighbour initiative that starts from next week ending its status as the only British
operator banned from delivering to neighbours if a recipient is not at home.The approval allows Royal Mail to leave mail items that are too large to go through a letterboxor require a signature with the neighbour in case of the customer’s absence. But consumers alsohave the option to opt out of the scheme, both in relation to delivery of their own items and theirreceipt of a neighbour’s mail.
Ofcom stressed that its decision follows positive results from successful series of trialsearlier this years with 748,000 addresses in six areas across the UK. “The new scheme will reducethe need for consumers to collect items from Royal Mail delivery offices or Post Offices, or foritems to be re-delivered when addressees are not at home to receive them first time,” the postalregulator explained.
Consumers wanting to opt out of the scheme can do so by displaying a free opt-out sticker whichis available from Royal Mail near their letterbox. However, some customers have already expressedconcerns about the use of stickers. Therefore, Ofcom said it will ask Royal Mail to search foralternatives in future such as identifying an opt-out address electronically or by less visiblemeans.
Ofcom added that it will closely monitor the implementation and effectiveness of the service aswell as the level of consumer complaints. In case of any issues, it has the power to investigatethe service operations.
Royal Mail welcomed Ofcom’s approval of regulatory changes bringing it more in line with otherdelivery companies who are already able to leave items with neighbours as part of their standarddelivery practice. In August, Royal Mail delivered a leaflet to all 29 million addresses across theUK providing information about the new delivery initiative.
Mike Newnham, Royal Mail’s Chief Customer Officer, said: “We are delighted that Ofcom hasapproved the regulatory changes that enable us to roll out the Delivery to Neighbour initiativeacross the UK. This means that customers will benefit from the improved convenience during the busyChristmas period and beyond.”
The British consumer protection watchdog Consumer Focus also welcomed Ofcom’s decision. RobertHammond, Director of Postal Policy and Regulation at Consumer Focus, said: “This is good news forconsumers. Missed deliveries are an increasing inconvenience for many people and giving postmen theoption to leave undeliverable post with a neighbour is one way to tackle this issue.”
He added, however, that Royal Mail should continue to look for alternative ways of deliveringundeliverable post such as locker banks, time-slot deliveries and text delivery alerts. “Deliveryto neighbours’ should not be seen as a universal solution to the issue of delivery convenience,” hecommented.
