Austrian Post has started testing parcel deliveries to customers’ car boots in cooperation with VW and T-Systems this month, similar to the pilot project launched by DHL Parcel, Amazon and Audi in Germany earlier this year.
The pilot responds to the booming online trade in Austria and to the demand of Austrian consumers to get their orders easily and quickly, the postal operator said.
The car boot logistics pilot operates according to a simple principle: when ordering a product online, test customers can select ‘car trunk delivery’. On the day of delivery, the courier can locate the exact position of the customer’s vehicle and unlock the trunk by means of a highly secure identification and authorisation system, developed by T-Systems. The shipment can thus be put directly into the VW test vehicle.
The mobile identity and access solution ensures that only the authorised deliverer can open the car. The delivery process including opening and closing the trunk is recorded. The recipients will be informed by e-mail, SMS or app once the package has been placed in the trunk.
The advantages of the car boot logistics are obvious for all parties: the customer receives the ordered goods directly into the car and does not have to worry about delivery or opening times, the postal operator saves possible empty trips to absent customers and the retailer benefits from satisfied, quickly served customers, Austrian Post explained.
Mail order companies and logistics specialists are increasingly required to provide the perfect shopping experience from the first click right through to delivery, the postal operator stressed. “As a post, we are meeting this challenge. With 74 million delivered parcels annually and a first-attempt delivery rate of over 90%, we not only demonstrate our customer knowledge but also the high quality at which we serve our customers every day,” Peter Umundum, Austrian Post board member and director for Parcels & Logistics, said.
He added, however, that the so-called "last mile" is most difficult and expensive part of parcel delivery process. "On the last mile, we have implemented a number of innovations in recent years. With the post app which includes practical parcel redirection, the authorisation to deposit a parcel or the parcel boxes, we are continuously expanding convenient services for our customers.”
"The regular delivery times fit increasingly less to our rhythm of life. The pleasure of buying changes into frustration when customers need to run after their packages. Our car boot logistics solution is designed to ensure that customers can have positive delivery experiences," Dirk Lukaschik, CEO of T-Systems in Austria, commented.
For the test run, VW is providing three cars. “We are pleased to be able to launch this innovative project together with T-Systems and Österreichische Post AG, and thus continue our longstanding partnership for consumers’ benefits,” said Wilfried Weitgasser, managing director of Porsche Austria.
In May 2015, DHL Parcel, Amazon and Audi teamed up to launch a Germany-wide pilot project to allow car owners to use their cars as mobile delivery addresses for their parcel shipments. For the customer, the service is designed to be simple, transparent and easily manageable at all stages of the process – from order placement on Amazon.de, parcel transport by DHL, to delivery to the boot of their Audi. The joint pilot project has been conducted over the course of several months in the greater area of Munich, during which selected customers have had the chance to test the new delivery solution. Customers taking part in the early stage of the pilot have been registered by Audi.
