Irish postal operator An Post yesterday launched a new cross-border shipping service for Irish consumers buying online from UK e-retailers.
The new ‘AddressPal’ service allows customers to have their UK online shopping delivered to Ireland by providing a UK delivery address for their orders.
The service is operated through the AddressPal website, which generates a UK proxy address for Irish consumers to use when ordering online from the UK. The key benefits to the consumer is that they can avail of free, reduced or UK only shipping options combined with convenient pick-up points through the An Post retail post office network across Ireland.
An Post will ship all items from the UK to Ireland and customers can collect them for just €3.50 at their designated post office.
Explaining the new service, the postal operator said customers can register for free with addressPal.ie, receive their unique UK AddressPal address and shop online at their preferred UK e-tailer. They will be notified when the item arrives and can be collected from a selected post office.
An An Post spokesperson describes AddressPal as a perfect solution for many online shoppers. “AddressPal matches our unrivalled retail network, shipping know-how and trusted customer service for the benefit of customers shopping online. Along with DeliveryBox this is another example of An Post meeting the needs of a new generation of customers and increasing the range of services offered by Post offices.
Delivery Box is an innovative service launched in early February on a nationwide basis to ensure consumers have no more missed deliveries and can receive their online orders safely when they are out. DeliveryBox offers a compact, discreet and stylish wall-mounted box which holds letters and parcels at a home or business until they are retrieved.
Priced just €69.99, which includes the specially designed weather-resistant delivery box, access keys, unique barcode security feature, installation template and activation card, DeliveryBox will be delivered within five working days of ordering. Customers can also leave stamped mail or online shopping returns in the box for collection by their postperson. Once installed, An Post begins delivering parcels and general mail to the new DeliveryBox.
