PostNL announced a strong quality improvement in consumer mail delivery in 2011 with an overallquality score of 96.1% which is one of its highest scores in 20 years and stands out from the
rather poor performance of 92.9% in 2010.Even though the latest score shows a clear improvement on 2010, the figures cannot be compareddirectly. In late 2010, the trade unions took action to reach a final agreement with the company onthe restructuring. This clearly affected mail delivery quality in 2010 which exceeded 95% beforethe strikes and other collective action, PostNL explained.
The figures refer largely to consumer mail and franking machine mail, which makes up around 14%of the total volume handled by PostNL. The quality figure for business mail (86% of the totalvolume) was 97% in 2011 and 96% in 2010 (excluding the strike period).
By law, the company must score at least 95% for the standard overnight delivery services withinthe Netherlands which concerns the mail deposited in PostNL’s public postboxes. As a rule, theseitems must be delivered the next working day.
PostNL said it is satisfied with its performance, especially considering the various changes itmade to its organisation in 2011 to prepare for a new delivery structure. Mail delivery is nolonger prepared at 300 locations across the Netherlands but instead at just nine centralpreparation locations.
The company’s delivery quality is measured by an independent agency (Intomart GfK) using amethod approved by supervisory body OPTA and its appointed auditor. The auditor also reviews thefinal figures and the results are submitted by 1 June to OPTA, which uses them to assess whetherPostNL has met the legal requirements.
Pieter Kunz, Operations Director at PostNL: “We are proud of this high quality score. Everyonein the Netherlands is now aware that the declining market is forcing our postal company to keep onre-organising. Something occasionally goes wrong, of course, and every mail item not deliveredcorrectly or on time is one too many, but all our staff certainly deserve to be complimented onthis performance”.
PostNL processes 8.8 billion addressed postal items (including 100 million parcels) every yearand delivers to more than 88 million addresses in the Benelux, Germany, the UK and Italy. PostNL’smain businesses include mail, parcels and e-commerce. The company employs some 77,000 people.
