When looking for a cheap parcel delivery service you need to make a choice between cost and service; cheap doesn’t necessarily mean fast or reliable. One area that a cheap parcel delivery service will cost you more is in time, and what may seem like a great discount could ultimately end up costing you a day home waiting for the parcel company.
When looking for a cheap service be clear about what you will and will not compromise on, your time is money, and if time isn’t something you can take to get your parcel delivered then look for a service that guarantees pick up and collection times for that extra amount of money.
Discounted parcel delivery services work much like Royal Mail with your average letter. Thousands of parcels are collected and taken to a distribution centre where they are sorted and grouped together with other parcels from across the UK. Once sorted your parcel, with hundreds of others, will be sent to the local delivery depot for its destination address where it will then be re-sorted for delivery and sent out. Delivery via the cheapest service can take several days and your parcel can go through many, many people’s hands so it’s imperative that you make sure your parcel is thoroughly protected and properly packaged.
Tracking may be another aspect that you no longer have access to when opting for an affordable parcel service, so if knowing when your parcel was delivered is essential then it will be up to you to contact the delivery address for confirmation or pay out for a service that has tracking included in the (higher) price. The rule of thumb will be the cheaper the service the less control you have over when and how your parcel is delivered and tracked. Always check the terms and conditions of a quote before you accept in case you lose out on something vital for the sake of a cheaper price or have to spend precious time ringing around to confirm delivery.
Choose your service carefully; even with cheap parcel delivery services there’s an option; next day, same day, timed or 48hr, the services are all still available but restrictions may be placed on parcel size, contents and packaging so double check requirements before booking. The cheapest service of each type will often still be the one that requires you and the recipient to be waiting for collection or delivery for the entire day, if that isn’t something you can guarantee (or the recipient is a client that you can’t ask to potentially waste an entire day waiting in for your parcel) it might be more cost effective to pay more for a service where you can specify times and dates.