Australia Post proposes fees for late parcel pick-ups

Australia Post has unveiled a proposal to hold onto parcels for longer before returning them to the sender – but the flipside of the new arrangement is that the postal operator will also be imposing charges on parcels collected after the specified time. Australia Post announced the proposed changes today (3 May) in a statement which emphasised the extended collection period – but the press, the public and the company’s competitors have focused on the proposed fees.

The changes are set to take effect from 1 August.

In its statement today, Australia Post commented: “Parcels are currently held for ten days before being returned to sender. Under the proposal, from August parcels will be held for to up to 30 days, with a small fee charged for this service after five days, payable on collection. Australia Post MyPost customers will continue to receive ten days free of charge.

“Customers will be charged $3 per week, payable after 10 business days for MyPost customers or five days for non-MyPost customers. The maximum charge will be $9, payable after 16 business days.

“Most customers pick up their parcel quickly, with 92% of parcels collected within five days. We believe this service will help the small amount of customers (approximately 8 per cent) who can’t collect their parcel straight away.

“The majority of this fee will be paid to Post Office operators who will be storing the parcels.”

Meanwhile, Fastway Couriers wasted no time in issuing a statement today emphasising that its Parcel Connect service – which allows customers to send and received parcels via a range of retail outlets including convenience stores and petrol stations – is free of charge (to the person picking up the parcel).