PostNL introduce parcel lockers to 9 major railway stations
Post NL have begun installing parcel lockers at railways stations which will allow customers to pick up their packages 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The lockers, branded “Pakketautomaten”, are being installed at Amsterdam Centraal, Rotterdam Centraal, Den Haag Centraal, Utrecht Centraal, Schiphol Plaza, Breda, Eindhoven, Leiden and Almere Centrum.
The installation of the machines will take several weeks because both the mechanics and the ICT must be adjusted perfectly. All package machines have security programs and surveillance during the week. The company wants the nine vending machines to be operational in the week before Sinterklaas.
The scheme has been successfully piloted at Almere Centrum and research conducted by PostNL revealed that 89% of users were extremely or very satisfied and 95% of the people who used the Packet Dispenser once will do so again in the future.
How does it work?
Customers shopping with merchants who use the Package Automatic option can choose to receive their delivery in a Packet Dispenser. The recipient will receive via SMS opening a unique code when the package is ready in the machine. This opening code is associated with the mobile phone number that only the authorized client could get it.
The packages can be picked up on weekdays from 15:00. After 24 hours, the customer will receive a text if the package has not been picked up.
After three days the package will automatically be taken to a Post Office or packet point in the vicinity of the dispenser package. The customer then has 21 days to get the parcel.
