Royal Mail rolls out later acceptance times for Tracked 48 parcels

Royal Mail has extended acceptance times for its two-day tracked parcel delivery service to allow major business customers to drop parcels off any time up to midnight, five days per week. The UK universal postal service provider said the extended hours for its Royal Mail Tracked 48 service will apply across the country, for items dropped off at 39 mail centres and eight regional distribution centres around the country.

Exceptions are in Aberdeen and Inverness, where the latest acceptance times will be 9pm.

The service is available to shippers sending at least 1,000 parcels a year, with the new extended hours applying to those sending at least 50 parcels at a time.

The privatised company said it had made the change in order to meet the needs of online retail and the world of 24-hour shopping. It will mean shoppers can get their deliveries more quickly, Royal Mail said.

The Tracked 48 service also offers collection by Royal Mail from a customer’s location.

The extended hours applied as of yesterday, and will run all year round, Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays. Previously, the service accepted parcels only up until 5pm or 6pm depending on location.

Nick Landon, Managing Director Royal Mail Parcels, said:“We work hard to listen and respond to the needs of our customers. We understood that later acceptance could make the difference between satisfied customers and delighted customers and we are very pleased to be helping companies to deliver exceptional service to their shoppers.

“This latest product enhancement is one more way that Royal Mail is building a better delivery service for British businesses and consumers alike.”