Tag: UK

Many consumers on the continent are worse off, says UK Royal Mail‘s Crozier

Posted by | Sep 1, 2004 | |

Although Adam Crozier, Royal Mail chief executive, accepts that the public are losing patience with the poor performance of the postal service, he points out that consumers are worse off in other countries. “We have the lowest prices and the quality targets are tougher.” Among western European countries only the Netherlands and Portugal have cheaper stamp prices in the lightest category of post, and in the 50 gram bracket the UK’s price of 28p is the lowest. The cheapest stamp price in Germany is 55 cents (38p) and in France it is 50 cents (34p). Many UK customers are unhappy at the scrapping of the second daily postal delivery and the arrival of mail later in the day. But in Germany post is delivered between 9am and 2.30pm, while in the Netherlands post can be delivered as late as 5pm.

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Promise in the post: The competition count-down continues for UK Royal Mail

Posted by | Sep 1, 2004 | |

Higher prices and worse service do not make a compelling proposition for consumers, but that is exactly what Royal Mail has offered in the first half of 2004. The company responsible for delivering most of the country’s post says it is now back on track after the largest change management programme in British business for a generation. But with just over 2 1/2 years until it faces full competition in the postal market, time is running out for Royal Mail. Yesterday’s performance figures for April to June show the organisation was still struggling to deliver the post months after reaching agreement with the unions on new working practices. It failed to hit any of its 15 performance targets during the quarter, continuing the abysmal achievement of 2003-4. With first-class letters, just 88.3 per cent were delivered next day against a target of 92.5 per cent – the poorest quarterly figure for three years. Royal Mail appears to have underestimated the impact on its business of the abolition of the second post and the introduction of a five-day week for staff.

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Repackaging brand to stamp out losses: Turning the Post Office into a financial services leader is the challenge for its chief

Posted by | Aug 31, 2004 | |

David Mills, chief executive of the Post Office, looks exasperated when asked why post offices lose money in spite of being so busy that queues fill every inch of floor space in most big branches. It is a question that mystifies members of the public, but the answer is clear to Mr Mills. “The more things we sell the more money we lose,” he says. The problem is that most of the transactions carried out by post offices are not to do with selling at all but moving money around for government departments or banks and utility companies.
About 24m people pay bills at a post office and 27 per cent of the UK’s cash is being handled by the Post Office at any one time. But Mr Mills says the state-owned company, part of Royal Mail Group, does not always get paid market rates for carrying out the work. “It’s a free resource,” says Mr Mills. “We have been delivering government services and not products and services of our own.” The Post Office’s new role, if Mr Mills has his way, will be as a leader in financial services. He thinks the Post Office’s strong brand, which he says is the most respected on the high street, and its 15,000-branches, will allow it to compete with banks and insurance companies.

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Amtrak posts Pounds 2m profit and plans to consolidate market

Posted by | Aug 31, 2004 | |

Amtrak Express Parcels, the 3i-backed delivery business, has returned to profit and pledged to consolidate the over-crowded parcels delivery market. The comments come amid speculation about the future of Rentokil Initial’s parcels delivery business, although last week Brian McGowan, Rentokil’s new chairman, appeared to rule out the sale of this division. Amtrak, which was the subject of an Pounds 86m buy-in in 1998, and which underwent a financial restructuring two years’ ago, made pre-tax profits of Pounds 1.9m in the year to May 31, compared with a Pounds 5.5m loss a year earlier. Jonathan Smith, who became managing director in August 2002, attributed the return to profit to reduced overheads, including the loss of about 60 jobs during the year, as well as the decision to focus on business-to-consumer rather than business-to-business deliveries.

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GBP50m compensation bill for Royal Mail

Posted by | Aug 31, 2004 | |

The Royal Mail is paying out a record GBP50 million in compensation to business and individual customers because of late delivery of post, today’s report showed. More than GBP35 million will be given to companies under a compensation scheme described by the Royal Mail as the fairest in Europe. The scheme refunds 0.1% of a customer’s bill for every 0.1% drop in performance below a set standard. Another GBP16.5 million is being paid to smaller firms and individual customers who claim compensation for delayed post.

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