Amazon parcels could soon be handled by the Post Office as it ends exclusivity deal with Royal Mail

Delivery

The Post Office could soon handle packages for Amazon as its historic exclusivity deal with Royal Mail comes to an end.

Royal Mail, the UK’s largest parcel delivery company which handles over a billion packages every year, yesterday announced that it had signed its first ever “non-exclusivity” deal with the Post Office.

According to the Post Office, which is still state-owned, this new agreement “allows us to work with other third parties, marking an important milestone.”

Amazon and delivery giant Hermes are understood to have already approached the Post Office, which has 11,500 branches across the UK, and are engaged in talks to potentially gain access to its extensive network.

READ MORE: Royal Mail lets users send packages without ever visiting a post office via app

The Post Office’s chief executive Nick Read said in a video message to staff: “The growth of online retailing means there is much more competition…We can provide online retailers access to the UK’s biggest parcels pick-up and drop-off network.

“You won’t be too surprised to know that we have been approached by third-party providers already. And clearly we will be having conversations with them to understand what the opportunity looks like.”

Royal Mail and the Post Office’s exclusivity deal is due to come to an end in March next year.

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27 Comments. Leave new

  • God help us if this happens dont do it Amazon

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  • There is nothing royal about royal mail worst service ever best of delivering it yourself than rely on their poor service

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  • Bet we dont get our parcel as quickly as we get them now

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  • I hope Hermes don’t get any part of the deal , they renounced for horrid and horenduce delivery’s as it is already , and everyone already knows Hermes are the uk worst couriers todate

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  • I order some things on Amozon on 8 November I think and packaging didn’t receive on 17 December so today thinking hasn’t turn up by royal mail so said Amozon ask refund so Did guest what turn up Package on 18 December would cancel your refund?

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  • The whole reason royalmail has been split up and privatised was due to its dominant position. Now as long as they spend loads of money ie amazon they can do as they please without having ofcom measuring there performance. Disgusting!! , once they dictate everything who can make what money etc will they be penalised like royalmail are ?

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  • Last place I’d want to go to post anything is the post office. Poor opening hours and long waits. Give me an in post machine or local newsagents any day.

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  • get rid of those morons at hermes.. the “kid me” delivery nutters.

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  • Would be a huge mistake. They wouldn’t cope with the volume..returns etc. Can you imagine the queues at the local post office with just one assistant Manning the till.

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  • I think that the bigger story here is that the post office and the royal mail are not the same company! Why have I never been told this before!?

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  • Why ruin your delivery service? ParcelHero collected a parcel from me delivered it in 3 days as my choice could have had next day delivery for £4.00

    Post office took a parcel from me after I queued for 40mins in the rain under current situation it was less than half the size and weight of the parcel collection by ParcelHero it cost £5.00 and I was told it would be there the next day nine days later no parcel tracking only says they have it because they don’t trace signed for parcels and I have been told I have to wait until the 24th December before they class it as lost 15days for next day delivery please think again

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  • Royal mail can’t even get their own deliveries right and they think they’re prepared to take on more? Okay. 😂

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  • If Royal mail is going to handle 2nd party, parcels and packages then the fee must reflect the workforces commitment to delivering them the final mile.

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  • The Royal Mail and the post office delivery service is absolutely diabolical. Please don’t use this Amazon

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  • Kathleen Blacker
    December 19, 2020 11:04 am

    I dont want my Amazon stuff being sent by royL mail if theres another carrier. Royal Mail have lost one parcel from Amazon. I reordered them they found it weeks later and delivered it. This was after a re order and refund. They’ve cause chaos . Theybare expensive and sub standard

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  • P.O counters cannot handle the current parcel volumes due to lack of space

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  • Omg no..my opinion of the royal mail isn’t great..a track and trace that actually tells us nothing just had nearly two weeks trying to get a parcel delivery had it re routed tried everything then it turns up on doorstep ..I use Amazon all the time when they say next day prime delivery it’s always arrived now that will change

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  • Sharon Templeman
    December 19, 2020 11:40 pm

    Post office can’t handle there own stuff😥

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  • I’ll close my amazon account if they go with my hermes the worst thing they can do. And I’ll never shop with amazon again if they go for a deal with herms. If you like missing parcels and broken glass then so be it. They could not care who gets your parcels

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  • This is a ridiculously bad idea. Amazon need to keep their delivery services in house.
    This year I’ve had 5 Amazon purchases that were (supposed to be) fulfilled by Royal Mail, none of them arrived.

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  • Martin Pickering
    December 20, 2020 1:09 pm

    To pass delivery’s over to Royal mail would be a very bad move by Amazon. Royal mail have not only lost my letters and parcels and never deliver on time sometimes 6 or 7 days late on a next day delivery. If this goes over to Royal Mail I will stop using Amazon

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  • Sadly I must agree with so many of the negative remarks about Amazon using Royal Mail for their deliveries. I too have been one of the victims whose parcels went missing (childs Christmas present).
    Amazon controlled parcel delivery has always been the best.
    Is it that, they too have been overwhelmed this year?

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  • Wouldn’t recommend using post office for cheque paying into the bank.
    They lost my cheque and was passed pillar to post between them and the bank.
    PO didn’t want to know and eventually after 5 weeks contacted my cheque issuer to cancel and re-issue with not one hint of apology.
    Poor show.

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  • I placed two orders within two weeks on Amazon; Delivered by Royal Mail and both orders never turned up. Their tracking indicated the seller had given it to them but nothing after that. The Royal Mail are an utter disgrace

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  • I had a package from amazon allegedly delivered last Friday by royal mail, I was in all day and nothing arrived, went to the delivery office who confirmed the postman couldn’t remember delivering it but must have if the tracking says so!!! Amazon have offered a refund even though I specified I wanted a replacement as I was offered an instant £5 off voucher as I was buying a new album on pre-order, now if I buy it again i’ve lost the money off voucher and it will probably go missing if sent by royal mail again, nightmare, very close to closing my amazon account

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  • They’re here! royal mail have started doing Amazon deliveries and are making a right Royal balls-up of it. I’m now too scared to order anything from Amazon because I have no confidence the item will arrive after two failed deliveries – one that could have been posted through the letter box was sent back to the depot. Royal Mail has turned the clock back twenty years.

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  • My issue is no tracking. No idea when Royal Mail will come, no updates. It’s the main reason I order from Amazon. This is sad news. Royal Mail packages always come to me looking like they were used as footballs too. So I’ll need to start shopping elsewhere.

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