Brits embrace next day delivery as usage figures reach new high

Tuesday, July 3, 2018 - 09:59 by David Aiken

Stats published by IMRG have shown that more consumers in the UK are choosing next day delivery as part of their online shopping activities than ever before.

Internet Retailing reports that 37 per cent of all e-commerce orders that were delivered to British shoppers in May this year were shipped via an express option, rather than a standard alternative with a lower associated price.

As a direct result of this, there was actually a fall in the number of deliveries which arrived within their allotted timeframe. Just 88 per cent of packages showed up when expected, representing the first time that this figure has fallen below 90 per cent since records began.

Study spokesperson Andy Mulch said that even with this rise in the proportion of orders that are being shipped via next day delivery services, thus far surveys of consumers have shown that there is relatively little stated demand for express shipping options.

The implication is that in spite of the fact that consumers who benefit from safe shopping online are more likely to choose next day delivery than ever before, most did not ask for this service to be made more widely available. Instead, this is a trend that appears to have been driven by the retailers themselves.

Analysts also believe that in some cases people are simply unaware of the fact that they have ordered something to be delivered within 24 hours, usually as a result of the shipping options being presented to them in a confusing format.

There are concerns that unless retailers and delivery firms can keep up with the growing pressure on next day services, the volume of packages that are put through for express shipping will become overwhelming, especially during peak seasonal periods.