Ofcom’s annual research into consumers’ experiences of parcel deliveries, published today, lifts the lid on how happy people are with the main courier companies. While average overall satisfaction is reasonably high at 78% – unchanged from last year – people can have different experiences depending on which parcel company delivers their package.
- Last year, people in the UK sent and received a record 4.2 billion parcels
- This was 7% more than the previous year, and higher than the pandemic peak of 4 billion in 2020/21
- Across all operators, more than two thirds (68%) had experienced a delivery issue in the past six months
- The proportion of parcel recipients experiencing any delivery issues were lower in North East England compared to the UK average
My personal experiences
This is really interesting to me and I’m going to call out Evri. For years I’ve heard stories about how Evri’s performance has been substandard, but I’ve always had impeccable service. However, this recently changed with the local Evri depot in Thatcham closing and deliveries now coming from miles away (Either Abingdon or occasionally Swindon). Deliveries are now often delayed by days (in one case weeks) and it appears pot luck on when they’ll arrive. Either they arrive on the expected day, or they’re several days late.
This isn’t intended as a pop at Evri, as I say they’ve been absolutely faultless for the past couple of decades, but it does demonstrate how a (hopefully temporary) local issue can impact customer’s view of any courier.
Top 10 parcel delivery issues experienced
- Parcel delivery was delayed – 28%
- Parcel left in inappropriate location – 26%
- Delivery person did not knock loudly enough or ring the doorbell – 20%
- Not sufficient time to answer the door – 19%
- Parcel not left in nominated space – 16%
- Parcel not delivered – 16%
- Did not attempt to deliver in person – 16%
- Parcel was damaged – 15%
- Incorrect or insufficient tracking – 14%
- Process for selecting time slots not accessible – 9%
Parcel company performance
When comparing individual parcel companies’ performance in handling contacts and complaints from parcel recipients, Amazon and FedEx top the poll on customer service satisfaction. Both companies achieved a satisfaction score of 57% and were closely followed by UPS and DHL, both at 55%.
Bringing up the rear, once again, are Yodel and Evri. Satisfaction among customers who have cause to contact or complain to them about a delivery issue are significantly below average at 38% and 31% respectively. These companies also have the highest levels of dissatisfaction, with Evri scoring 41% and Yodel scoring 33%.
Ofcom has strengthened its regulations to make sure people are treated fairly by parcel firms, and following this, several companies have made a number of changes to how they handle complaints, Since 2023, we have seen customers’ satisfaction with the process of contacting parcel operators increase from 41% to 45% in 2025, while complaints handling satisfaction increased from 43% to 46% during the same period.
We are pressing parcel operators to make further, sustained improvements. In particular, disabled consumers and those with limiting conditions should not encounter difficulties with the delivery process, which is currently more likely to be the case compared to other people without these conditions (73% vs. 65%).
– Ofcom
