Gifts left in smelly rubbish bins, smashed televisions and parcels chewed by foxes – these are just some of the Christmas parcel delivery failures reported by consumers.
A dog being delivered to the wrong house was one of the strangest parcel problems reported to consumer group Which? in a survey of festive delivery difficulties.
The boom in online shopping in recent years, particularly after the pandemic, means most people will have experienced some kind of problem with receiving their orders.
Consumer watchdog Which? found that six in 10 (61 per cent) said something went wrong with at least one delivery – with just four in 10 (37 per cent) saying all their deliveries arrived without a hiccup.
The most common complaints included deliveries arriving late (21 per cent), a package being left outside without their permission (21 per cent) or not being delivered at all (10 per cent).
One in 10 (10 per cent) respondents received notes claiming they were not home during the delivery attempt, despite being present, and nine per cent received false notifications stating their packages had been delivered.
While Santa can usually be relied on for the safe delivery of parcels, the same cannot always be said for courier firms. Almost a quarter (23 per cent) of people who had specified a safe place or neighbour for their parcels faced problems.
One consumer said a pet shop attempted to deliver a dog to their address, only to find the correct recipient was a house with a similar name in a nearby village.
They said: “It was a ghastly looking thing too – like something out of Star Wars.”
Another bewildered shopper was told by the delivery company that their parcel had been left with a “receptionist”. But they did not have one and they later found a soaking wet package in their garden.
With the big day just weeks aways, millions of people will be shopping online and relying on delivery firms to get their gifts – so Which? has offered some advice to consumers so they know their rights if a delivery arrives damaged, late, or not at all.
If a delivery fails to arrive, customers should immediately contact the retailer, which should either help track down their order or send a replacement, the consumer group said.
Customers may also get a refund from their retailer if they paid extra for a special delivery that then arrived late.
Which? is inviting consumers to share their stories of poor customer service on its website as the consumer champion gathers evidence as part of a campaign for companies to improve their customer service.
Lisa Webb, Which? Consumer Law Expert, said: “The festive season is the busiest time of year for deliveries and many of us will understandably be worried about whether Christmas shopping will arrive on time – or at all.
“Any delivery firms who are falling short on customer service need to up their game. They must ensure that they are properly prepared for the Christmas period and able to deliver people’s parcels on time.
“To help reduce the likelihood of problems with a delivery, it’s worth being specific when setting your preferences around timings or safe places – and if something goes wrong with your delivery this Christmas – it's the retailer and not the delivery company that you need to ask to fix the problem.”
