Delivery service Evri has been crowned the most disliked parcel firm in Britain, with the highest proportion of dissatisfied customers, according to regulator Ofcom.
Nearly half of those who contacted Evri with an issue said they were unhappy with the complaints process, in a major survey conducted by the watchdog. Just one in four were satisfied with the system.
Shoppers have turned their back on major retailers that use Evri, formerly called Hermes, to deliver their online orders, Money Mail revealed last month.
Parcel delivery company Yodel ranked as the second-worst, with one in three saying they were unhappy with the process of contacting the firm.
Two-thirds of people said they had a problem with at least one delivery in the year to June. The most common gripes were parcel damage, parcels being left in an inappropriate place and not being given enough time to answer the door.
Dissatisfied customers: Nearly half of those who contacted Evri with an issue said they were unhappy with the complaints process
But Ofcom warned there is a large gap between the quality in customer services across parcel companies.
FedEx, Amazon and DHL scored high for customer satisfaction. Nearly six in ten people who used FedEx to receive their parcels and contacted the firm said they were happy, with just 16 per cent voicing concerns.
If someone buys a product online and their parcel is damaged or does not arrive, they may be able to seek redress from the online retailer under consumer law.
The sender may then seek redress from the parcel firm, and sometimes a recipient may need to contact the parcel operator.
Since April, operators have been forced to improve their complaints handling processes, under strict new guidance from Ofcom.
Firms were ordered to improve the information on their websites, phone lines and live chats, and introduce an option to request an email or be called back.
This came as research found fewer than half of recipients who contact the parcel company are satisfied with the contact process, the handling of their complaint and resolution of their issue.
But last month Citizen’s Advice revealed Evri and Yodel were at the bottom of its annual parcels league table.
Both operators received just two out of five stars, based on customer service, delivery problems, accessibility and trust.
Amazon Logistics and Royal Mail topped the list with scores of 2.75 but none of the five major parcel firms scored more than this.