'People not at home when delivering package should be fined'

The pressure on parcel delivery continues to grow. Webshops and their carriers are struggling with huge numbers of deliveries and returns. On top of that, parcel deliverers all too often find themselves waiting in front of a closed door, forcing them to deliver the package at a later time. It would therefore be good if people who are not at home for package deliveries were fined. Such a measure forces consumers to think more consciously about where and when they want to receive their package.

Package deliverers drive unnecessary miles every day because the recipient of their package is not home at the time of delivery. This not only increases the workload, but also has a negative impact on the environment. A financial incentive can help to deal more responsibly with delivery moments. A fine for missed deliveries encourages consumers to choose a convenient delivery day and time. Or to use a package point or the store as a delivery address.

Yet the responsibility does not lie solely with the consumer. Web stores and carriers need to offer more flexibility in choosing and changing delivery times. Often, customers can only select a delivery day, but lack the option for a specific part of the day or time slot. Also, after ordering, it is not always possible to change the delivery time.

Even if people have deliberately chosen a specific delivery slot, something can always happen that prevents them from being at home. In that case it should be possible to use a self-service app to move the delivery slot to another time slot or another day, or to choose a parcel point or the store as delivery location after all. Every unnecessary kilometer that parcel carriers do not have to drive as a result is profit.

Consumer behavior is setting the bar for Web stores and their carriers to deliver orders quickly to their homes so high that they need to start adjusting that behavior. They have that opportunity and they must take that responsibility. In this way, they can ease the workload of package deliverers while making a positive impact on the environment.