90% Of Britons Love E-Commerce But Delivery Services Disappoint

E-commerce has been the one constant bright spot on the UK retail landscape for quite a while now. Britain has earned quite a reputation for its digitally savvy population and its love of online shopping, with 90% of Britons expecting to maintain or exceed their current level of online spending through to 2017.

But given the nature of e-commerce, delivery services are a crucial component of the overall consumer experience and this appears to be an area where UK shoppers have quite a lot to gripe about.

I’ve found as much courtesy of an article on TalkingRetail.com, which cites the findings of a survey conducted by OnePoll among 1,000 Britons on behalf of fleet management solutions provider Trimble.

The annual delivery bill of UK e-shoppers amounts to an impressive £3.63bn and while consumers are willing to spend a few extra pounds for speedy or weekend delivery, they remain by and large disappointed with the quality of courier services.

Shoppers have no problem parting with £2.99 on average in the form of shipping fees but consumer feathers are definitely ruffled by late arrivals, missed deliveries and e-tailers’ inability to pin down a specific date and time for delivery. Online shoppers take issue with having their goods brought to the doorstep when there is no one at home, with 30% of respondents grumbling about it. For 14%, another complaint is retailers’ inability to specify a short window for delivery.

As for the reasons driving consumers to online shopping, 36% list convenience as the main factor. Congested high-street outlets and shopping centres are cited by 20%, while 15% attribute the ever-growing popularity of e-commerce to hectic lifestyles.