Yodel no longer collecting parcels from customers

[SamStones]

Hello,

We've just been informed that Yodel will stop collecting parcels from customers at the end of October 2019 unless the customer is filling an arctic and sending directly to their hubs. i.e. the local service centres will no longer be collecting from small and medium sized businesses.

Has anyone else heard this? or heard anything to the contrary? or with Yodel but not heard anything at all?

TIA

Sam

 

[Mr D]

Who informed you?
Would imagine such a major change in business model would be part of a press release at least.

 

[crackerjackcommerce]

Hi, no I have not heard anything and I agree with Mr D - it would probably be documented online somewhere due to the nature of the change. Not a good time to be doing it also with busy Q4 period??!!

 

[SamStones]

Who informed you?
Would imagine such a major change in business model would be part of a press release at least.

Our current 3rd party provider who looks after our Yodel account have informed us of the change. It seems a major change in business model, and has come completely out of the blue. I'm yet to hear of anyone else who's heard this same story, so I'm struggling to get to the bottom of it! I know they're losing money, but seems a strange way to reverse that trend!

 

[Newchodge]

Our current 3rd party provider who looks after our Yodel account have informed us of the change. It seems a major change in business model, and has come completely out of the blue. I'm yet to hear of anyone else who's heard this same story, so I'm struggling to get to the bottom of it! I know they're losing money, but seems a strange way to reverse that trend!

Has your third party provider suggested an alternative company? Is that their motivation to tell you this 'news'?

 

[Newchodge]

illing an arctic

Just as a matter of interest, an arctic is a huge expanse of icy waste. An artic is short for an articulated vehicle.

PedantsRUs

 

[SamStones]

Just as a matter of interest, an arctic is a huge expanse of icy waste. An artic is short for an articulated vehicle.

PedantsRUs

There's always one! (usually me to be fair, so fair cop!). Had a bit of a panic on yesterday...

Yes, the 3rd party has suggested another carrier they work with, so I am equally suspicious, but the service we have received from Yodel has been on the whole very good so I don't see any reason they would try and force a customer to move really.

 

[Mr D]

There's always one! (usually me to be fair, so fair cop!). Had a bit of a panic on yesterday...

Yes, the 3rd party has suggested another carrier they work with, so I am equally suspicious, but the service we have received from Yodel has been on the whole very good so I don't see any reason they would try and force a customer to move really.

Ignore the story until Yodel announce a change.
Cannot see them passing so many customers off to competitors by such a move - not that the competitors would complain.

 

[SamStones]

Ignore the story until Yodel announce a change.
Cannot see them passing so many customers off to competitors by such a move - not that the competitors would complain.

I'd love to have that confidence, but when you're approaching peak period and you're told your courier's going to stop collecting at the end of October it's not really something we can ignore unfortunately.

 

[Newchodge]

I'd love to have that confidence, but when you're approaching peak period and you're told your courier's going to stop collecting at the end of October it's not really something we can ignore unfortunately.

Can you contact Yodel direct?

 

[SamStones]

Can you contact Yodel direct?

As odd as it sounds, we've never had a direct number for them as we deal with the 3rd party. Just looking online and I'm struggling to find any way to contact them - I have tried in the past and drawn a blank.

 

[fisicx]

Our current 3rd party provider who looks after our Yodel account have informed us of the change.

It's the third party who have changed their collection policy - nothing to do with Yodel.

 

[antropy]

As odd as it sounds, we've never had a direct number for them as we deal with the 3rd party. Just looking online and I'm struggling to find any way to contact them - I have tried in the past and drawn a blank.

Try this https://customerservicecontactnumber.co.uk/yodel/

 

[Mr D]

I'd love to have that confidence, but when you're approaching peak period and you're told your courier's going to stop collecting at the end of October it's not really something we can ignore unfortunately.

As it would affect millions of parcels you would think the company would announce it. If it was true.
Of course if its false no reason for them to announce it.

 

[SamStones]

As it would affect millions of parcels you would think the company would announce it. If it was true.
Of course if its false no reason for them to announce it.

Totally agree, and it's put us in a very difficult situation, but 14 years dealing with couriers tells me there's always something new around the corner to surprise you!

Antropy: Thanks. Will take a look.

 

[Mr D]

Totally agree, and it's put us in a very difficult situation, but 14 years dealing with couriers tells me there's always something new around the corner to surprise you!

Antropy: Thanks. Will take a look.

Now if they were to go under, likely the first we'd hear about it would be just after sending a chunk of parcels off by van...
Murphy and his imps are alive and well and kicking bottom.

 

[fisicx]

As it would affect millions of parcels you would think the company would announce it. If it was true.
Of course if its false no reason for them to announce it.

It's not a Yodel policy change, it's just the third party provider deciding they don't want to do local pickups.

 

[SamStones]

Now if they were to go under, likely the first we'd hear about it would be just after sending a chunk of parcels off by van...
Murphy and his imps are alive and well and kicking bottom.

Yep! Had that happen a couple of times... Amtrak going down was a nightmare at the start of a bank holiday weekend. City link was better as they went bust Christmas day, so only had about a dozen parcels in their network. Still a PITA, but much better than it could have been for us (not so much for the self employed drivers who were done out of their Christmas paycheck unfortunately)

 

[SamStones]

So other than YodelDirect, does anyone have any company names that act as intermediaries between small businesses and Yodel. Ideally someone using netdespatch as that's how we integrate currently.

 

[Paul Norman]

The third party service are the ones changing their business model. Which, of course, means that you are indeed not going to get a collection after October unless you make alternative arrangements. I would use the opportunity to get talking to the likes of DPD, Yodel themselves, Parcel Force, or other third party providers.

 

[SamStones]

Thanks for the reply Paul. Do you have any contact details for any sort of Sales team at Yodel? As far as I can tell they don't have a sales team for small businesses but there MUST be someone out there!

 

[Mr D]

Yep! Had that happen a couple of times... Amtrak going down was a nightmare at the start of a bank holiday weekend. City link was better as they went bust Christmas day, so only had about a dozen parcels in their network. Still a PITA, but much better than it could have been for us (not so much for the self employed drivers who were done out of their Christmas paycheck unfortunately)

Yes Amtrak was a problem. I had a delivery of a couple of dozen parcels stuck for 3 weeks.
The franchise owners lost a ton of money too - they could not get the same rates working self employed for other couriers.

 

[fisicx]

Thanks for the reply Paul. Do you have any contact details for any sort of Sales team at Yodel? As far as I can tell they don't have a sales team for small businesses but there MUST be someone out there!

This is NOT a Yodel policy change. Calling Yodel won't help. It's the third party providers who have changed their policy and no longer want to collect.

 

[Paul Norman]

Thanks for the reply Paul. Do you have any contact details for any sort of Sales team at Yodel? As far as I can tell they don't have a sales team for small businesses but there MUST be someone out there!

I am afraid I don't, at least not currently - it is some 8 years since we had an account with them. Since then I have fluctuated between DPD and DHL - the latter of whom are not now interested unless your volumes are immense.

I think Yodel prefer, these days, to go through intermediaries. I would be inclined to fill out a contact form on their website, and/or phone their customer service number (0344 755 0117)

Yodel operate a super lean business (hence the keen pricing), but that means speaking to a person is not easy.

 

[SamStones]

I've called their customer service line, 20 mins on hold waiting to speak to someone, only to be cut off within 20 seconds of being connected as I couldn't provide a parcel reference number. Online chat similar story unfortunately.

 

[Mr D]

This is NOT a Yodel policy change. Calling Yodel won't help. It's the third party providers who have changed their policy and no longer want to collect.

So appears a simple solution. Change 3rd parties.

 

[SamStones]

So appears a simple solution. Change 3rd parties.

In theory yes, I'm just struggling to find out who else does it!

 

[fisicx]

In theory yes, I'm just struggling to find out who else does it!

Locally probably nobody. Each area has a Yodel contractor who has exclusivity. The bloke who delivers Yodel stuff to us has a Geographical area defined by postcodes. There is no overlap.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

We did hear about City link in November a month prior to them folding and told our regular driver who said a load of rubbish then come Christmas day i guess he changed his mind

Sometimes plans do sneak out well before the event often when they are trying a pre pack sell off or similar, the larger the company the more likely someone hears and tells bob down the pub who tells

Maybe a Herpes type operation appeals to them, click and collect and no or few vans

 

[Mr D]

In theory yes, I'm just struggling to find out who else does it!

So look at some other company as courier until such time as Yodel assign the rest of the work to someone.