Hermes Parcel delivery

I buy quite a lot of things online and that means that I am often on the receiving end of deliveries. I live in a rural area which means deliveries can arrive at all times of the day so it is hard to plan your day if you are waiting for a delivery.

Parcel firms vary in their efficiency and with a postal strike looming (again!) I guess more and more people will be having parcels delivered by this sort of company.

Now you might well think that Hermes are a new player in the game. So did I when I was chasing up a delivery on goods I had ordered two weeks earlier. The online shop I had ordered from told me that they did all their deliveries through Hermes so I went to look them up online.

It seems Hermes used to be Parcelnet and the minute I realised that my heart sank. They are the one carrier that seems to be very unpredictable with their service, at least in my experience they are. In my last job I used to have all deliveries sent to my work address as that way I could just about guarantee there would be someone around to take delivery. Not that that made much difference, invariably if something didn't arrive when expected when I chased it I was generally told they were the carrier who had my goods.

The problem is that Hermes employ freelance drivers and when they are good they are generally very good but when they are bad they are a nightmare. Because they are freelance some of them have other jobs which means they fit in parcel deliveries around other commitments.

Last week I finally got my goods from one company two weeks after I placed an order for goods that they had in stock. Another order never did arrive and I am now waiting for a replacement for my order without any confidence that it will arrive anytime soon. According to Hermes it was delivered and left in my 'yard' - as I don't have a 'yard' I don't really understand that response so presumably someone who hadn't ordered anything got home to find a mystery parcel in the THEIR yard - I just hope they are the same size as me or they will be disappointed.

I do actually feel sorry for their drivers as I imagine they get annoyed at taking the blame all the time as I suspect there are times when the organisation behind them isn't always helpful and I doubt they are well paid for what they do. I just wish that when they accepted parcels from large mail order companies that they gave tracking details so that I could see where my parcel is in the system - I can't wait in for two weeks on the offchance that today might be they day they decide to bring it.

So what I do say is that if Hermes really are genuinely "fiercely committed to supporting and enhancing the purchasing experience of its clients' customers so the initial feel-good factor of their shopping decision remains undiminished" as it says on their web site then they still have a long way to go from my perspective.

They also say "Hermes provide a personal and accommodating doorstep delivery by a friendly face from within the community, which adds a positive influence. Happy customers will not only return to buy again but will also help spread the word!" and whilst I agree with the sentiment I am far from a 'happy customer' thanks to their failures to deliver my goods to me in a timely fashion.

Would I recommend them?

Nope, I am sorry I wouldn't. If I have a choice of using a mail order company who deliver through them or one who uses another carrier I would vote with my feet. That is a shame for all the great Hermes drivers but until Hermes introduce a proper tracking system for customers to use that will tell me what is happening to my orders I will still groan every time I hear their name.