Has anyone else noticed an increase in difficulty / cost of online orders to Scotland?

Ordered some tools online – small package about 2kg. Their standard delivery was £3.95 which is £6.95 if you’re in Scotland – anywhere in Scotland not just the remote bits

Been trying to order some flooring online from the usual online flooring places. 2 won’t deliver at all to Scotland and the others had £40 delivery charges via horse and cart judging by the time it would take.

Ordered a new SUP from Decathlon – again delivery charge doubled to scotland to £14.95.

I assume these businesses are just passing on costs from the courier companies. Looks like the high cost of labour and fuel is really starting to have an impact.

Haven’t found that myself but I’m not ordering a lot of stuff, when I do it tends to be a decent amount of stuff so delivery cost hasn’t been noticed.

Suspect everything is going to be increasing in terms of costs and things ‘normal’ people do are now starting to notice the increases.

In my experience there’s a minority of businesses who assume anywhere in Scotland is remote and a long way from England.

But yes, delivery costs are going up.

I’ve had arguments with shops whether Aberdeen is in the Highlands (hint, it’s not). Or had to pay extra for delivery and then it turns up Royal Mail which is a flat rate for all of UK.

Frustrating and I tend to just vote with my feet (clicks, PayPal account?) and shop elsewhere.

Just think about the poor driver on a target having to drop something off in Bridge of Guar for eg, all these campervans, retired folk out for a hurl and the mount of temporary traffic lights. Probably still classed as central Scotland but takes ages to get there

I simply choose not to buy when a surcharge applies.

I think the race to the bottom for courier companies are now starting to hit. Collectively we’ve seen stupidly low prices for delivery for years, the truer cost is now starting to bite.

Unfortunately for those people not in cities then delivery costs are only going to go up. Anything above the M8 is considered wilderness.

Anything above the M8 is considered wilderness.

Not noticed myself but have had someone try to charge me for being on an island because they didn’t check their postcodes properly.

Large items have always been a pain in the arse to get delivered from England.

I simply choose not to buy when a surcharge applies.

Unfortunately IME that decision is being made for you now.

Last year I ordered a stack of flooring from an online company, but this week when i tried to order more from the same place to the same placy I got a GTF at the checkout page based on address.

To be clear this is an FK area postcode within half an hour of main distribution centres.

Anything above the M8M6 is considered wilderness.

FTFY…

£25 difference in shipping quote between addresses in Longtown and Gretna for 4 LED battens last week! Ever so slightly ridiculous 😡

I was after something from a well known bike shop in Glasgow and they wanted to charge extra postage. They didn’t get my order and I’m unlikely to buy anything from them again.

Try living on an island – you may as well be on another planet – some businesses won’t even deliver here even though there’s a normal Royal Mail service. I resent the £10-15 ‘surcharge’ that I sometimes get on a small parcel – feels like profiteering. I have an online business and send out quite a few packages Royal Mail and never had a problem with deliveries. Sometimes I get stuff from Amazon next day.

Not particularly Scotland but delivery prices are going up. Noticed it on Mother’s Day when the village florist has got rid of their free delivery to local postcodes and now charges £6.95 which is a lot for delivery 1 mile from the shop.

It’s all very well taking your custom elsewhere but it becomes harder to source your desired items that are not subject to silly delivery charges. It is mad though. I’ve had stuff get delivered to a mate’s address across the Spey in AB postcode (thanks @swavis!) when I’d have said that was harder to deliver than my IV postcode.

I think the Royal Mail stuff is a bit odd but I’ve noticed that too @euain – when I queried it, it came down to some alleged contract management they had – maybe a third party shipping agent.

It’s quite the postcode lottery regardless of where in Scotland you are. I ordered a shed from England to be delivered to my static caravan in PA24 (Cairndow, Argyll). No can do says they. Fairy nuff, it’s awfy rural and down a singletrack road etc. Just deliver it to my parents place in PA4, Renfrew, 2 mins off M8 at Hillington. No can do, we don’t go beyond Glasgow. Had it delivered to a mate in Barrhead G78, who was at least an extra 20 mins off the M8 at Hillington. Regardless of actual geography any PA was a no no but any G was fine. Theoretically, I could have had it delivered to the burger van at the top of the Rest and Be Thankful; G83 and taken it the last 15 mins to the caravan myself.

Fully understand that some PA postcodes are remote / expensive / tricky to reach; Gigha, Coll or Tiree especially but companies are losing business by similarly categorising perfectly accessible central belt commuter towns. It’s just lazy and piss poor practice.

@kcal, I might not be able to do that much longer, at least to my work address 😉

I think the race to the bottom for courier companies are now starting to hit. Collectively we’ve seen stupidly low prices for delivery for years, the truer cost is now starting to bite.

The real problem is only the Royal Mail are required to offer flat rate postage to anywhere in the UK – their competitors can pick and chose where they deliver and where they don’t and can charge varying rates depending on how convenient or inconvenient they think the service is – so they can cherrypick all the profitable business and its left to Royal Mail to pick up the rest – in effect Royal Mail are subsidising their competors.

Incidentally its the customers not the courier companies that are racing to the bottom – when the market bottoms out we’ll be left with a fraction of the service we have now with many customers have no practical service at all, and whatever courier companies survive will be at liberty to charge whatever they want for it… because we were given more choice.

I’m Borders and have seen no increases, but then anything going north has to pass by us 🙂

Try living on an island – you may as well be on another planet – some businesses won’t even deliver here even though there’s a normal Royal Mail service. I resent the £10-15 ‘surcharge’ that I sometimes get on a small parcel – feels like profiteering.

Looking at it from the other side, RET or not a ferry is still not cheap and takes time which, depending on the weather or the reliability of the ferry, may not result in a return journey.

I’m honestly surprised nobody has ever come up with an off-island depot that can be used to receive everything then just send it all on a dedicated lorry.

I’m honestly surprised nobody has ever come up with an off-island depot that can be used to receive everything then just send it all on a dedicated lorry.

Woody’s do this for bulkier items.

I’m honestly surprised nobody has ever come up with an off-island depot that can be used to receive everything then just send it all on a dedicated lorry.

They do:
Mundells for Islay & Jura – http://www.bmundell.co.uk/duffies-of-islay-parcel-service.html

I’m sure I saw a bunch on Harris & Lewis and the van on ferry.

Ah, must just be our provincial types then 😅

and then it turns up Royal Mail which is a flat rate for all of UK

That doesn’t mean that all deliveries are via Royal Mail though, it might be the fall back for where the cheaper options don’t deliver.

You are right – but I still get Royal Mail deliveries when I changed the delivery address to my work address instead of home as some places deliver free to the city (AB10) and consider the ‘shire to be another country (AB51).

So they’ve delivered free to my work address, and refuse to do it to my home address when it’ll cost them the same. I’m sure there are reasons – and they are probably not that upset to lose business of one customer from the back of beyond. Still annoying.