Cheap Parcel Delivery with Discount Courier Services

Have you ever tried to use a courier service? 

Courier companies offer cheap parcel delivery which may often beat the rates you get from the Post Office.

How does it work?

Anyone can take advantage of these cheap rates. You do not necessarily have to be internet-savvy in order to book a cheap parcel delivery service online.

Most discount courier services have easily accessible sites with straight forward instructions guiding through the booking process.

Simply enter your parcels measurements and weight into the quotation tool and start comparing the different carriers and their services.

Where do courier companies get their discounts from?

Well-known global carriers such as DHL, UPS, TNT or FedEx make their money through regular incoming orders but are often limited to providing discounts for business and private customers.

This is where discount courier services come in.

Independent couriers have got dedicated customer service and sales staff who can negotiate highly reduced rates for business and private customers. They will act as “middlemen” and buy postage slots from big carriers and then sell them to their customers.

This way, customers can benefit from cheap parcel delivery and carriers can grow their order volume. 

Send a Parcel to New Zealand

Sending a parcel to New Zealand from UK via courier? In order to select the right courier service to ship your parcel to New Zealand, you should keep in mind a few important points.

Experience & Safety

New Zealand is about the size of Great Britain and located on the edge of the pacific ocean making it one of the most remote countries in the world. About four million people, almost half of London’s population, call New Zealand “home”.

The delivery of parcel to a remote location such as New Zealand requires a particularly experienced, knowledgeable courier service. For this reason, many customer decide to send their parcels to New Zealand via TNT, UPS or DHL.

Speed

Transit times to New Zealand can vary from 3 to 6 working days** depending on the selected service.

For instance, if speed of delivery is a priority for you, then sending your parcels via express delivery to New Zealand may get them there within an average of 3 to 4 working days.

If you prefer to save money and have no problem with a longer delivery period, then a standard parcel service may be the right fit for you. This service can take about 6 working days.

Discounted Rates

The UK courier market offers extremely competitive rates. In fact, you can save up to 1/3 on your parcel delivery to New Zealand by using an independent courier company which can offer your discounted rates provided by leading international carriers.

To get a free, no-obligation quote for your parcel to New Zealand, please visit TransglobalPremium.co.uk.



Images c/o Microsoft

**Additional days may be required to do customs clearance, weight differences, outstanding charges etc.

EU Commission resumes its investigations into UPS – TNT Express merger

Yesterday, the EU Commission decided to resume its investigation into the merger of TNT Express NV. and its U.S. competitor UPS.

Image c/o bloomberg.com

An official statement on the Commission’s website confirmed that investigations had resumed on 14^th August after a week’s suspension on the grounds of the participating parties' inability to meet the submission deadline.

Now, a new provisional deadline has been set as 20^th December 2012.

A day before the decision was made, UPS published a statement declaring its intention to apply for a deadline extension in order to get approval for the proposed offer of EUR 9.50 per share.

Both companies remain confident about the 5.2-billion-Euro acquisition which they hope to close by the end of this year.

Sources: PostandParcel.info, MarketWatch.com

UPS granted extension for TNT Express offer period

UPS and TNT Express have agreed on 9th November 2012 as the new extension deadline in order to fulfil their Offer conditions. 

Image c/o inautonews.com

A regulatory announcement will be made on 5the September by UPS who first their plans to acquire TNT Express back in March. Since the antitrust condition will not be completed before the original expiry date, namely 31st August, UPS has been allowed to extends its Offer Period according to Article 15, p. 1 and 2 of the Decree on public offer Wft. 

According to Analytiqa.com, any tendered shares from the initial offer period may be subject to a withdrawal as defined in the Decree, Article 15, p. 3. 

Both courier companies said that they would stay committed to complete the offer at the end of this year's 4th financial quarter.

Source: Analytqa.com / UPS / TNT Express

Qantas announces Star Track Express sale

Qantas, one of Australia’s leading air freight carriers, has confirmed plans to give away its 50 percent stake in the trucking business, Star Track Express.

Image c/o startrackexpress.com.au

According to Analytiqa.com, Star Track failed to increase its net growth. Moreover, Alan Joyce, Chief Executive of Qantas, stated that the air freight forwarder would no longer be focussed on trucking as a central business arm.

If Qantas went forward with the sale, it could gain a potential sum of US$ 304 million. Speculations about the company selling off Australian Air Express were confirmed untruthful.

Source: Analytiqa.com

EU Commission stops phase 2 for UPS-TNT acquisition

The EU Commission has called an early end to Phase 2 of the merger between two of the world’s biggest logistics companies, UPS and TNT Express.

Image c/o 3plnews.com

UPS' initial application to purchase TNT Express N.V. for 9.50 EUR per share (EUR 5bn in total) and its plan to sign off the deal by the end of this year maybe in jeopardy after the EU Commission decided to temporarily delay the multi-million-Euro acquisition.

“The Commission has stopped the clock according to Article 11(3) of the Merger Regulation. As son as the Commission receives the necessary information, the clock will be reset again. The deadline will be shifted accordingly,” said Maria Madrid, spokeswoman for the EU Commission.

Under these circumstances UPS will have to revise its original deadline which was already  extended to 12^th December.

Peggy Gardner, spokeswoman for UPS, confirmed that “as of right now, we still anticipate an approval in the fourth quarter of the year”.

According to UPS, a temporary delay of this kind would not be unusual for the Commission. Should both companies be allowed to continue with their merger, their annual revenues may exceed EUR 45 bn in total.

Source: Post & Parcel

DHL courier service to partner-up with UAE railway operator

The worldwide courier service provider, DHL has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with UAE’s national railway operator, Etihad Rail.

Image c/o  cdn-wac.emirates247.com

DHL is going to use the rail network, initially benefiting from the connection between Jebel Ali (Dubai) and Ghweifat (Saudi Arabia) with the possibility to expand to the rest of UAE. Beyond that, one train by Etihad Rail will replace 300 lorries.

Source: Analytiqa.com

TNT Post UK scores major deal with NHS’ PRO-CURE agency

TNT Post UK has scored a two-year contract with PRO-CURE, an NHS service agency and its two partners, NHS Commercial Solutions and East of England.

300,000 GBP postal savings are expected from the new partnership with TNT UK which promised to eliminate the use of traditional franking machines. By offering letter prices of less than 26.8 pence per letter for transit times of two days (max.), TNT Post is outperforming its biggest competitor, Royal Mail.

“More than ever before, public savings are paramount”, said TNT Post UK CEO, Nick Wells. 

In fact, Royal Mail has announced a rate increase, i.e. 50p for Second Class and 60 for First Class letters.

“The NHS is under enormous pressure to make efficiency savings and we are really pleased that with TNT Post we have secured cash savings on postal collection services at a time of escalating prices”, confirmed Lee Collins, managing director of PRO-CURE.

TNT UK’s new postal service was launched for PRO-CURE trusts in Oxfordshire, Hampshire and Buckinghamshire at the beginning of June 2012.

Sources: Post&Parcel/PRO-CURE/TNT Post UK

eBay-Tip: How to Save on Back to School Clothing & Shipping Costs

In August 2011, UK families had to fork out an average sum of £191.96 on back to school clothing. In fact, many poorer parents spent about 40 percent of their monthly salary on the increasingly high costs of stationary, gym kits and other back to school equipment (Guardian, 03/08/2011).

No wonder many parents decide to look at alternative ways of shopping and shipping school uniforms, especially now that we are only a few weeks away from the start of the new academic year.

The World of eBay 

For most of us eBay shopping is the first idea which springs to mind when thinking about savings. Why invest a lot of money knowing that your children will have outgrown their school uniforms within a year anyway?

Organising your own shipping

Ask the eBay seller if he / she would consider letting you organise the shipping of your purchase. 

Shipping back to school clothing or stationary via courier can save you time and money. Most courier services will offer you a section of various discounted express and standard parcel services. Plus, you will be able to track your shipment’s progress at any time. No more worrying about delays or lost parcels. 

This way you can ensure that your children have everything they need for their first day back at school whilst also saving a few quid, you might want to spend elsewhere.

Where to book cheap courier services

To get a quote for your shipment and compare a range of low-cost services, visit TransglobalPremium.co.uk

Parcel delivery unsuccessful - what's next?

What happens if the delivery of your parcel wasn't successful? 

If the courier driver has attempted to deliver your parcel three times without being successful, it will be held in the local depot. It is important to keep in mind that this practice may differ depending on the country your sending to and on the carrier transporting your shipment.

Normally you should receive a notification card from the driver telling you to contact the depot, arrange to go there and collect your shipment. 

What's next though?

First of all, don't panic! If you forgot to collect your parcel or have not received a notification card, you can still get it back.

Tip: Keep hold of your tracking number and the contact details of your courier / carrier, so you will able to ring them personally and ask where to collect your parcel from. Before sending anything, make sure to check the collection and delivery times for your courier service.

Your parcel(s) will be put into storage at your carrier's local depot for an average time of 3 to 14 days.

Image c/o DHL

Should you fail to collect your parcel(s) within this time period, they may be processed for a return back to the sender - who may liable to pay for any additional surcharges.

In worst case scenario, your shipment may be abandoned.

DHL Break Bulk Express opens up new revenue stream for DHL Express Russia

Last week, DHL Russia introduced its new import service, DHL Break Bulk Express. DHL Express announced that it will offer customers a single customs clearance and tax payment process for parcels from Russia. The new DHL express delivery service is going to available for any shipments going to countries outside of Russia.

“As one of the biggest customs brokers in Russia, we always aim at improving our service. Most of the shipments imported by DHL Express are cleared within one hour of the aircraft landing”, confirmed Elena Emelyanova, DHL Express Russia.

In future, customers will also benefit from minimised warehousing costs. This is due to the fact of DHL having implemented this parcel delivery service which will transport consignments to the receivers as soon as customs have cleared them.

DHL Express Russia also mentioned that it may give discounted rates to first-time import customers.

Sources: DHL.ru, postandparcel.info