Our reporter Zhao Chenxi
Hao Jiawei, our intern
"Has your express delivery been delivered to your home?" Since March, the topic of door-to-door express delivery has become increasingly popular on the Internet. The reason is related to the newly revised "Express Delivery Market Management Measures" (Express Delivery Market Management Measures) that came into effect on March 1. (hereinafter referred to as the "Measures").
The "Measures" clearly stipulate that companies operating express delivery business are not allowed to confirm the receipt of express shipments on their behalf without the user's consent, and are not allowed to deliver express shipments to express terminal service facilities such as smart express boxes and express service stations without authorization. If there is any violation and the circumstances are serious, the company will be fined. A fine of not less than 10,000 yuan but not more than 30,000 yuan will be imposed.
"The "Measures" have played a positive role in regulating the development of the express delivery industry and protecting the legitimate rights and interests of consumers." Chen Yinjiang, deputy secretary-general of the Consumer Rights Protection Law Research Association of the China Law Society, pointed out in an interview with a reporter from the "Rule of Law Daily" that in the new era During the implementation of the regulations, attention should be paid to comprehensively considering the interests of consumers, express delivery practitioners and other parties to truly promote the long-lasting, healthy and high-quality development of the express delivery industry.
Clear penalties to protect users’ rights and interests
The latest statistics from the State Post Bureau show that my country's express delivery business volume will complete 132.07 billion items in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 19.4%.
Violent sorting by express delivery companies leads to damage to items; couriers do not contact the recipient after delivering items, resulting in the loss of the express delivery... For a long time, consumers have a poor online shopping experience due to insufficient express delivery services.
In Chen Yinjiang’s view, although the express delivery industry is becoming more and more closely connected with the public, it is still an emerging industry spawned by the rapid development of e-commerce, and many practical issues need to be regulated urgently.
In recent years, relevant departments have issued relevant regulations for the express delivery industry and continue to standardize express delivery services.
The "Interim Regulations on Express Delivery" (hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations") implemented in 2018 put forward relevant requirements for improving the quality of express delivery services and protecting users' personal privacy.
There are also clear regulations on the currently hotly discussed "door-to-door service", which requires companies operating express delivery services to deliver the express mail to the agreed upon delivery address, the recipient or the recipient designated by the recipient, and inform the recipient or The collector will accept the goods in person.
However, the actual implementation of this regulation is not in place. Chen Yinjiang believes that the root cause is that the "Regulations" do not set corresponding penalties, so express delivery companies do not pay attention to this.
In contrast, Article 28 of the "Measures" not only clearly uses the expressions "without the user's consent" and "not to deliver express items to express delivery terminal service facilities such as smart express boxes without authorization", but also emphasizes the importance of consumer choice. The protection of rights and the establishment of clear penalties can greatly deter express delivery companies and increase their attention.
In addition to door-to-door delivery issues, the "Measures" also make targeted provisions regarding violent sorting and other behaviors that many consumers have complained about in practice, clarifying that express delivery companies are not allowed to throw or trample express items. Those who violate relevant regulations in serious cases will be punished. A fine of not less than 10,000 yuan but not more than 30,000 yuan is imposed.
The "Measures" also provide regulations for comprehensively strengthening the security protection of users' personal information and promoting the green and low-carbon development of the express delivery industry.
"The "Measures" make clear provisions in strengthening the regulation of express delivery services and strengthening market system management requirements, which will help further promote the sustained and healthy development of the express delivery industry." Zhao Xiaomin, an express logistics expert and CEO of Guanshuo Capital, pointed out that the current express delivery industry has entered In the high-quality development stage, the "Measures" regulate the details and stipulate penalty standards, which will help urge companies to improve service accuracy and promote the healthy development of the entire industry.
For consumers, they can also quickly safeguard their rights in accordance with relevant regulations.
Some express delivery is still delivered as "old"
Why has "express delivery not delivered to your door" become a major "suffering problem" in the express delivery industry?
In Zhao Xiaomin’s view, this is due to the surge in express delivery business volume over the past decade and the interweaving of multiple factors such as express delivery fees, business models, and price wars.
There is an urgent need for companies to change their business methods and respect the market and customers.
The reporter noticed that after the implementation of the "Measures", many express delivery companies responded to the issue of door-to-door delivery.
For example, JD.com stated that it will further strengthen door-to-door delivery services and expand it to the express collection link; STO Express stated that it will improve user service experience through digital and intelligent means and subdivide service products; YTO Express stated that it will launch customization service and delivery, and use intelligent voice services to save communication time.
Generally speaking, various express delivery companies have promised to achieve "fast and good" services in the future. As a key role in connecting the "last step" from production to consumption, whether the actual work situation of front-line couriers after the implementation of the "Measures" Changes occurred and reporters conducted random interviews.
After skillfully opening the folding trolley and stacking the parcels of the unit that had been sorted in the express truck, JD.com courier Xiao Chen walked into the second unit of a community in Xizhimen, Beijing, and started door-to-door delivery.
Xiao Chen, who is familiar with this area, knows very well which stores are occupied during the day and which ones need to be notified by phone or text message. He told reporters that the implementation of the new regulations will not affect his actual work because the company has always required couriers to deliver goods to the door.
Most of the corridors in the residential areas where they deliver goods are monitored, and many users have also set up an area in front of the door to put the express delivery. In most cases, they can leave it directly at the door without having to call each one one by one, which saves time.
During the interview, the reporter learned that for some express companies that always require couriers to deliver goods to their doorsteps, the implementation of the "Measures" will have little impact on the couriers.
However, some couriers said it would affect delivery efficiency to a certain extent.
Xiao Zheng, who delivers express delivery near Wangjing, Chaoyang District, Beijing, told reporters that after the implementation of the "Measures", the company required couriers to communicate with the recipient on the phone when delivering express delivery. However, in reality, the recipient may not be able to answer the call immediately, or even call the recipient directly. Hanging up requires multiple calls or messages to confirm, which affects efficiency.
"We earn one yuan and two cents by delivering an express delivery. If we call to confirm each item, we can only deliver about a hundred items a day, which will affect our income." However, Xiao Zheng expressed his understanding of the rigid requirements of the new regulations, which can indeed protect users. Regarding the safety of express delivery, he will try his best to communicate with the recipient during delivery, especially for some large items, and will call to inform them in time.
Xiao Zhang, a courier working near Jiaomen in Fengtai District, Beijing, bluntly stated that he would contact users depending on the situation and could not confirm every order by phone.
"For some communities that are easy to enter and have concentrated distribution, door-to-door delivery will be done. In communities with more access restrictions and complete express storage equipment, in most cases, they are still put into the cabinet directly. If the user needs door-to-door delivery, I will take it out for delivery. "Xiao Zhang said frankly that the courier needs to pay a custody fee of about 0.3 yuan per item when putting the express delivery into the express cabinet. He knows that he should not put the express delivery directly into the cabinet, but sometimes he has to do so in order to deliver more.
For those users who clearly indicate that they want door-to-door delivery, he will note it separately and deliver it to their door during the next delivery.
"Most users are very understanding of couriers and generally do not complain unless express delivery is lost." Xiao Zhang said that the company has been promoting new regulations to couriers recently and will try its best to ensure that it is both standardized and efficient in the future.
Chen Yinjiang pointed out that before the implementation of the Measures, the service standards of the express delivery industry were mainly determined by the requirements of different express delivery companies.
The implementation of the new regulations has put forward higher requirements for all enterprises, which will help to comprehensively improve the overall service quality of the express delivery industry.
Focus on services to meet diverse needs
The reporter noticed that some current online public opinions are pointing to the new regulation that "forces couriers to deliver goods to your door."
"The "Measures" do not require door-to-door delivery, but require express delivery companies to obtain user consent before dropping boxes into the station." Ding Hongtao, director of the Legal Affairs Department of the China Express Association, explained that express delivery services are civil performance acts, regardless of door-to-door delivery or delivery. It is possible to go to the express delivery station or express box as long as the agreement is reached with the user.
During the interview, people had different opinions on how to solve the "last mile" of express delivery. Some people believed that express delivery should be delivered to their doorsteps, while others believed that it would be safer to put express lockers when no one is at home.
The interviewees all hope that express delivery companies can provide convenience for consumers to make independent choices, which can not only meet the diverse needs, but also reduce the workload of couriers.
At present, some express delivery companies have improved this. Some display delivery demand options on the express delivery page, allowing users to set delivery preferences online; others allow users to choose delivery independently through delivery message push, smart phones, etc. during delivery. Place.
"Using technological and systematic means to absorb part of the workload of couriers and handing the right of choice to consumers is an inevitable trend for the high-quality development of the express delivery industry in the future." Chen Yinjiang believes that the implementation of the "Measures" is not the end. Rather, it is necessary to continuously improve and help express delivery services become more humane and refined through practice.
In addition, Chen Yinjiang pointed out that while paying attention to the rights and interests of consumers, we must also protect the legitimate rights and interests of couriers.
As service standards continue to improve and workload increases accordingly, express delivery companies and e-commerce companies must develop more reasonable salary standards and gradually increase the remuneration of couriers.
"The implementation of the "Measures" means that the express delivery industry will usher in a transformation and move towards high-quality development. The pricing systems and free shipping mechanisms of express delivery companies and e-commerce platforms need to be adjusted." In Zhao Xiaomin's view, companies must do their best Instead of passing on the contradiction to couriers and users, we should take the new regulations as an opportunity to provide diversified products and multiple series of service formats, and have different incentives for different delivery methods, so as to truly tilt and favor users. The ends are slanted.
During this year’s National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Cao Peng, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and chairman of the JD Group’s Technical Committee, talked about the future development trends of the logistics industry in light of the implementation of the Measures.
He pointed out that the "Measures" cover issues such as door-to-door service and customer information protection that have long been concerned by the public. Under the background of the new regulations, express delivery companies should focus on user service experience and drive continuous improvement of consumer experience through long-term model innovation and technology research and development. .
"Currently, more than 80% of my country's express shipments are e-commerce shipments. E-commerce and express logistics should support and promote each other." Ding Hongtao suggested that major e-commerce platforms set options on the ordering interface to allow consumers to choose whether to deliver goods to their homes. Through multi-party collaboration, we can better protect users’ right to choose, improve service experience, and promote high-quality development of the industry.