New express delivery regulations have been implemented for more than half a month, and recipients are complaining
"My doorstep is still signing for my express delivery."
□ Reporter Han Dandong
"After the new express delivery regulations were implemented, I felt that nothing had changed. The couriers still put the express delivery directly in the express locker in the community without calling in advance." said Mr. Liu, who lives in Haidian District, Beijing.
Mr. Liu often buys dog food online for his family pet dog. Although he clearly writes his home address as the delivery address, the courier puts the package directly in the express cabinet without his permission every time. "After the new express delivery regulations were implemented, I thought the situation would change, but the status quo remains the same."
The new express delivery regulations that Mr. Liu mentioned are the newly revised "Express Delivery Market Management Measures", which have been implemented since March 1. The new express delivery regulations make it clear that companies operating express delivery business are not allowed to confirm the receipt of express shipments on their behalf without the consent of users, and are not allowed to deliver express shipments to express terminal service facilities such as smart express boxes and express service stations without authorization.
A recent investigation by a reporter from "Rule of Law Daily" found that although the new express delivery regulations have been implemented for more than half a month, it is still common for couriers to directly deliver express delivery to post stations and express lockers without notifying the recipients. Some couriers interviewed said that it would be difficult to complete the delivery task on time if every parcel had to be phoned to notify the recipient or delivered to the door.
So, how to implement the new express delivery regulations?
Recently, a reporter searched a complaint platform with the keyword "new express delivery regulations" and found hundreds of complaints related to "failure to implement new express delivery regulations". Most complaints.
In early March, Ms. Chen from Chaoyang District, Beijing, purchased a piece of fresh food online. However, when it was delivered on the same day, the courier did not contact Ms. Chen by phone. Instead, he placed it at the express delivery station as usual, and then picked up the package. The code is sent to Ms. Chen’s mobile phone.
Unfortunately, Ms. Chen worked overtime that night, and when she got home from get off work, the express delivery station was closed. The next day, when Ms. Chen retrieved the express delivery, she found that the fresh food had deteriorated due to rising temperatures and was inedible.
"When door-to-door delivery is made, the elderly at home can sign for it, and if there are any problems, they can provide timely feedback. Bad results could have been avoided." Ms. Chen said that she contacted the courier, who said he was unaware of the new express delivery regulations.
Mr. Zhang, a citizen of Tianjin, said: "Before the new regulations on express delivery were implemented, it often happened that the logistics delivery information showed that the receipt had been signed for when shopping online, but the express delivery was not delivered to you for a long time. This situation has improved after the implementation of the new regulations on express delivery. , but still, I have to call and ask every time.”
"After the new regulations were implemented, my doorstep was still signing for my express delivery." Mr. Xu, who lives in Chaoyang District, Beijing, said that in the past, couriers often dropped express delivery at his doorstep, and then he received a text message on his mobile phone. Your express delivery has been signed for at your doorstep." Today, this situation is still continuing.
In this regard, Zhu Xiaofeng, a professor at the Law School of the Central University of Finance and Economics, said that the new express delivery regulations have clearly stipulated the legal liability caused by violations such as directly delivering express delivery to the post station without notifying the recipient, and the management department will order corrections and give warnings. Or a notice of criticism may be imposed, and a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan may be imposed; if the circumstances are serious, a fine of not less than 10,000 yuan but not more than 30,000 yuan may be imposed.
Lawyer Ma Lihong, senior partner of Beijing Deheheng Law Firm, said that for most consumers, door-to-door delivery is a basic expectation. However, some consumers believe that as long as they know the location of the express items, it is more convenient to place them at the post station. But for couriers, if every package requires a phone call, and sometimes the recipient's phone number cannot be reached, the dispatch rate will be reduced due to the complexity of the process, which is a very real pain point. .
"From an industry perspective, express delivery companies have different software and hardware facilities, management levels and management models. Some express delivery companies have relatively strong technical support capabilities and cost advantages. If they give profits to couriers, they can guarantee door-to-door delivery; However, some franchised express delivery companies are still in the stage of extensive management and cannot ensure that couriers deliver goods to your doorstep," Ma Lihong said.
"The implementation time of the new express delivery regulations is still short, and more observation samples are needed. The main difficulty at present is not to let couriers work hard to meet consumer expectations, but from the perspective of industry development, the new express delivery regulations should urge companies to improve management efficiency. At the same time, companies can also absorb the operational pressure brought by the new regulations by giving profits to couriers and increasing manpower." Ma Lihong said.
"Door-delivery delivery" is an "old problem" in the express delivery industry in recent years. Consumers and couriers have complained about this. In the context of new express delivery regulations, the contradiction between the two has once again become prominent.
A reporter recently visited a community in Tianjin to interview a courier, Mr. Zhou, and found that he still kept the express items in the express cabinet or at the post station and did not contact the recipient by phone.
"The company has not yet clearly stipulated that it must comply with the new express delivery regulations. If the new regulations strictly require that each order must be confirmed by phone before delivery, I think it is impossible. Many recipients cannot get through on the phone, and calling all the time will only waste delivery. Time." He explained that if each order had to be confirmed by phone before delivery, the workload would be several times that of before. It would be impossible to complete the delivery of hundreds of express items a day.
Many couriers also complained to reporters: "After the implementation of the new regulations, express delivery that used to be delivered in 30 minutes now takes a lot longer" and "even the use of mobile phone numbers has been restricted because of too many calls." Consumers said: "After the new express delivery regulations were implemented, I received more unknown calls and found it very annoying."
"In the past, if there was a problem with express delivery, the responsibility would fall on our couriers in the end. For example, if an express delivery was left at the door of a resident's house and there was no surveillance video of it being lost, we would have to pay compensation in the end." Mr. Li, a courier from an express company It is said that placing it in a courier cabinet or post station can better ensure the safety of express delivery, which is beneficial to both parties. After the implementation of the new express delivery regulations, there will be more express delivery at the door of the house, and the probability of lost items will also increase. How to determine responsibility, currently There is no clear statement yet.
Zhu Xiaofeng believes that it will take time for the express delivery industry to adapt to the new regulations. Although the new regulations have been in effect for more than half a month, the employee training of express delivery companies may not have been fully implemented. In addition, grassroots employees are busy with business, employees are highly mobile, and couriers have previous work habits. As a result, there are still a large number of delivery behaviors that violate the new regulations. exists; but if penalties for violations are not timely, it will also make it difficult for the new regulations to fulfill their function of regulating the express delivery industry.
"In addition, it also involves conflicts of interest outside express delivery companies, which are mainly reflected in the balance between express delivery companies and consumers, that is, the balance between express delivery service quality and service charging standards." Zhu Xiaofeng said.
Ma Lihong believes that couriers are an important asset of express delivery companies. If a company cannot improve its management efficiency, it will lead to the loss of couriers and the survival and development of the company will also be negatively affected.
In response to concerns that the implementation of new regulations may trigger a price war, Ma Lihong said that the price war itself is also a competition mechanism that can bring positive effects. From the perspective of economies of scale, companies with strong management capabilities and high management efficiency can balance costs and benefits well. In short, enterprises should be the main body in implementing the new regulations and take this opportunity to improve or transform their management level.
Zhu Xiaofeng said that express delivery companies should promptly adjust their management models according to the new express delivery regulations so that the improvement of delivery service quality and the appropriate reduction of delivery efficiency are realistic, so that couriers can improve service quality without causing excessive work intensity.
Data show that in 2023, my country's express delivery business volume will complete 132 billion pieces, and business revenue will be 1.2 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 19.4% and 14.3% respectively, and the annual per capita express delivery usage will exceed 90 pieces. With such a large amount of express delivery, how to balance the interests of all parties and take into account convenience and efficiency has become the focus of policy attention.
In this regard, Zhu Xiaofeng's suggestion is: As far as express delivery companies and consumers are concerned, the quality of express delivery services should be directly proportional to the corresponding benefits. Express delivery companies cannot unreasonably lower service fee charging standards due to market competition, and then in order to save money The cost and stringent requirements on couriers make it difficult for the latter to deliver express in accordance with the new express delivery regulations.
"When formulating the new regulations, the relationship between the healthy development of the express delivery industry and supervision has been fully considered. When express delivery companies violate the regulations, the competent authorities should promptly deal with them in accordance with the law to avoid the spread of individual cases of failure to comply with the law and failure to investigate violations to become a common phenomenon. ." Zhu Xiaofeng said.
Ma Lihong believes that it needs to be considered from the perspectives of various stakeholders. From a consumer perspective, the original intention of the new express delivery regulations is to protect consumers’ rights to know and choose. Considering the diverse needs of consumers, consumers should be given the right to choose. For example, express delivery companies can confirm with consumers through intelligent voice methods whether express items can be delivered to the post station or need to be delivered to the door. If door-to-door delivery costs are higher in the future, the price problem can be solved through market adjustment mechanisms.
"For express delivery companies, they should focus on improving management efficiency and management capabilities. The couriers themselves should improve their professionalism, try to meet consumer needs, and avoid damage to delivered items. At the same time, consumers should also be more considerate The couriers work hard despite the wind and rain, so please give them more understanding and tolerance," Ma Lihong said.
Rule of Law Daily