Did you know that if your parcel delivery is lost in transit or late arriving at its delivery address, you’re probably entitled to some form of compensation?

The amount you are money you're able to claim depends on factors such as the length of a delay, the courier company used and the type of delivery you paid for.

At the very minimum, you should get back the cost of the actual delivery service itself, as the courier will have failed to provide the service with ‘reasonable care and skill’ - a breach of the Consumer Rights Act.

It’s important that you know the ‘terms and conditions’ of the courier company or parcel delivery service you decide to use so that you know exactly what compensation is on offer.

In most cases, the basic delivery rate will not include additional financial cover for the item you are sending.

Did you pay for additional cover?
You can get extra protection with a courier service if you purchase additional insurance, or pay for particular delivery methods that include extra liability cover - such as Royal Mail recorded delivery.

If so, the courier service will have it’s own claim process that you will need to follow.

It’s always a good idea to pay for extra protection when you're sending high-value items.

How to complain about a courier service.
If you want to make a complaint to a courier service you’ll need to follow the following process:

In the first instance contact the courier companies customer services team.

If the response isn’t good enough you need to escalate your complaint to a manager responsible for complaints

If your complaint still can’t be resolved, you can ask the independent postal redress scheme (POSTRS) to investigate your case. But, only regulated postal operators are covered by this scheme. Non-regulated mail services are sometimes covered, provided both the company and customer agree to use the service voluntarily.

If you’re still unhappy with the response to your complaint, you’ll need to seek independent legal advice.