NZ Post, Aramex expect delays during alert level changes

NZ Post and Aramex are expecting major delays in their delivery times following the change in alert levels across the country from today.

While Auckland and Northland remain at Alert Level 4, the rest of the country has dropped down to Alert Level 3, which means that more consumers will be able to purchase goods online for contactless pickup or delivery.

However, both NZ Post and Aramex expect delays across the entire country.

"NZ Post is gearing up to meet the increase in parcels and to reduce the impact of any delays. We've re-designed our Auckland network since last Lockdown to ease potential areas of congestion, set up temporary processing sites and operating extended processing hours," comments NZ Post chief customer officer Bryan Dobson.

Dobson says the company has brought on additional staff to cope with the demand during the lockdown, and is regularly updating its website with delivery timeframe expectations.

Aramex New Zealand CEO Scott Jenyns adds, "Last year's level 4 lockdown saw our network develop solid business continuity plans which have made transitions across alert levels a lot smoother as we know what we are dealing with and how to manage the best we can.

The delays will have an impact on New Zealand businesses, particularly those that are now able to resume operations online and in a contactless way.

Dobson explains, "To help manage the increased flow of parcels into our network we are also working with online retailers to manage the parcels we receive to deliver to New Zealanders. We will need to limit items accepted into our network in line with what we can reasonably deliver so we don't receive these parcels all at once.

"This may mean some parcels are delayed before they reach the NZ Post network. This will help to avoid the surge of parcels we received last year when we moved into Level 3 after an extended period-of-time in Level 4. This created a large backlog of parcels that really hampered our network and caused additional delays.

Aramex notes that the company experienced a 150% surge in pickup volume last year when the country dropped from Alert Level 4 to Level 3. Aramex expects the volume to increase this year, due to the improved clarity from the government on who and how people can do business, particularly within the small-business sector.

Dobson asks people to be kind, compassionate, and patient during the delays.