SF Express, which “must pay if you don’t come to your door”, overturned the car because of “no compensation for insured price”?

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Text / Meng Huiyuan

Source: Zinc Scale (ID: znkedu)

SF Express, which only said that it “will pay if you don’t come to the door”, may not have thought that it would “roll over” repeatedly after that.

First, in early September, the topic of “S.F. lost 11,000 yuan of mobile phone and only pays 1,000 yuan” caused widespread heated discussions. Then on the 13th, the incident of “S.F. lost 20 grams of gold with an insured price of 8,000 and only lost 2,000” rushed to the hot search, etc. On the 19th, “SF Express will only pay 500 for an order with an insured price of 18,000”, which completely trampled the face of the express delivery giant.

Previously, a series of problems caused by the failure of express delivery, including loss of express delivery, inability to inspect goods in person, damage to fresh goods and other goods, exposure of sender information, and overtime fees for express cabinets, have always been unspeakable in the minds of some users. pain. Small items are not investigated, and large-size claims are difficult to become the norm in the industry, which is the lack of relevant express service guarantees.

From the introduction of high-end services by some Tongda express delivery companies, to the new home delivery option of Cainiao, to the slogan of SF Express, “If you don’t come to your door, you will pay for it”. But as far as the actual situation is concerned, door-to-door delivery, which is being touted by many logistics companies, can only be regarded as the beginning of the quality improvement of logistics services.

Is it so difficult to deliver to your door?

“It was originally free shipping from the merchant, but if you want to get it, you still have to pay the courier fee. Do you think this is outrageous?” Looking at the overtime payment reminder on the courier cabinet, the migrant worker Zhang Li was deeply resentful, “Several times, The courier directly threw it in the cabinet for me, without calling or texting, if I hadn’t scanned the code to pick up other items, I’m afraid this item would have to be retired here.”

Zhang Li told Zinc Scale that once when she was passing through the express cabinet downstairs, she happened to see a courier boy calling with the express delivery. He said that he put the express in the cabinet and asked the customer to pick it up by himself. It needs to be delivered to the door, “I know how these overtime fees are given out.”

“I estimate that many people are similar to me, and now they don’t want to have to deliver to the door. After all, when we get off work, the courier is probably also off work. It is not easy to coordinate the delivery time, but at least we have to give a notification in place and let us pick it up by ourselves. Let’s go!” Zhang Li still remembers that once she placed an order for an air fryer, bought all the ingredients for making small cakes, and waited for the delivery every day, but when she saw that the logistics had come downstairs, she I haven’t received the pick-up notice for a long time. “The funniest thing is that the logistics information of the APP shows that the arrival has been signed, but in fact I didn’t even see the shadow of the pot.”

Online shopping expert Yueyue believes that if the courier does not come to the door, although there will be an overtime fee for putting it in the cabinet, it is safer than the courier that is directly thrown into the guard room, canteen, etc. With the pickup code, I have been rummaging in the courier pile for a long time, but I have not been able to find anything more embarrassing.”

Zinc scale found that the follow-up results related to “express delivery not coming to your door” were also very loud on the Internet. This brings a series of problems, including loss of express delivery, inability to inspect the goods in person, damage to fresh goods and other goods, exposure of sender information, and payment of overtime fees for express cabinets, which have always been unspeakable pains in the hearts of some users.

Similar to Yueyue’s experience, a netizen named “Stupid Mona Li who stayed up late” shared her latest lost item on Xiaohongshu. The courier was placed in the duty room until the last courier lost it. After I complained and settled the claim, he would not put it in the security room nor at my door, so I could only go to the door of the community to pick up the courier. , and he gets off work at 6 o’clock…”

The netizen blamed all the problems on the courier’s failure to deliver to the door, “I have said that there will be surveillance guards at the door of the house. Even if I lose it, I can see who took it. It’s not that I have to make him work overtime and serve alone. I came to deliver for me after get off work, this is a problem that he could solve if he was willing to go upstairs.” In the comment area, her views also received a lot of approval.

Zinc scale can see that many netizens who have lost their items have also summarized detailed rights protection strategies, such as calling the official customer service number to explain the details, and then calling the complaint number with evidence. Quality inspection department complaints, etc.

But in the face of the above situation, as a netizen sighed, “If we can live in peace, who is willing to spend time and effort to have a conflict with the courier?”

Compensation can’t solve the “last mile”

Data from the State Post Bureau shows that from 2013 to 2020, the volume of express delivery in my country increased from 9.19 billion to 83.36 billion, an increase of nearly ten times. By 2021, the volume of express delivery across the country has reached 108.5 billion. During the “618” event in 2021 (June 1-20), the entire industry collected over 6.59 billion express parcels, but on the other hand, more than 70% of recipients did not deliver to their homes. Expressed extreme dissatisfaction.

It may have been the inaction of the express delivery company that caused the conflict between the recipient and the courier to continue to intensify, but the situation seems to have changed since this year.

From new developments such as SF Express’s commitment to “pay if you don’t come to your door” in 50 cities, Cainiao’s first registration of the “Cainiao Home Delivery” trademark, and the “on-demand delivery” of Tongda’s high-end products, it can be seen that “home delivery” has become a courier service. The biggest hot spot in the industry.

Specifically, on September 5, SF Express announced that it will launch “no delivery, promise to pay” in 50 cities across the country. If the SF courier fails to deliver the goods according to the standard without the recipient’s consent, the recipient can provide feedback to SF Express through multiple channels such as SF Express customer service hotline, online customer service or satisfaction evaluation. After verification by customer service, the recipient will receive a 5 yuan customer experience guarantee red envelope, which can be directly deducted when placing an order on the SF APP, applet, or official account.

Earlier than this, at the end of July, Cainiao also announced that this year, including direct delivery and optional last 100 meters, it will be piloted in some cities, that is, the option of home delivery will be added. When placing an order, consumers can choose the door-to-door service before paying for the purchase according to the door-to-door delivery option provided by the merchant on the order page, and no additional fees will be incurred. And Cainiao also applied for registration of the “Cainiao Home Delivery” trademark on August 23.

As for some Tongda express companies, they have also launched their own high-end services before, highlighting special services such as time-sensitive priority, door-to-door delivery, and on-demand delivery. For example, Zhongtong Standard Express products launched by Zhongtong implement standard pricing, and provide different products such as next morning, next morning, next day, and the next day according to demand, and deliver them to the door at the end; Upgrading and precise delivery are the core advantages; Yunda has changed the name of the previous express project to Zhicheng.com, and requires the small-piece operator to handle the express according to the requirements of Zhicheng.com, and sign for the delivery.

These express delivery companies are willing to work hard on the “last mile” problem and solve the industry’s pain points by means of overweight door-to-door delivery, which is certainly a good thing that makes people applaud. But it is worth noting that in recent years, according to the actual situation of recipients, terminal delivery has actually derived various forms such as post stations, express cabinets, and collection points.

Then, before considering how to improve the logistics experience of consumers, it becomes somewhat inapplicable to categorize users’ terminal distribution needs as “delivery can’t be delivered to the door”. For example, some people like door-to-door delivery, and some people feel that it is convenient to put express cabinets, post stations, and collection points. What logistics companies should do is to protect consumers’ right to choose. On this basis, diversified service models may be the key point for the next development of the industry.

Zhu Qian, an industry analyst, also believes that the delivery of goods to the door should be discussed according to demand, which mainly depends on the place and scene. For example, an office worker, who is not at home during the day and likes shopping, needs a short-term storage place such as a post station and a courier cabinet. You can’t make decisions at once, saying “how much money you give, the problem will be solved”.

From this perspective, express delivery companies not only need to continuously improve their own service systems, but also negotiate with e-commerce platforms to improve the pricing model of e-commerce express delivery, provide diversified and differentiated express products, and match different services from the source of logistics. For different prices, consumers choose which price and which method of delivery service they need, instead of disregarding user needs for delivery at the end of the logistics.

There are more industry “heart problems” behind home delivery

“Isn’t this what it should be?” – In fact, when SF Express and other logistics companies shouted the slogan that they must deliver to their homes, most of the feedback from users is like this.

This is not without reason. According to the “Interim Regulations on Express Delivery”, an enterprise operating express delivery business shall deliver the express mail to the agreed receiving address, the recipient or the recipient designated by the recipient, and inform the recipient or the recipient to accept it in person. The recipient or the recipient has the right to accept it in person. If the courier wants to put it in the collection point or express cabinet, then the consent of the recipient must be obtained first. If the recipient does not agree, it must be delivered to the door.

In addition, in January this year, the State Post Bureau clearly stated in the “Measures for the Administration of the Express Market (Revised Draft)” that companies operating express delivery services shall not confirm receipt of express mail without the consent of users, and shall not deliver express mail to smart express boxes without authorization. Express terminal service facilities such as express service stations. If there is a violation, a fine of not less than 3,000 yuan but 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 will be imposed.

Therefore, home delivery is originally a legal requirement for express delivery services, not a value-added service that logistics companies use to win people’s hearts. That is, in essence, the terminal logistics distribution should be delivered to the door of the recipient, instead of being refined into layered services and value-added services.

Of course, the regulations are one thing, and whether they can actually be implemented is another.

As mentioned above, some users may not need door-to-door service. Even if they do not experience the “should have” door-to-door delivery, these users are not necessarily dissatisfied with the delivery methods such as express cabinets and post stations. However, if logistics companies start to promote door-to-door delivery and advocate measures such as “payment if not door-to-door”, they will inevitably invest a considerable amount of labor costs for this. To a certain extent, there is a possibility that logistics companies will pass on the competitive pressure to couriers.

Logistics companies need to take into account the interests of all parties

According to relevant reports from Xiaoxiang Morning News, some couriers believe that now that the delivery fee is falling, they can only increase their income by increasing the volume of dispatches, and pursue economies of scale with “small profits”; some couriers said that they can send parcels to an appointment every day without home delivery. 400 orders, the commission for sending the first floor is the same as sending the tenth floor, and if the area in charge is an old community, the delivery efficiency will naturally decrease, and the express mail will not be delivered. Just over 2,000 yuan, the income is greatly reduced. This is why, before, many couriers would rather take the risk of being complained and put the courier at the post station and other places for users to pick up.

It is undeniable that “you must pay if you don’t come to your door” is valuable. In order to break the homogeneous competition, logistics companies choose to increase the number of “home delivery”, which is the key for them to seize the market and build brands, and will also help to improve and promote the service level of the entire industry. As Xu Yong, a courier expert, said, “On the one hand, it can play a role in leading demonstrations and even ‘forcing’ competition; on the other hand, it is also conducive to the advancement and upgrading of the industry in the direction of ‘promised service’.”

However, starting from “home delivery” to improve the quality of logistics services, couriers are the key players in promoting services. How to find a balance that takes into account the interests of all parties will test the survival wisdom of logistics companies.

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