Is this now quite common?

[french frank]

Interesting experience. Yesterday morning I ordered some garden supplies online, for delivery today. I was thanked shortly afterwards and informed within a couple of hours that my order was awaiting collection by their courier and would be delivered ‘tomorrow’ between 8am and 6pm, and please make sure someone is in to sign for it. Two hours later I was told that my parcel had been despatched and I would be informed in due course how I could track its progress.

This morning I received a message telling me that Scott, my driver, would deliver my parcel between 12.09 and 13.09, and with a link to ‘Follow My Parcel Now’.

Throughout the morning I followed my parcel. Scott was making his first delivery, and I was no 33 on his round. Throughout the morning I followed Scott’s progress on a little map, as he grew nearer, then moved further away, then nearer again and his delivery numbers rose gradually to 15, to 23, to 27, and the time before his arrival went down, from two hours, to one hour, to 45 minutes. He was just about make his 32nd delivery, and would be with me in 15 minutes when the doorbell rang. It was Scott with my parcel. The time was 12.27.

This played havoc with my morning and became quite suspenseful towards the end. But I ordered another parcel this afternoon, and it will arrive between 8am and 6pm tomorrow.

It may be the way things are done now (is it?), but I'd never come across it before. I thought it was quite a good system.

[pastoralguy]

Interesting experience. Yesterday morning I ordered some garden supplies online, for delivery today. I was thanked shortly afterwards and informed within a couple of hours that my order was awaiting collection by their courier and would be delivered ‘tomorrow’ between 8am and 6pm, and please make sure someone is in to sign for it. Two hours later I was told that my parcel had been despatched and I would be informed in due course how I could track its progress.

This morning I received a message telling me that Scott, my driver, would deliver my parcel between 12.09 and 13.09, and with a link to ‘Follow My Parcel Now’.

Throughout the morning I followed my parcel. Scott was making his first delivery, and I was no 33 on his round. Throughout the morning I followed Scott’s progress on a little map, as he grew nearer, then moved further away, then nearer again and his delivery numbers rose gradually to 15, to 23, to 27, and the time before his arrival went down, from two hours, to one hour, to 45 minutes. He was just about make his 32nd delivery, and would be with me in 15 minutes when the doorbell rang. It was Scott with my parcel. The time was 12.27.

This played havoc with my morning and became quite suspenseful towards the end. But I ordered another parcel this afternoon, and it will arrive between 8am and 6pm tomorrow.

It may be the way things are done now (is it?), but I'd never come across it before. I thought it was quite a good system.

Oh yes, I frequently follow my Amazon parcels. It really adds excitement!

[Serial_Apologist]

How do they know? Has the merchandise got a tracking device?

[Flosshilde]

Possibly, but I think the van definitely will have. I had a plumber a while ago & he said the company he works for track everything they do - all jobs are dertailed on their mobile phones, they take photos which are sent to the office, everything they do for the job is similarly entered. The vans have tracking devices so that the office can see where they are, when they stop for a break, & even how fast they are travelling - & they get told off if they exceed the speed limit. It all sounded absolutely horrendous.

[Pabmusic]

I've encountered a different version of this. I sometimes send my daughter something ordered online. Now, obviously I don't live in the UK, but she does (in Stockport, actually) and the delivery address is there. Then, depending on which delivery firm is used, I get a series of emails like the ones FF describes.

Now my point isn't really that I live in the Philippines and can't make myself available to sign for anything, it's this: why give all this information to the sender, rather than to the recipient? It's not as though I don't give my daughter's contact details.

[mercia]

I wonder if FF's delivery company was PDP. I had a delivery from them yesterday after I had followed Joe's progress through the Kent countryside till he reached me, little number 65 bang on schedule. I happened to be in anyway but I could have been out and received all the information via a mobile device and made sure I was in at the prescribed time. Trez efficient. [Perhaps Joe knows Scott]

[Beef Oven!]

What today's technology enables us to do is amazing.

Yesterday, I filled a device with cold water and took it to the beach where, a few hours later, I had a cool refreshing drink.

Then I remembered that I had filled the same device with hot tomato soup, a few months earlier in England and had a lovely warming soup on the Southbank.

How does this simple device know what to do?

[teamsaint]

What today's technology enables us to do is amazing.

Yesterday, I filled a device with cold water and took it to the beach where, a few hours later, I had a cool refreshing drink.

Then I remembered that I had filled the same device with hot tomato soup, a few months earlier in England and had a lovely warming soup on the Southbank.

How does this simple device know what to do?

would have saved yourself a lot of trouble if you had got it couriered over to the beach though.

[Beef Oven!]

would have saved yourself a lot of trouble if you had got it couriered over to the beach though.

[Mary Chambers]

I wonder if FF's delivery company was PDP.

I thought it was DPD, not PDP, but I too have had this experience. I thought it was wonderful, and fun as well. Mine did arrive exactly when they said it would.

[mercia]

I thought it was DPD, not PDP

I believe you're right

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

…and I always wondered why some truck drivers appear to be doing paperwork whilst driving.

[french frank]

I wonder if FF's delivery company was PDP.

It was actually DPD I was inspired to check it - founded in Germany, it was acquired by Geopost, a subsidiary of - La Poste, the French postal service.

I told Scott I was not expecting him for a further 15 minutes, but he said he'd made up some time and "Good system, isn't it?"

Yes, trez efficient, as you say!

Later: Hadn't got to Mary's post, ignore me. (Latest is that my parcel has reached the Bristol depot)

[Don Petter]

I had a similar experience a month or two ago, which I agree was quite fun, though slightly annoying when the little van on the map came quite close to our house with a much earlier delivery number.

I was looking forward to a lighthearted conversation with Ivan when he arrived, along the lines of 'I've been watching your progress', but when he did come it became apparent that he had little or no command of English, so even such a simple exchange was not possible.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Yesterday, I filled a device with cold water and took it to the beach where, a few hours later, I had a cool refreshing drink.

What? You mean you could get water like "on tap" or something?

I don't think they'll allow such witchcraft here in Yorkshire.