Since the use of the internet-based inquiry system (IBIS) for parcels became mandatory in January 2012, nearly 150 Posts are using it to track missing packages.
Before IBIS, Posts would submit inquiries about missing parcels to one other using a paper form (CN 08), which was sent as a letter or a fax.
Now the internet?based system deals with over 25,000 inquiries a month.
The system also imposes strict deadlines for finding missing parcels using three phases: the investigation request; the special search; and the full investigation.
During the first phase, receiving Posts have 12 working hours to check track and trace data before notifying the dispatching Post whether the parcel was found.
If the parcel is not found, the same Post has a further 24 working hours to check the distribution centre before sending another response. If the parcel is still missing, the Post handling delivery to the final destination has another 160 working hours to perform a full investigation.
These deadlines are helping improve customer service, say some Posts. Great Britain’s Parcelforce has been using IBIS since 2006, when it was made widely available, and is a top performer.
Between February – July 2012, the company scored 100 per cent for on-time performance, i.e. dealing with an inquiry within the maximum time-frame. “IBIS makes it so much easier because you have proof that you have actually received [the parcel] rather than a paper trail that may go missing somewhere and it’s much more efficient for the customer,” says Andrea Tye, Parcelforce’s international customer service manager.
If Posts receiving inquiries meet a 95 per cent on-time response rate, they are eligible for a five-per-cent bonus on inward land rates. Postal operators not using IBIS have to rely on the goodwill of their partners to process inquiries submitted via the traditional CN 08 and are not eligible for the bonus.