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2023 ACM Postal and Parcel Markets Scan: Turnover of the broader postal and parcel market goes up, consumers pay more yet experience less quality

In 2023, the Dutch again sent more parcels than in the previous year. As a result, total turnover of the broader postal and parcel market went up. Both the volume as well as the turnover of the parcel market increased last year, and saw increases of 1.9 and 4.0 percent, respectively. The growth in turnover on the parcel market thus offset the drop in turnover on the postal market. Over the past few years, the Dutch paid more and more for many of the different categories of postal items. Quality scores for postal delivery went down, as revealed by the latest 2023 Postal and Parcel Markets Scan of the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM).
In 2023, total turnover on the parcel market went up 97 million to over 2.5 billion euros. The postal market saw a drop of 58 million euros. Total turnover on that market was still 828 million euros. On the postal market, most of the volume comes from business senders, and went down 8.8 percent, whereas the volume on the parcel market went up 1.9 percent compared with 2022.

That means that, in 2023, on balance, turnover on the broader delivery market (postal and parcel) slightly went up compared with 2022. Total market turnover was well over 3.3 billion euros. Compared with 2019, turnover on the entire postal and parcel market went up more than 800 million euros, from 2.5 billion to 3.3 billion euros in 2023.
One striking observation in 2023 was the continued growth in the number of letterbox-sized parcels, an area where postal and parcel delivery overlap. Letterbox-sized parcels qualify as parcels, which are often delivered together with regular postal items because they fit through the letterbox. Since 2019, the number of letterbox-sized parcels has more than doubled. In 2019, 29 million of such parcels were sent compared with 65 million in 2023. Turnover of these letterbox-sized parcels has also more than doubled, from 69 million in 2019 to 152 million euros in 2023. Dutch postal operator PostNL handles, by far, the most of this type of parcel. Rival operator DHL has a market share of between 20 and 25 percent. ACM has seen the price of this product slightly decrease over the past few years, possibly as a result of increasing competition on this market.

Postal-delivery tariffs

In 2023, the stamp price continued to rise to 1.01 euros, whereas a stamp in 2019 only cost 0.87 euros. In late 2023, PostNL set the stamp price for 2024 at 1.09 euros. PostNL already announced that they will further raise the stamp price to 1.14 euros for the second half of 2024. These price increases are within the statutory tariff headroom. Over the past few years, the price went up more sharply than the inflation rate, as a result of which consumers, on balance, paid more for postal-delivery services.
In many cases, parcel tariffs, too, went up in 2023. Last year, consumers and small businesses paid the most, paying, on average, 5.49 euros for sending a parcel. Companies that sent parcels to consumers paid, on average, 5.23 euros in 2023, and the business-to-business market spent an average of 3.73 euros on parcel deliveries.
ACM receives many complaints about late or poor postal or parcel deliveries. The Scan also shows that, in 2019, postal items that fall under the Universal Service Obligation (USO) were delivered on time 94 percent of the time, whereas in 2023, this percentage was 89 percent.

Manon Leijten, Member of the board of ACM, adds: “Over the past few years, we have seen different trends and developments on the broader postal and parcel market. In certain areas, we see significant decreases, while in other areas, we see increases in turnovers and volumes. At the same time, we hear that many consumers and business senders feel that, across the board, service quality is deteriorating. That is hard to reconcile with the price increases that we see in many segments.”

Each year, ACM publishes the Postal and Parcel Markets Scan, by order of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate policy (EZK). In this Scan, ACM provides an overview of the trends and developments in the sector. On 23 May 2024, ACM will be one of the guests at a roundtable discussion on the postal market held in the Dutch House of Representatives.

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