Call for postal safeguards to be introduced for Orkney

June 10, 2025 at 4:14 pm

Consumer Scotland has advised that new safeguard should be considered for postal services in Scotland’s isles.

New postal delivery safeguards should be considered for Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles, Consumer Scotland has said.

Currently, first class deliveries in all other postcode areas in Scotland are protected by quality-of-service targets monitored by postal regulator Ofcom. This requires Royal Mail to deliver 93 per cent of first class mail within one working day.

However, there are no such safeguards for Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles — because of the challenges of delivering to remote locations — affecting around 60,000 consumers.

The three Scottish island groups without safeguards have some of the slowest delivery rates in Scotland.

Royal Mail data shows that in 2024/25, 29 per cent of first class post was delivered on time in Shetland, 31 per cent in Orkney and 31 per cent in the Western Isles.

Deliveries in Kirkwall on Orkney were faster with 54 per cent being delivered on time. These have also declined since the previous year’s performance data was published.

Ofcom is currently reviewing proposals to reform the universal postal service, including delivery standards expected of Royal Mail, and Consumer Scotland has made a number of recommendations to the regulator to protect the future of postal services in remote and rural communities.