Delivery charge talks continue

A meeting of the Consumer Minister, retailers and couriers to discuss delivery charges was a “step in the right direction” according to Northern Isles MP Alistair Carmichael.

His comments come after Consumer Minister Jo Swinson MP held a meeting on Tuesday to discuss delivery charges.

The meeting was attended by a large number of industry officials, including representatives from Tesco, British Retail Consortium, Citizens Advice Scotland, the Office of Fair Trading and the Royal Mail.

Public body Consumer Futures have agreed to examine the issue in further detail and will report back to the Minister in Spring 2014.

Commenting, Mr Carmichael said: “With Christmas on the horizon, local people will be all too aware of the problems that high delivery charges cause. I am pleased that my Liberal Democrat colleagues have taken this issue to the heart of Government and have engaged a large number of retailers and couriers.

“Online retailers and delivery providers have now recognised that high delivery charges disproportionally affect people living in rural areas, and that a more transparent approach will be beneficial to consumers and retailers.

“I welcome the commitment by Consumer Focus and the British Retail Consortium to develop and promote best practise guidelines amongst online retailers. We are some way off a solution to this problem but I believe that we are now moving in the right direction.”