Express firms warn new regulation will push up fees

Express delivery companies have warned that service fees are likely to rise, given that labor costs will increase as a result of the new national standard that will be effective from the beginning of next month, China National Radio reported Sunday.

According to the national standard for express delivery that will take effect on May 1, couriers must allow recipients to check the goods before signing for them. People will have the right to check the appearance and the number of the delivered goods, but they are not allowed to test the goods' function, according to the standard.

The new standard was prompted by customers' repeated complaints that goods are often lost, damaged or delivered late, and that couriers usually do not allow recipients to check the goods before signing for them.

In a survey conducted last month by etao.com, an online shopping website, 75.76 percent of respondents said that not being able to check the delivered goods is the major problem in logistics, according to the China National Radio report.

Cui Zhongfu, vice president of China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing, told the Global Times Sunday that it's bad timing to implement the new standard now since delivery companies are facing a surge in costs due to soaring oil prices and labor costs.

"The industry is already facing big operational pressure. The new standard will make the situation even worse, and the losses will have to be shifted to the customers," Cui said.

An unnamed senior member of staff at Yuantong Express (Logistics) Co, one of China's largest private express delivery firms, said in the report that the company would implement the new standard as required, but that it would definitely increase costs, which will result in higher fees for customers.

A Yuantong customer service representative surnamed Shen told the Global Times Sunday that the company would carry out the new standard, but it's still unclear whether the company will have to increase its charges and how the standard will influence its couriers.

"The new requirement will prolong the delivery time, which will reduce the number of goods that we can deliver in a day," a courier in Beijing surnamed Li told the Global Times Sunday. Li was also worried that the new standard would influence his salary, which is based on the number of goods delivered in a month.