Delivery services strained due to excess online shopping
EL PASO, Texas (CBS4) — If shopping online wasn’t your thing until now, you’re not alone.
COVID has forced those who were either too scared or just didn’t want to shop online to get comfortable doing so for the first time.
The CBS4 Problem Solvers took a look into how the masses doing everything digitally is putting a strain on a system that wasn’t made to carry this much volume.
“The USPS increased their rates in July and there is going to be another increase in January. For the first time this year, they put in a peak surcharge. That’s never happened before with the USPS, but that only speaks to the burden that’s been put on the delivery infrastructure. Not only for the USPS but for every delivery company. The unprecedented volumes that have been created by people shopping from home,” said AJ Hernandez, CEO, SkyPostal, Inc.
He runs one of the leading private mail and delivery services called SkyPostal.
The company moves products in and out of the U.S.
The impact of people sitting at home and adding to their shopping cart is being felt, he said, throughout many industries, including fuel surcharges, increased transport costs and decreased flight availability.
“You’re seeing here still a shortage of truck drivers for example in the United States. On top of that, we still don’t have the flight availability we used to have pre-COVID. Flights are down almost 70%. So, when you have that much less availability to fly product throughout the country those prices are going to be driven up because it’s a supply and demand issue.”
Hernandez explained, shippers will have to pass those costs onto the buyer, who will be paying a higher rate for shipping.
That will ultimately affect, you, the consumer.
SkyPostal, Inc. is a trusted vendor to Amazon and their network has already seen an impact on the company’s prime delivery this holiday season.
“I have seen it affect the prime delivery. I think there have certainly been delays because of the increased volumes. I would guess and especially getting closer to Christmas, I think they are going to have to add a day or two to their delivery promise.”
Hernadez said prices are going to go up this upcoming year on baseline transport costs.
He said all the major express companies such as UPS, FedEx and DHL have all implemented at least a 5% increase across the board on all of their services.
This will hardly stop us from shopping online, if anything, Hernandez predicts we’ll see even more online shoppers going forward.
