New An Post service for American companies which don't ship to Ireland

I have used the UK version of the service a couple of times and items all arrived OK.
Their depot is in England so handy for situations where the supplier won't even ship to Northern Ireland (Parcel Motel).
It'd be nice if the sent you an email to say item has arrived in their depot though.
 
Hello,

I think this service has been on offer from An Post for several months now.

I'm delighted to see An Post trying to think outside the box a little with the likes of this service and I hope it takes off, but it looks like they still need to make some improvements to how it operates and possibly cut the prices back a little too. They need to sort out some form of tracking, so customers can see where their packages are at different stages of the journey. Also, there needs to be options as to how the parcels are ultimately collected / delivered, as I think it's collection at the post office counter only at the moment, and that's not very good (given limited opening hours, you may have to face queues etc.)
 
https://addresspal.anpost.ie/how-it-works

Items posted to the UK hub can be delivered to the customer's home address or be collected from a designated post office.
Items posted to the USA hub can only be delivered to the customer's home address (presumably to facilitate collection of duties/taxes).

I've used the UK/post office collection option for a couple of years, and find it a great service.
 
Hell gipimann,

I apologise, I stand (sit ;)) corrected.

Can the recipient specify a time period for delivery, that suits them (say a window of a few hours, perhaps including early evenings and / or Saturdays), or are they still at the mercy of An Post ?

Delighted to hear that you find collecting from a post office great, but do keep in mind that some people do not live near a post office, or the fact that there are days when the post office is very busy and has slow moving queues. Personally, I don't find it very appealing and I happen to live within ten minutes of a post office (where the staff are friendly and helpful, but far from efficient).

For me, the option of picking an item up from a specified Parcel Motel 24/7 offers far more flexibility :)
 
MrEarl said:
Also, there needs to be options as to how the parcels are ultimately collected / delivered, as I think it's collection at the post office counter only at the moment, and that's not very good (given limited opening hours, you may have to face queues etc.)
Click to expand...

To echo your point... one of the silliest limitations is that you can't even pick it up from the local sorting office... which has longer opening hours than regular post offices and in my case, is closer than the local post office (since they shut my local one).
 
odyssey06 said:
To echo your point... one of the silliest limitations is that you can't even pick it up from the local sorting office... which has longer opening hours than regular post offices and in my case, is closer than the local post office (since they shut my local one).
Click to expand...

Usually when a new entrant enters a market where an incumbent is in place (Parcel Motel), the entrant uses and combination of better service and lower cost in order to attract customers. In An Post's case they are offering a service that is inflexible and not much cheaper (if cheaper at all) so I cannot see any incentive for people to switch. I use Parcel Motel all the time and can swing by my designated drop off location 24x7 to pick up whatever I purchase. No queuing in a post office for me I'm afraid.
 
I used it once . The main reason being the size of the item. Delivered to my house by an post whereas with parcel motel I would have had to travel to their depot. It worked out fine
 
I have been a long time user of Parcel Motel (used it in the initial roll-out phase) and also Address Pal the odd time. The An Post service has a couple of advantages over the Nightline one that merits its occasional use: for oversize parcels that can be delivered to home is a clear bonus. The second is that An Post uses an English address which is advantageous when some sites won't deliver to NI. In addition, An Post will deliver items with a battery, such as a portable battery for mobile devices, from their St. Alban's base that won't be sent to the Parcel Motel depot in Northern Ireland.
 
tallpaul said:
The An Post service has a couple of advantages over the Nightline one that merits its occasional use: for oversize parcels that can be delivered to home is a clear bonus.
Click to expand...

When doing up my house last year I bought several of those long, vertical radiators from the UK. I'd love to see the postman delivering those :D
 
folks i have a question
looking at getting 3d printed parts from a company called shapeway, problem is according to their website shipping and billing address must be same ,have my address pal set up to deliver to post office with their uk address, so how does one get around that shipping and billing address different ,any one done it with this company or other companies with this requirment?
 
I've used both ParcelMotel and AddressPal. By the very nature of the services, the billing and shipping addresses must be different as you are renting an accommodation address.

One off the wall idea might be to (somehow) change your C/C billing address to the accommodation/shipping address.

For me, AddressPal's service is the outright winner.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top