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- Ελληνικά
The Office of the Commissioner for Electronic Communications and Postal Regulation (BERET), within the framework of its competences and its regulatory role, has conducted for the third consecutive year two nationwide surveys addressed to citizens and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), respectively, to collect data and information related to the use of postal services, such as the frequency of their use, total expenditure on postal services, etc.etc. The two surveys were conducted in parallel in the period October-December 2023, on a sample of 1,042 citizens and 500 SMEs belonging to the retail sector and regularly sending parcels.
The main results of the surveys are as follows. In particular, 87% of people have used postal services in the last year, down 8% compared to November 2022 and 6% compared to October 2021. [*]The use of postal services for receiving letters-documents and parcels was about three times higher in 2023 compared to the use of postal services for mailing. [*]Cyprus Post remains the main postal provider for letter receipt (96%), with the main volume of letters received by citizens relating to utility bills, taxes and bank statements. [*]In terms of parcel collection, the main postal providers are ACS Courier (65%), Cyprus Post (51%), GAP Akis Express (25%) and DHL (19%) %), with the main places to collect parcels being from the provider's premises and their home, with 60% and 50% of respondents respectively. [*]Cyprus Post remains the main postal provider for sending letters (80%), while for sending parcels the main postal providers are ACS Courier (57%), Cyprus Post (45%), GAP Akis Express (36%) and DHL (13%). [*]The average frequency of letter delivery decreased from 40 times per year in October 2021 to 33.4 times in November 2022 and 26.7 times in December 2023, while the average frequency of parcel delivery increased from 14.2 times per year in 2021 to 14.3 times in 2022 and 16.8 times in 2023. [*]The average frequency of sending letters decreased from 21 times per year in October 2021, to 19 times in November 2022 and 17.2 times in December 2023, while the average frequency of sending parcels increased from 11.1 times per year in 2021, to 11.5 times per year in 2022 and 16.9 times per year in 2023. [*]Respondents consider the cost of sending letters to be reasonable. However, they consider the cost of sending parcels to be high, although 72% do not go to the trouble of comparing the prices offered by different providers. [*]In terms of respondents' level of satisfaction with the parcel delivery process, while it is generally shown in 2023 to remain at the same level as in 2022, private providers, with a score of 8.5/10, seem to outperform Cyprus Post, rated at 7.5. [*]The average annual expenditure for sending/receiving letters for 2023 compared to 2022 has increased from €37 to €60 per year, respectively. This increase is probably due to the increase observed in the prices of local private postal providers), and for sending/receiving parcels from €83 to €117 per year.
11. The main criteria for choosing a postal service provider are habit - previous cooperation (25%), geographical proximity (i.e. there is no other one in my area) (24%), and good service (18%).
12. Respondents rate the arrival of items at the right destination, and speed of delivery as most important in relation to usage characteristics.
13. Only 27% consider that letters should be delivered the next working day after they are sent, while 44% consider delivery within two working days reasonable, 16% within three working days and 10% within a week.
14. In relation to e-commerce, the proportion of consumers making online purchases is shown to be stable in 2023 (65%) compared to 2022 (64%). However, it is shown to be down compared to 2021 (71%), which is likely due to an increase in e-commerce volumes in 2021 due to restrictions imposed to control the Covid-19 pandemic. The frequency with which consumers make online purchases shows a similar trend, with an average number per month of 1.6 for 2023, 1.5 for 2022 and 2.0 for 2021.
In terms of businesses:
[*]The percentage of surveyed SMEs using private postal providers to send parcels has increased compared to 2021 from 53% to 63% in 2022 and to 64% in 2023, while the percentage of those using Cyprus Post has decreased from 47% in 2021 to 44% in 2022 and to 30% in 2023. [*]The average annual expenditure of SMEs has decreased for sending parcels compared to 2021 from €654 per year to €612 in 2022 and to €592 in 2023, and for sending letters from €295 to €288 to €246 per year, respectively. And the average annual expenditure of SMEs with up to nine employees for sending parcels was €464. For SMEs with 10-49 employees it was €1,100, with the majority of parcels sent being small in size. [*]71% of SMEs send small parcels, 54% send medium-sized parcels, and 23% send large parcels. [*]SMEs use Cyprus Post on average 1,2 times a week, an increase from once a week in 2022, and private providers three times a week, an increase from 2,3 times a week in 2022. [*]The usual places where parcels are collected are the company's premises with 79%, and the postal service provider's premises with 16%. [*]The main postal service providers used by SMEs to send parcels to their customers are GAP Akis Express (53%), ACS Courier (50%), Travel Express (31%) and DHL (9%). [*]Businesses' satisfaction with the services offered by postal service providers appears to be stable. In particular, satisfaction has fluctuated from 8.3 (2021) to 8.4 (2022) and to 8.5 (2023) for private providers, and from 7.5 (2021) to 7.6 (2022) and to 7.4 (2023) for Cyprus Post. [*]The satisfaction of SMEs with the process of receiving parcels from Cyprus Post has increased compared to 2022 from 7.2 to 7.4 in 2021 to 7.5 in 2021. [*]In relation to prices, only a very low percentage of SMEs (4% for letters and 12% for parcels) consider the charges of Cyprus Post to be high, while a higher percentage (35%) of SMEs consider the charges of private providers to be high.
10. 57% of SMEs have some kind of agreement with one of the private providers on how to send and/or charge.
11. The percentage of SMEs that have received complaints from their customers about the postal service provider they used to send them a parcel or letter has fluctuated. In particular, in October 2021 this percentage was 11%, in 2022 8% and in 2023 11%.
12. 38% of SMEs compare quoted prices for sending parcels-postcards from different providers before sending, and to a greater extent for sending parcels than letters
13. The main criteria for choosing a postal service provider are economic (40%), delivery time (38%), ease of sending (36%) and the delivery method used (27%).
14. As in the case of citizens, similarly SMEs evaluate the arrival of items at the right destination and speed of delivery as the most important usage characteristics.
The detailed results of the surveys are available in power point format at the links below:
https:/ocecpr.ee.cy/agora/paratiritirio-agoras/analyseis https:/ocecpr.ee.cy/katanalotes/eikona-agoras/erevnes-katanaloton
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