The manager of a Moray parcel depot believes there is “no justification” for customers in the north of Scotland to be ripped off by excess delivery fees.
About 2,000 packages pass through the Menzies centre in Elgin every day on their way to homes across the region.
General manager Fraser MacLean has been fighting extra surcharges on deliveries for the last six years.
Yesterday, he revealed he had seen some customers charged up to £74.99 extra to receive a delivery from a retailer based solely on their postcode.
He said: “There’s a higher cost to deliver to the Highlands and islands compared to the rest of the UK, I can accept that.
“However, it bears no resemblance to the charges I see passed on. I see the breakdown of how much it costs to deliver and as far as I can see there’s no justification for some of the fees.
“I can’t even see who’s making the money. It’s not going to us as the delivery company, so it’s getting pocketed by somebody else or it’s there to try and stop the sale going through.”
Menzies operate bases across the north of Scotland in Aberdeen and Inverness as well as smaller depots in Keith, Dingwall, Thurso and the islands.
Mr MacLean has seen an annual rise of 7% in online sales passing through the depot for the last three years.
During that time boxes destined for home delivery vans have increased in size and weight.
Staff have just completed their busiest week of the year so far, which has resulted in a 25% increase in deliveries following Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales events.
Moray MSP Richard Lochhead’s campaign calling for legislation to be introduced to stop firms charging extra for rural customers has now been backed by nearly 1,500 people.
A debate will be held in the Scottish Parliament next week on the subject.
Mr Lochhead said: “From listening to staff at Menzies, it’s clear that there is absolutely no need for some of these eye-watering surcharges.
“If there’s no justification for them then they should be stopped as a matter of urgency.”
