Sendle - Feedback Please

[jvdv11]

I see eBay is promoting Sendle with a new banner ad - they apparently pickup from your home, delivery times seem okay and their prices are better than Aust Post. 

Before using them I'd appreciate any feedback from those who have used them.

Thanks

[davewil1964]

They are cheap.

Anecdotally, that is because they often use Fastway.

Also take into consideration whether your BUYERS would prefer courier delivery.

[porcelain_dolls_by_me]

They act as a broker and you can never be certain which courier service they will use for pickup/delivery.  It will be the cheapest and this may well mean Fastaway, in which case be prepared from some disgruntled customers who compalin their orders take forever to arrive.

[dazzledayz]

I've sent a few and it's mainly been Couriers Please doing the job.

Acceptance scans can be a bit problematic. If you keep an eye on that you should be ok.

I'll be giving them a bit of work now the price differential has risen to extreme levels.

AP have gone into gouge mode lately and I see even the first tier of bulk buys have had their discount percentages halved from 5% to 2.5%.

[oddsandendsoz]

I use them a lot for sales through my website and also less frequently on eBay as I offer both Sendle and AP options. As another poster has experienced 95% of the time it is Couriers Please that collect with the 5% being Fastway. 

Pros

1) They collect from your home or you can drop off at many drop off locations (have yet to try that option though)

2) They are cheaper than AP in most cases except extremely rural locations

3) They are quite relaible in the delivery of items

Cons

1) Only email support is available

2) Although they offer insurance in reality it does not exist. Twice I have had issues, once admittedly was a parcel sent to me and not packed well at all which they refused insurance on (understandable in this case but they use every tactic possible to worm out of it) and another where the parcel went AWOL and I actually had to do the detective work and found that it had been wrongly left at an address next door. When trying to get them to investigate whilst it was lost they refused insurance again or to take responsibility or even really investigate it until I mentioned the Postal Ombudsmen.

3) They can be unreliable in picking up the designated day and in around 30% of cases collect the next day. Not ideal if you have a busy life where you cannot or are not at home much.

Overall I think they are OK if it is Couriers Please. 

[purplemon18]

Since the price changes, they have been my cheapest option only once and everything went fine, which is no surprise since it was couriers please.

It says on the label who the courier company is, so if I ever get a label that says fastway, I will cancel it (I'm assuming I can do that).

The option I use that is sometimes the cheapest is transdirect.com.au, same type thing as sendle, except that it offers different prices for different couriers, and who is cheapest depends on destination &/or origin.

[desolate-sellable]

Interesting re the courier on the lable.

I used sendle for the first time by mistake.

Lable said Couriers Please who are outstanding IMO.

However Fastway turned up for pickup

I quized the driver he siad that sendle uses some 18 different couriers.

Definatly wont be using Fastway although they have been better latley.

Cheers

[i-once-was-bump]

As a buyer I don't like any couriers, and DHL are the worst.
I am not willing to sit at home from 8am to 8pm for a parcel that is supposed to be delivered that day and then get a message at 3.30pm telling me my parcel will be delivered the following day between 8am and 8pm.

[eol-products]

For heavy or oversize items couriers are your only option. Sendle have a 25kg and 120cm length limit which is far better than Aust. Post and usually much cheaper. Small items I would not try and save a dollar or two unless it was going to a business address that someone is at allday. 

[purplemon18]

Sendle is "safe to leave", so it's basically the same as most Aus Post parcels, they just dump it on the doorstep and hope for the best.

However, I should mention that before deciding, I always actually read the address and usually look at google street view before deciding to use a courier or not. The biggest advantage that AP have is that they can leave a card and make the buyer collect from the PO, and that is a good reason to use them instead of a courier. The main reasons I decide to play it safe are:

• If it does not look like the courier will be able to get onto the property (electric gate for example)
• its a block of flats or some other communal dwelling
• its a PO Box
• It does not appear to be safe to leave because there is a lot of foot traffic, or the front door opens onto the footpath or something similar

In situations like that I will always use AP and hope that either the buyer answers the door, or AP leaves a card.