Petition: Transparency and Accountability for Courier Services in Scotland
Transparency and accountability should not be luxuries when dealing with essential services like parcel delivery — especially in rural Scotland, where courier access is often the backbone of commerce, farming operations, and daily life. Yet private courier companies currently operate with no independent oversight, no mandatory appeals process, and no requirement to justify service refusal or delivery failure.

Recent events in the Pitkennedy / Framedrum area highlight the seriousness of this issue. In August 2026, three parcels addressed to separate rural households — including one non‑perishable item — were:

Scanned early at the Dundee Depot
Allocated delivery slots
Stalled without explanation,
and ultimately destroyed

This occurred immediately after DPD formally lifted a delivery restriction on one of the affected addresses. Tracking data showed multiple depot confirmations that contradicted the explanation provided by DPD’s Executive Escalations Team. Neighbouring households that normally receive DPD deliveries were also affected, demonstrating that this was not an isolated incident, but a route‑level failure.

Despite the multi‑household impact and contradictory information, DPD declared the case “closed” without providing depot‑level transparency or any meaningful route investigation. The matter has since required intervention from elected representatives due to the absence of any independent dispute‑resolution mechanism for consumers.

This situation is not unique. Across Scotland, rural customers regularly face:

Unexplained service refusals
Destroyed parcels without clear documentation
Contradictory tracking information
No ability to challenge inaccurate driver reports
No independent body to review courier decisions
Courier companies provide an essential service. Essential services must meet essential standards.

We call on the Scottish Parliament to introduce regulatory measures that ensure:

Minimum rural‑access standards for courier companies operating in Scotland.
Mandatory independent Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) for delivery refusals, destroyed parcels, and service failures.
Transparent reporting requirements when parcels are destroyed or delivery restrictions are applied.
Clear oversight mechanisms preventing courier companies from refusing service without investigation or justification.
Accurate, auditable tracking data, including depot‑level handling logs, to prevent contradictory or misleading explanations.
Supporting this petition is essential to creating a fair, dependable courier environment for individuals, farms, and small businesses across Scotland. With your signature, you are calling for consistent, credible, and accountable service standards — ensuring that courier companies act in good faith and rural households are not left vulnerable.