Firm explains £1,000 charge for deliveries

Consumer: Company says measure is a temporary deterrent

A furniture firm criticised for a “ludicrous” £1,000 delivery charge to the north and north-east said it would not deliver to the region even if a customer paid the fee.

Online retailer Daal’s Home was found to be adding the four-figure surcharge for orders from Elgin and the Highlands while delivering to Edinburgh for free.

Yesterday the Coventrybased firm defended its position, explaining it does not have the resources to ship to some locations.

It said the temporary £1,000 fee was to “deter” orders from the north, and even if a customer paid the money it would be refunded and cancelled.

It said it was not possible to “block” postcodes from placing orders.

Moray MSP Richard Lochhead, who has campaigned against excess delivery costs, wrote to Daal’s Home to urge them to review the “ridiculous and hugely unfair” charge after it was highlighted to him by a resident wanting to buy a £75.99 chair.

He said: “Shoppers in Moray and across the north should keep naming and shaming businesses imposing unfair surcharges or that refuse to deliver to this part of the country.

“If a company is offering free mainland delivery, but can’t offer that service to shoppers in Moray, then they should find a better courier.”

Research by the Scottish Parliament calculated delivery surcharges cost Scottish residents £40 million last year, an increase of 11% since 2017.

Daal’s said it was working towards expanding its delivery area and finding a way to better display the locations it ships to.

A spokesman said: “We are a small familyrun company. We do not currently have the facilities to ship to certain locations. In addition, we are unable to apply a block to the postcodes we cannot deliver to.

“It is for this reason that we have, as a temporary measure, had to put a deliberately high delivery surcharge on to the affected items when ordered to the select postcodes to deter those from making a purchase only to be let down when the order is cancelled.

“We would never actually charge someone this for shipping.”

“We would never actually charge someone this for shipping”

Photograph by Jason Hedges UNIMPRESSED: Moray MSP Richard Lochhead said businesses need to be upfront and transparent.