The Uber app has launched a new “Return a Package” feature making it possible for drivers to pick up packages and drop them off at local shipping stores.
The company announced on Wednesday that its drivers will be able to collect up to five prepaid and sealed packages and drop them off at local post offices or UPS and FedEx stores. Uber will then charge a $5 flat fee or $3 for its Uber One members who pay $9.99/month.
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Uber is adding a new task to its list of services: mailing consumers’ return packages. The ride-hailing company said that its drivers will collect up to five prepaid and sealed packages and drop them off at a local post office or at UPS or FedEx stores. https://t.co/xIPtFVX1nz
— The Associated Press (@AP) October 4, 2023
The “Return a Package” feature is available in nearly 5,000 cities nationwide. “Customers can track their package in real-time in the Uber app,” Uber said in a statement. “The courier will send a visual confirmation or photo of the receipt when the drop-off is completed.”
Uber said the service is aimed at helping individuals with a “much-avoided chore: taking care of the packages you need to return but have been ignoring.”
According to a National Retail Federation poll, nearly 80 percent of shoppers under 30 find mail returns somewhat annoying – Uber aims to capitalize on the inconvenient chore, with its new tool predicting to be a “huge” value proposition to consumers.
“Consumers should be prepared for retailers to continue to impose fees for returns or change their policies,” Sender Shamiss, CEO of return logistics company goTRG, told Axios.
Satish Jindel, president of ShipMatrix estimates the target market for Uber’s return package service will be around 574,000 parcels each business. Jindel predicts this will rise to about 25% in January due to holiday returns.
Jindel also said retailers are trying to cut back on the volume of returns by making it harder and more expensive to return items, so that could limit demand for Uber.
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