Twenty minutes in a yard, then back with nothing
The collection was booked yesterday. The driver arrives at the customer's unit at ten past two. The warehouse lad says the pallet is 'just being finished'. Twenty minutes later it is wrapped but not labelled, because the labels were never printed. The driver has four more collections to do before he is needed back for the trunk.
He leaves without it. The customer rings the depot to complain that the driver would not wait. Tomorrow the same collection is back on the list, and so is the question of who pays for today's trip.
Bookings are made before the goods exist
Customers book collections based on when they expect to be ready, not when they are. Nothing between the booking and the driver's arrival checks the expectation.
- Collections are booked a day or more in advance, on hope.
- There is no confirmation step on the day.
- Drivers do not know what 'ready' means for each customer.
- Failed and partial collections are not recorded with a reason.
Without records, you cannot tell which customers are repeat offenders or raise it with them fairly.
There is a mismatch in what 'ready' means, too. For the customer it may mean the goods are picked. For your driver it means wrapped, labelled, at the door and with a forklift available to load. Unless that is spelled out before the day, both sides are right and the trip is still wasted.
Wasted trips and what they cost
Every failed collection is a vehicle, a driver and time that could have done a paying job. It also pushes the driver later for the trunk, which puts pressure on the rest of the run.
Failed collections usually count on the network's measures too, even when the fault is the customer's, so a clear reason recorded on the day matters.
And the conversation with the customer is harder without facts. 'Your pallets were not ready' sounds like an excuse unless you can show when the driver arrived, how long he waited and what he saw.
How we check readiness before the driver goes
- On the morning of collection, the customer gets a text or email asking them to confirm the pallets are wrapped, labelled and ready, with a link to confirm or change.
- Confirmations show on the collection board. Unconfirmed collections are flagged for the office to ring before the run leaves.
- Customers who say not ready can move the collection to another day without a phone call.
- On arrival, the driver app records the arrival time, waiting time and whether each pallet was ready, with a photo if it was not.
- Failed and partial collections are recorded with a reason, and any charge your terms allow is flagged for invoicing.
- A monthly view shows failed collections by customer, so you can have an informed conversation.
| Response | What happens |
|---|---|
| Confirmed ready | Stays on the run |
| Not ready, new day chosen | Moved automatically |
| No response | Office rings before the run |
| Ready on confirmation, not on arrival | Photo and reason recorded |
Whether to charge for failed collections is set by your terms. The record gives you the facts either way.
Collection runs that do what they say
Drivers go to collections that are more likely to be ready. The office spends its morning ringing the few who have not confirmed, rather than fielding complaints in the afternoon. Customers learn that the confirmation matters, and most start answering it.
Is this happening on your runs?
- Drivers regularly arrive to pallets that are not ready.
- Customers complain that drivers would not wait.
- Failed collections are not recorded with a reason.
- You cannot say which customers cause most failed trips.