Evri rolls out new automated phone line to connect customers to UK advisors ahead of Christmas rush

Parcel delivery company, Evri, has launched an automatic callback function via a new dedicated phone line, as part of a £46 million total investment to boost its customer service and operations in preparation for its Christmas peak.

The facility is expected to connect about 40% more customers to a UK-based advisor at Evri’s contact centre before its busiest period of the year for parcels from Black Friday in late November to just before Christmas Day.

Ahead of then, Evri will hire more than 6,500 colleagues – double last year’s figure – including couriers, customer care team members and workers for its hubs and depots, as part of its combined investment.

The new callback function is an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) phone service that automatically connects customers who call Evri directly to one of its advisors or records a message so they can call back once they’ve looked into the issue. Both services promise to deliver a response in 24 hours or less.

Customers can call 0330 808 5456, 24 hours a day, to leave a message with advisors available Monday to Friday between 8am and 4pm then Saturday between 8am and 2pm.

The service initially connects customers to a voice assistant, who helps Evri to get the caller the right help, as fast as possible. The caller’s telephone number is used to identify active parcels and is then put through to the right place to get help.

If the telephone number isn’t linked to a parcel, the customer will need to provide the 16-digit parcel tracking number.

Depending on what a query relates to, the voice assistant can provide support, connect the caller to an Evri customer service advisor for help, or record a message to call the customer back once we’ve investigated.

This complements Evri’s recently introduced chat service. The callback function was inspired by direct customer feedback as part of Evri’s customer insight panel, first launched in 2020 when the company was still known as Hermes.

Chris Ashworth, Chief Customer Officer at Evri, says: “Over the last five years we have tripled the size of our business to become the UK’s leading dedicated parcel delivery company, handling a staggering 730 million parcels each year.”

“As more of us send and receive parcels every day, it has become more important than ever for Evri to invest in its customer service capabilities to answer customers’ questions as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

“As part of our transformation, we’ve listened to our customers and invested more £10 million in new ways to get in touch. We have made significant progress as a business this year, with a renewed focus on service delivery standards.”

“This has helped us to strengthen our relationship with existing customers who recognise the efforts we’ve made, as well as forging new relationships, including being accredited to deliver Amazon Prime, after achieving a service standard of 99% of parcels delivered within three days and 98% of all next-day orders delivered on time.”

He adds: “As we head into our peak period, we know that every parcel matters and we will be doing everything we can to deliver for customers at this important time.”

A spokesperson at Next says: “We are working hard with all our partners to plan and prepare to meet consumer demand for home deliveries during the peak Christmas period. Our final mile delivery partner Evri has improved its service levels during the year.”

“As demand rises for online orders during this crucial trading period, having the right infrastructure in place to respond will be key.”