Australia Post’s introduction of a new parcel pickup charge has been met with unbridled anger and led to consumers to call into question the legality of charging the receiver a fee, as there is no contract between the recipient of the parcel and Aus Post.

Aus Post has revealed it will soon slug parcel customers with a holding fee of up to $9 charged directly to the receiver if the parcel is not delivered and not collected within five days.

Consumer outrage has prompted calls for an investigation by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to examine the legitimacy of Australia Post’s receiver parcel fee.

ProPrint contacted the ACCC for comment however they were unavailable. 

In defence of the legality of the charge, an Australia Post representative says the mailing giant’s terms and conditions cover its relationship with both the sender and receiver of mail.

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Despite announcing the pickup tax would kick off in August this year, members of the public have already been notified via email or text message by Australia Post that they will be hit with a penalty if parcels are not collected after five days.

The new charge is being likened to extortion by John Birmingham in the Fairfax Media, who says it is ‘almost certainly illegal’.

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