As the effects of climate change extend further into the public’s consciousness, the UK’s people and businesses are increasingly looking for ways to lower their carbon footprint. Courier companies have often had this environmental lens aimed at them, with their historically vast carbon emissions facing scrutiny.
The demand for more green courier services has therefore become greater, not just by the public but also by courier companies themselves looking to improve their brand’s eco-friendly credentials. But which are the most environmentally friendly couriers? To help answer that question, courier insurance specialists Commercial Vehicle Direct have assembled this list of some of the most notable eco-friendly delivery services operating in the UK today.
Green Courier
The most overtly named courier company on this list, Green Courier claims to run “one of the largest zero-emission fleets in the logistics industry”. Their delivery fleet primarily consists of
• ultra-low emission goods vehicles;
• zero-emission, ultra-low emission and LPG powered vans
• purpose-built low emission motorbikes
• a fleet of traditional and electric bicycles (one of the biggest such fleets in the country, according to them)
While they continually monitor the large van sector of their fleet to find more up-to-date environmentally friendly vehicles, Green Courier stands out with their Carbon Balancing policy. Using their fleet’s GPS tracking system, they record all fleet-generated carbon emissions and offset them through their partnership with the World Land Trust, a UK-based international conservation organisation that protects vital wildlife habitats across the world, such as South American rainforests.
In addition to their eco-friendly delivery fleet, Green Courier extends their green ethos to their London head office which is entirely powered by solar energy. With their commitment to practicing what they preach, along with their large fleet of ultra-low emission and electric vehicles, Green Courier certainly secure a place on our list.
Gnewt
Gnewt assert that they are London’s largest fully electric courier fleet and have, as such, reduced CO2 emissions by around 67% per parcel. This is especially notable given Gnewt’s partnership with juggernaut fashion retailer ASOS, in which they provide a last mile emission-free delivery service to London-based ASOS customers. This service supports ASOS’s objective to become one of the first retailers to guarantee green delivery.
When these customers get their packages delivered, they also receive a notification highlighting that it was delivered specifically by an electric vehicle in Gnewt’s fleet, thereby further spreading the awareness of electric courier services.
Figures from the six-month period between September 2018 and February 2019 proudly promote that Gnewt helped ASOS to save over 78 tonnes of carbon emissions from deliveries. With further partnerships between green couriers like Gnewt and large online retailers such as ASOS, potentially thousands of tonnes of carbon emissions could be saved each year in the UK.
This is the unique advantage of green couriers: positive impacts on the environment while still providing the courier services that the public has come to expect.
DPD
Out of the ‘big name’ courier companies, DPD are among the best regarding their commitment to providing more environmentally sustainable delivery services. They claim to be building the largest all-electric delivery fleet in the UK, with aims to expand their fleet of 139 electric vehicles on the road in 2019 to 600 vehicles in 2020. This would equate to around 10% of their overall fleet providing emission-free deliveries in UK cities.
To track their progress, DPD even have a live green statistics tracker publicly available on their website, which, as of March 2020, declares that they have 318 electric courier vehicles on the road.
DPD’s ultimate aim is to become a 100% electric courier service delivering more packages in fewer, larger vehicles. Like Gnewt, DPD also provide customers with notifications that their parcels have been delivered using an all-electric vehicle. This transparency, along with their commendable aims for their environmental impact, commitment to 100% recyclable packaging and ongoing development of an all-electric micro depot network strategy, all gain DPD a spot on our green couriers list.
WEGO Couriers
Established in Nottingham in 1998. WEGO Couriers serve the Midlands and London with ultra-low emission vehicles, including electric vehicles and cargo bikes. With an aim to help reduce harmful traffic emissions in city centres and improve air quality, WEGO also offer a noteworthy courier service that utilises secure storage on highspeed intercity trains to provide deliveries touted as faster and greener than traditional road-based couriers.
For businesses, this kind of rapid same-or-next-day delivery could prove vital to maintaining certain operations. To this end, WEGO also offer a range of dedicated Medical Courier Services to ensure that hospitals, GP surgeries, pharmacies and care homes can get the supplies and documents that they need in a secure and cost-effective manner. This efficient business-friendly approach while still enforcing a heavy eco-friendly policy warrants WEGO the attention of any businesses between the Midlands and the South West that are looking to embrace green courier services.
These are just some examples of the green courier services now emerging as major players in the UK. In the uncertain climate landscape yet to come, it’s easy to see why they are being embraced. Whether or not your courier business is adapting to the eco-friendly revolution, it’s important for your couriers to be insured. Protect both the environment and your couriers by seeing how Commercial Vehicle Direct’s courier insurance brokering services can help you today.
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