Courier services

• Courier service


  Service which delivers mail, packages, parcels messages etc. to the recipient
• Courier services


  • Provided by individuals and companies
  • Use sea, land and air transport to get items to their destination
• Courier services


  • Cost more
  • Offer fast delivery times
  • Offer reliability
  • Offer secure deliveries
  • Offer tracking of items
  • Offer specialisation
• Fast delivery times


  Some-day, overnight or 24 hours delivery, depending on distance and location
• Reliability


  Items are safely delivered within specified time frames
• Secure deliveries


  Valuables are insured so that owners are compensated if items are lost or damaged
• Tracking of items


  A code is assigned to each item and there is a record of where the item is at any point in time. Some courier services enable owners to use the internet to track their items.
• Specialisation


  Carrying bulky items, perishables such as flowers or live animals
• Local couriers


  • Can quickly deliver correspondence within a city or country
  • Often use motorcycles to quickly navigate streets where there is traffic congestion
• Large organisations


  Produce a large volume of correspondence daily, some of it sensitive material that must be delivered securely
• Overseas couriers


  • Deliver items within the Caribbean region within 24 to 48 hours
  • Use dedicated aircraft to swiftly transport items to their destinations
• International courier companies


  • FedEx
  • DHL worldwide Express
  • Fast track Courier Inc.
  • United Parcel Services (UPS)
  • international Bonded Couriers (IBC)
  • LIAT Quick PACK
• Postal services


  • May operate either as a governmental department or as a commercial agency
  • Operate under the direction of the Universal Postal Union
  • Now offer courier and skybox services in addition to delivering mail
• Skybox


  Service that allows persons outside the USA to have purchases delivered to an address in that country, then sent by courier to the purchaser's home address
• Classification of mail


  • First class
  • Priority mail
  • Second Class/non-priority mail
  • Standard mail
  • Air mail
  • Surface Mail
• First class


  Used for letters, printed papers, postcards and small packets. Allows a next day delivery for local mail and first available dispatch for overseas mail.
• Priority mail


  Encompasses letters, printed papers, postcards and small packets. Enables the sender to send multiple items at one cost. Allows a next day delivery for local mail and first available dispatch for foreign mail.
• Second Class/non-priority mail


  Includes periodicals, magazines and newspapers. Reduced rates are available when speed of delivery is not important.
• Standard mail


  Some mail can qualify for reduced postage rate. The lowest postage rates are available if you sort and automate the addresses on your mailing list. Has longer delivery time than first-class.
• Air mail


  Letter post items conveyed by air, divided into two main categories: LC items (letters, aerogrammes and postcards) and AO (all other items: printed papers, literature for the blind and small packets).
• Surface Mail


  Mail that is transported over land and sea rather than by air. Much slower than air mail.
• Registered mail


  Used when the item is considered valuable and requires special handling and delivery. Secured and monitored from the point of mailing to the point of delivery. Given a routing number and each person who handles the item must sign before it is handed over. Insured against theft, loss or damage.
• Express delivery


  Ensures that the items is handled before all other classes of mail. Facilitates a quick dispatch as a priority item. However, at the destination country, it is not treated with the same urgency.
• Recorded delivery


  Used when the sender requires evidence that an item was delivered to the recipient, such as for a legal document. The recipient must sign a receipt when the mail is delivered. A receipt is also issued to the sender.
• Poste restante


  System that allows travelers to collect mail at the post office. The post office usually holds the mail for a specified period of time, such as a month. Uncollected mail is returned to the sender.
• Money orders and postal orders

  A cheap way of sending by post. Can be cashed at all Post Offices and are accepted internationally.
• Locked Bags service


  Firms or organisations who receive large quantities of mail and who wish for added security between the Post Office and their premises may subscribe to this service. The bag must be made of string canvas and fitted with a sling or chain, a lock and two keys. One key is kept at the post office and the other at the user's place of business. The bag may also be sealed.