Updates regarding Australia Post deliveries to and from Western Australia
Australia Post customers should be aware that there will be delays shipping in and out of Western Australia at the moment, and some services have levies applied.
The information below summarises the reasons for this, and affected services and disruptions.
Extreme weather and flooding have caused significant damage and closure of rail lines and major roads in Western Australia. This is continuing to disrupt and impact transport infrastructure and supply chains to and from Western Australia.
The Australian Government’s National Emergency Management Agency has advised that while the transport system is slowly recovering, the current supply chain disruptions are likely to be ongoing until at least Christmas.
We want to keep you informed about what this means for you and our customers as we prepare for the upcoming sales events.
What’s changing?
Introduction of a WA Emergency Service: With key road and rail transport arrangements into and out of Western Australia significantly disrupted or unavailable, Australia Post declared an emergency ‘force majeure’ event. This means the acceptance and delivery of Parcel Post (eParcel) and StarTrack Road Express consignments under the terms and conditions of customers’ existing agreements are unfortunately suspended and cannot be offered in the short term.
For eParcel and StarTrack Express Customers
Until these critical lanes can resume efficiently, Australia Post have stood up a replacement “WA Emergency Service” option that includes an additional temporary levy to assist with the significant increase in road transport costs into and out of Western Australia. This will help ensure they can continue to deliver for customers. The WA Emergency Service terms are outlined below and apply until the force majeure events come to an end.
- The WA Emergency Service will incur an additional emergency measure cost of 40% (ex GST) of the freight charges currently set out in customers’ agreements.
- The WA Emergency Service fee is temporary and will apply to all articles lodged for interstate delivery into, or from, Western Australia.
The WA Emergency Service came into effect for any parcels lodged and/or manifested from Monday, 28 November 2022. The fee will appear on customer invoices and will be payable in line with customers’ existing arrangements.
Please note: The total cost of shipping, included the WA Emergency Service levy, will not be reflected in APIs or Web UIs (Parcel Send, My StarTrack Online, eParcel) or apps like Readytoship.com.au
For MyPost Business Customers
The WA Emergency Service levy will not be applicable to MyPost Business customers.
There is currently no change to our Express Post and StarTrack Premium services.
Changes to pre-Christmas final lodgement dates for deliveries to and from WA: Given this ongoing situation and the current delays, Australia post have brought forward their recommended pre-Christmas final lodgement dates for Parcel Post deliveries for Business and Government customers by one week.
The new dates are as follows:
- Deliveries to WA from the east coast of Australia:
lodgement by 8 December. - Deliveries to NSW from WA:
lodgement by 6 December. - Deliveries to VIC and QLD from WA:
lodgement by 5 December.
For StarTrack Road Express services, it is recommended customers continue to review the StarTrack transit grid, although delays may be experienced for deliveries to and from WA. Customers are recommended to lodge their freight as early as possible.
Express Post and StarTrack Premium services are currently unaffected, and customers who need to send items to Western Australia urgently are encouraged to consider these options. However, as more customers opt to use these, we may see a delay on these lanes and will advise should there be any change.
If customers have any questions regarding these changes, please contact your Australia Post account manager, or contact Australia Post on 13 11 18, 8am – 6pm (local time).
And lastly, from Australia Post : “Despite these external challenges, we want to assure you that we are doing all we can to continue to deliver for you and explore all available options to keep items moving. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work through these disruptions together and we will continue to keep you updated as the situation evolves.”