Package not delivered and no communication

On Thursday, 04 December, I booked an overnight shipment with The Courier Guy from Cape Town to Rustenburg. The driver collected the parcel the same day, and I assumed it was delivered the following day.

However, on 09 December, the consignee informed me that she had not received anything. When I checked the tracking, I saw the parcel had been sitting at the Rustenburg hub since 05 December.

When I called The Courier Guy, I was told the parcel was not delivered because my account was “in arrears.” This makes no sense, as I always load the exact amount needed per shipment and have used The Courier Guy for over 2 years without ever needing to keep a balance. Not once was I contacted to advise that delivery would not take place.

I later found an email saying my account needed to be settled, which I assumed was spam because this has never app**** to me before. Regardless, I paid for a service that was not provided, and my client was left waiting for days.

Under the Consumer Protection Act (Section 54), I have the right to timely and quality service. Paying for overnight delivery and not receiving it — with no communication — is a clear failure to deliver the service as paid for.