Parcel delivery service Yamato set to hike delivery rates from Oct. 1

Yamato Holdings Co., the nation’s leading door-to-door parcel delivery provider, has announced that it will increase basic shipping fees for its door-to-door parcel delivery service from Oct. 1.

It will be Yamato’s first rate hike in 27 years in a move triggered by a serious staff shortage and surge in online shopping in the country, the firm said Friday.

Yamato had previously said it would raise the shipping fees by the end of September. It decided on the new date as it is easier for individual customers to remember.

The move came in response to pressure after it was revealed last year that many of Yamato’s truck drivers were forced to work overtime without pay, prompting the company to retroactively pay ¥19 billion in unpaid wages to the drivers and other workers by July.

Yamato Transport Co., the holding company’s primary operating unit, will hike parcel delivery rates by up to ¥180 depending on package size.

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