Royal Mail Group’s express parcels business, Parcelforce Worldwide, is extending its tracked global priority return service to retailers sending items to Australia.

Australia is the first country outside the EU to benefit from this express returns service.

The service makes it easier for UK online retailers to provide international shoppers with a trackable return service for unwanted items, improving customers’ overall buying experience. The service uses established international postal networks and offers consumers high levels of choice, convenience, and control as it is accessible through around 4,000 outlets in Australia and includes end-to-end tracking.

Research from Royal Mail’s annual survey on the preferences and habits of online shoppers found that one in three Australian shoppers had purchased an item via a UK website in the last three months.

Items posted from Australia using Parcelforce Worldwide’s return service will arrive in the UK within three to four days.

Australia is one of the most popular international shipping destinations for Parcelforce Worldwide customers.  Australia’s ecommerce market has grown rapidly over the past five years.  It is the fifth largest economy in the Asia-Pacific region, and the twelfth largest economy in the world.  Australia’s citizens are also among the world’s top five wealthiest.

“We are pleased to be extending our tracked return service from Australia,” said Gary Simpson, Managing Director of Parcelforce Worldwide. “Our research shows that online shopping in Australia is on the up. More than half of online, shoppers say they shop more on the internet than before. Our global priority return service provides international shoppers with an improved returns experience and makes UK online retailers a much more attractive proposition.”

The extension of the global priority return service from Australia is part of Royal Mail Group’s strategy to grow its parcel businesses in the UK and overseas.

In January 2015, Parcelforce Worldwide launched a new interactive service, Parcelforce Select, to improve customer’s control of their parcel delivery by providing more delivery options.

The global priority return service is currently available to customers in 17 European countries including Germany, France, Spain, and the Republic of Ireland.