Document Delivery Process

EDBOK Guide

What is the Document Delivery Process?

The postal service is a unique entity. It is an independent agency within every country that is charged with the secure delivery of private and personalized information to every known postal address within the country. Every nation has a postal service, many of which are bound by the rules of the Universal Postal Union. The UPU’s role is to allow the speedy delivery of mail both inside member post offices and between them. It also develops standards for postal delivery such as the Four State Barcode,

Postal Law

Both statutory and common law gives the post a special status under the law and expects of it certain responsibilities.

Mail Box Rule

Whether it is called the mailbox rule, post box rule, post office rule, or simply the postal rule, there is a presumptive rule in most countries that is a part of the legal rules of evidence. Courts presume that a document placed into the postal system will be presented to the intended recipient. The issuer of the document only has to provide proof of a chain of custody from the beginning of the creation process through to the posting of the document at the post office.

More recent citations require proof that the posted document has the correct address and adequate postage. If these criteria are met, it is presumed that the document has been delivered and the onus is on the recipient to prove that it wasn’t.

The second part of the rule is that mail with the correct address and postage cannot be returned to the sender by the post office, even if requested. Once the mail has been posted, it is gone.

Right of Way

“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.”

The post office has the right of way to any legal postal address. This means that no one can stop a postal employee or vehicle from delivering mail. The right of way rule also means that no other government agency (or other 3rd parties) can interfere with, hold, or divert mailed documents, except under court order. The post office is obligated to deliver it only to the addressee or their authorized agent. Also implied is that no one, other than the addressee or their agent, has the right to open the mail that has been delivered.

Both the Mail Box Rule and the Right of Way doctrine ensure mailers a secure, efficient, legally accepted way to present documents to the recipient that is significantly less expensive than any alternative form of physical delivery.

Mail Fraud

Most countries classify mail fraud under more general fraud laws; however, in the USA mail fraud is an explicit crime. Most legal jurisdictions will more readily recognize intent if a crime is committed via a posted document. Most postal authorities have the right to refuse mail that they suspect of being misleading.

History of Mail and Postal Organizations

Postal agencies have existed for millennia, with examples of mail pieces dating back 2,500 years. Most, however, were couriers of government documents. Cursus Publicus, the Roman postal system, was the first independent postal service that carried documents for both government and private citizens. Its rules form the basis for both the Mail Box and Right of Way rules.

Prior to the modern Post Office, with postage paid by the originator and universal delivery, postage was paid by the recipient. The world’s first pre-paid stamped letter sheets were introduced in Australia in 1838, followed by the introduction of adhesive postage stamps in the UK in 1840.

With the migration to postage being required up-front, the amount of uncollected, unpaid mail was removed from the delivery system, dramatically lowering the cost of delivery. For example, in the 1840s the postage cost of a document sent from New York City to Buffalo dropped from 25¢ to 1¢.

Business Mail Preparation Requirements & Costs

Although the specifics vary, most countries have requirements that a mail piece must meet to ensure that it gets posted (or mailed or lodged) as business mail to ensure that the best postage discounts are available. If the specific requirements are not followed, it impacts the postal rate for the mailing.

The discount structures in place for most countries are to make things easier or cheaper for the post office. Understanding a particular country’s requirements for postal discounting is very important. Typically these requirements include sorting and barcoding, as well as some form of grouping or batching. These requirements are designed to cut out certain processes or to minimize human interaction with the mail where possible.

Postal sorting is typically based on the postal code or the ZIP code as appropriate, which designates a smaller geographic area, such as a suburb or town. This helps the post office by grouping the mail so that it can be more easily distributed in bulk, closer to the point of final delivery.

Regardless of whether you mail a letter to someone in the next suburb, another state, or another country, it must go to a centralized distribution center to be sorted. Each item is then forwarded to another distribution center, or to the appropriate post office or sorting center.

In a Big Country

In geographically large countries, the logistical costs involved in delivering a piece of mail next door or to the other side of the country are very different. Some may involve only road transport; however, some may require air travel. Some countries deliver by helicopter, dog sled, and boat. Most countries amortize the logistical cost of delivery and have a single cost within the country regardless of distance. In other countries, there is a user pays system, where the postage rate changes based on distance.

Some countries, like Canada, offer virtually no discount. However in Brazil, because approximately 85% of the business mail for over 200 million people is generated from in and around 3 cities in the southeast part of the country, they have different rates for within-state (local), bordering state (regional), or elsewhere (national). There are 26 states and 1 federal district in Brazil.

Another example is Australia. Although the difference in price is not as proportionally different as Brazil, business mail sent in bulk within the same state is about 3% cheaper when compared to mailing to other states. However, that is only if it is sorted into groups of 300 items going to the same distribution center. In Australia, this is called a direct tray. For all items going to a distribution center that do not fit into a direct tray of 300, regardless of destination (same or another state), even if correctly sorted and barcoded, the postage rate may be 7 to 17% more expensive.

Size, Shape, and Weight

a certain quantity or certain weight of mail. Looking at an individual mail piece you may not think it matters that much whether it is 50g (~1.7 oz) or 200g (~7 oz), however, when we look at 1,000 similar pieces, the difference of 150g is now 150kg (~330 lb). If we now look at 100,000 pieces, then the difference in weight is now 15 tons (~33,000 lb). Size, shape, and weight requirements can drastically alter the postage amount required to deliver a piece of mail.

Here is a table of information from Australia Post about the different sizes and weights appropriate to different mail classes.

	Small	Small Plus	Medium	Large
Max. Weight	125g	125g	250g	500g
Min. Size	88 x 138mm	88 x 138mm
Max. Size	130 x 240mm	162 x 240mm	180 x 260mm	260 x 360mm
Max. Thickness	5mm	5mm	20mm	20mm
Shape	Oblong	Oblong	Rectangular	Rectangular
Common Examples	DL (110 x 220 mm) C6 (114 x 162 mm)	C5 (162 x 229 mm)	B5 (176 x 250 mm)	B6/C4 (125 x 324mm) C4 (229 x  324mm) B4 (250 x 353mm)

Square articles are permitted in the Medium and Large size categories but are not permitted in the Small and Small Plus size categories.

In some countries, the weight of the smallest mail piece, with the smallest postage rate, may not exceed 50g (~1.7 oz.), with some as low as 30g (~1 oz.).

Article Type

Most business mail is an envelope containing a document, either:

• plain faced with addressing details directly applied, or
• window-faced where the addressing details are visible through a clear plastic window in the front of the envelope.

The document itself could also be the address piece, in one of these formats:

• A self-mailer: Where the document is folded and glued to enclose the information being mailed.
• A postcard: Where the document is a single piece of printed card of a size and shape appropriate to the message.
• Plastic wrapped: Plastic wrapping of articles can provide an alternative to envelopes. Artwork and delivery address details can be printed on the document itself, or a sheet of paper called a flysheet which is visible through the plastic wrapping. Plastic wrapping may have adverse effects on the ability to lodge mail at a specific postal discounted rate.

Base Stock for Envelopes

The paper or plastic base stock used to create envelopes is important to keep in mind and typically must meet minimum country-specific criteria.

Each country has different requirements for the color of envelopes, postcards, or other articles. The reason for color requirements for envelopes is usually because of the machinery that is used to process the mail. Choosing light or pastel-colored envelopes is usually preferable to dark, solid colors, but checking local postal rules is always advised..

Article Flexibility

Business mail must be reasonably flexible to ensure that it can be processed through high-speed letter-sorting equipment.

Article Layout

Each country has similar, yet different, requirements around the placement of certain pieces of information. In addition, there are areas that must be clear of information called quiet zones.

Addressing business mail usually consists of different zones with different requirements; typically they are referred to as:

• Return Address Zone
• Postage Zone
• Delivery Address Zone
• Postal Barcode

Return Address Zone

The position and dimensions of the Return Address Zone are not as restrictive as those of other zones. In most countries, the return address is located either in the top left on the front or at the top on the back of the mail piece.

When printed on the front, the dimensions and size of the zone are taken from the top left-hand corner of the mail piece. When printed on the back, typically the return address must reside within a certain area from the top of the mail piece.

The return address must be legible to the naked eye, but must also be small enough not to be mistaken for the actual address by a person or machine. Typically the return address is printed in a font no larger than 8pt and usually not in a bold font.

Postal Zone

For business mail, the postage zone contains postage indicia of one of the following types:

• Postage Paid imprint,
• postage meter impression, and
• Custom or personalized imprint or indicia.

The position and dimensions of the indicia are restricted. In most cases globally, postage indicia are located in the top right of the front of the mail piece, and the dimensions and size of the zone are taken from the top right-hand corner.

Delivery Address Zone

The Address Zone is typically the largest zone. Usually, a defined maximum size is given (based on reading equipment) and its position is usually determined by quiet zones on both sides of the zone and also to the bottom edge of the envelope. These quiet zones are sometimes used by mail processing machines to mark ends off batches or a sort group, etc.

The Delivery Address Zone can be larger for non-standard-sized business mail, as the pieces typically do not go through the same high-speed mail processing machines.

The skew of the position of the address zone varies between countries; it is typically ±5 degrees to – 15 degrees from parallel.

Each country’s postal authority has similar but different requirements for the layout of the delivery address within the zone. For example, the requirements for domestic (within the country) mail in Australia are:

• left justified,
• bottom line contains the locality (suburb), the state or territory, and the postal code,
• second to last line contains the number and name of the street or thoroughfare or post office box or bag number,
• other address lines, such as a person and/or business name, are classified as simply additional address information which is placed above the last two lines of the address and not below, alongside or within these lines, and
• the postal barcode is then placed above the address block within the delivery address zone.

For business mail, the delivery address zone should be positioned parallel to the long edge of the mail piece. For non-standard mail, the delivery address zone should be positioned parallel to an edge of the mail piece, either portrait or landscape.

Different countries also have different font and font size requirements.

Using Australia as an example again, any font can be used for the delivery address as long as it is clearly readable, preferably in 12-point size. It is also strongly recommended that print characters do not overlap. While attributes such as italics, bolding, shadowing, or underlining are permitted, their use should be avoided. Dark colors such as black, dark blue, and dark green are preferred. Red, orange, and yellow inks should not be used.

Other countries may specify a typeface or family of fonts that are required, and in most countries, there are markings that are not permitted on the front of a mail piece, such as fluorescent ink or designs that may be mistaken for postage stamps, franking impressions, other indicia, or service labels. Terms that look like a post office service, such as priority mail or express mail are not permitted.

Logos, advertising content, and other printing may be added on the front and back of mail pieces, however when allowed, they can only be used if it does not obscure the inscriptions in the postage zone, return address zone, and delivery address zone.

Although it is technically part of the Delivery Address Zone, the postal barcode typically has its own print, size, positioning, and quiet zone requirements.

Postal Barcode

A postal barcode is a machine-readable representation of information, usually printed as parallel lines, that improves the speed and accuracy of processing mail. It helps in sorting the mail faster as its content is typically encoded delivery, routing, and/or tracking information. The postal barcode can also be used to provide information to mailers, either prior to lodgment or for the management of returned mail.

Four State Barcode (4SB) is the de facto standard for postal tracking. This barcode consists of a series of vertical bars, each representing one of four possible states.

Figure 1 - Four State Barcode

The Four State Barcode is used as a postal code by:

• Australia Post
• USA for the USPS IMB
• Canada Post
• Royal Mail in the UK
• Japan
• Singapore

Interleaved 2 of 5 is another barcode format. Often called “2 of 5” it is used as a postal barcode by Deutsche Post in Germany and Italian Post.

The Universal Postal Union (UPU) has a number of standards covering mail and addressing requirements; two that are of interest:

S18e Part E provides a specification of the encoding of UPU ID-tags using 4SB symbology that may be applied to the front side of small letters.

S19d Part D deals with the definition of areas that are, or can be, used for the printing of addresses and customer-applied barcodes which are printed together with the delivery address.

Additional information on these and others can be found in the UPU standards catalog on their website at www.upu.int.

Change of Address Register

Many countries have a National Change of Address (NCOA) register. This is usually available to mailers to help ensure maximum accuracy for delivery of mail. Any discrepancies are typically reported back to the document generator/mail owner rather than altering the actual mail piece.

Lodging Mail

Prior to submission or lodgment to the post office, some form of report must be completed, such as a statement of mailing or manifest. In countries where it is appropriate, most postal sorting products generate these already populated forms and today they are also usually available for electronic submission.

Details on a manifest report include quantity, special handling items, international mail, and items with special distribution requirements.

Quality

To qualify for different postage rates and discounts, most countries require mail to be submitted or lodged in a single delivery grouping of a certain quantity. That quantity may be as low as 300 (eg. Australia) or up to 5000 or more, depending on the country and the postage rate desired.

There is also a common requirement that s specific percentage of the delivery grouping must be readable by the mail processing equipment and/or have a correctly formed and readable postal barcode.

Special Handling

Not all mail in a single production run is able to go through as standard business. Special handling may be required for physically larger mail pieces or pieces that require different packaging. This packaging may be a gusseted envelope, a courier envelope, shrink wrap, or maybe even a box or carton. These special items usually require manual handling (and sometimes addressing). They often require a separate submission to the post office or a different delivery method (eg. courier).

International Mail

International Mail must be included separately on the lodgment or manifest report. These items may need to be packaged/bundled separately than those for national delivery and may need to be handled by an international mail consolidator.

Special Handling

Most countries have a special handling category that covers items with special distribution requirements. These requirements may cover:

• bundling items to be sent to a branch or a broker,
• different sorts,
• special bundles may require rubber bands or special envelopes,
• items too big for machine inserting and that must be manually handled, and
• special inserts or no inserts at all.

Because these items are typically handled manually outside the normal production process, privacy needs should be considered when looking at the environment in which they are being processed. These items may not get mailed individually with the post office as they may need to be delivered to an address that is different from the actual delivery address on any of the mail pieces. For example, property levy notices are delivered to a single property management company rather than to the individual property owners. This may mean a different sorting requirement and a different split of production files.

If the items are significantly larger than normal post they may go with a courier or through the standard post office parcel service. In this case, a separate system needs to be in place to identify the distribution method and address, as well as the creation of postage/ shipping labels or courier slips, and any separate tracking requirements.

Matching Documents from Different Sources before Mailing

A special area of Special Handling is when different personalized items need to be produced in separate processes and matched to be mailed together.

An example is credit or other cards and their carrier letters (or simply carriers). There are a variety of plastic card matching systems around the world from a variety of vendors.  To effectively and accurately automate this process it can’t simply rely on items being produced in the same sort order. While this helps, machinery-based matching must occur, too. The most common way is by a barcode printed on the carrier, either a linear or a matrix barcode, and having the cards in a queue or a physical buffer that is read and matched to the carrier to which they are glued or tipped.

A similar process is often used for matching documents that have come from two separate systems, such as a personalized document run being matched with copies or scans of completed application forms.

Small Volumes

In the world of business mail production, one of the most overlooked areas is small-quantity jobs. Although the main statement run or runs may make up 90% of the volume, the last 10% of the volume may be from 90% of the individual jobs to be run.

These smaller-volume jobs are often overlooked in the requirements-gathering stages of big projects. Some simply include their quantities in the calculations of the main runs, however, the logistics involved may mean that these documents could cost 10 times or more than the price of a standard statement for example.

When gathering requirements for large projects, make sure that all document types and their processes are completely understood and documented. Make sure that the right people are asked the right questions, which may mean asking in a different department than the main document type (eg. operations instead of marketing).

One area of importance is the impact that these large numbers of small-quantity jobs may have on Service Level Agreements (SLAs). Once understood and documented, they should be designed and an appropriate test platform built to ensure that all processes and times are known.