Some 2,600 post boxes across the country can now take small parcels

SOME 2,600 POST boxes across the country will be able to accept small parcels for postage.

An Post launched ‘Postbox Drop-off’ on Monday, calling it a “handy way” of sending postage-paid small parcels.

This is done by simply checking in their parcel via the An Post app and confirming the posting location.

An Post said the new scheme is ideal for “small, light shopping returns, gift sending or smaller items sold on marketplaces” being sent to a buyer with pre-paid postage labels.

It used the example of small books or single items of clothing – including unwanted online shopping – as products that should easily fit into its postboxes.

The company has promised that “urban and rural locations in every county” will have participating postboxes, with the ‘drop-off’ network covering about half of An Post’s 5,300 postboxes.

It’s also a way of giving old post boxes a “new lease of life”, according to An Post.

Fergal Leamy, chief executive of An Post, said that the company is trying to respond to the boom in online shopping.

“E-commerce is changing how people shop and send, and we want An Post to be at the forefront of that change. By reimagining an iconic part of our national infrastructure for the digital age, we can make life easier for customers while creating new opportunities for growth”, Leamy said.

You can find more details and a step-by-step video guide at: anpost.com/dropoff.