The shift to online shopping during the pandemic has led to record numbers of parcels being delivered and almost €1bn of revenue for delivery companies, figures show.
It comes as online retailers begin their Cyber Monday sales today in advance of the busy Christmas period.
According to ComReg figures, revenue generated by parcel delivery companies has jumped over 67% compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019 as the total number of packages delivered last year passes 161.9 million in the Republic alone.
The figures show that, in 2021, seven parcel delivery firms - An Post, DPD, DHL, Fedex, UPS, Fastway, and GLS - generated revenue of €961.9m, up 32% from €762.3m in 2020 and from €576.2m in 2019.
"Of total revenue, domestic revenue makes up a 44% share, followed by international inbound with 36% of the share and outbound making up the remaining 20%," according to the ComReg report.
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"All segments have grown since 2018 with the greatest revenue share being realised in domestic parcel delivery. However, in 2021 inbound had the biggest increase in share of revenue versus the other segments with a €99.7m increase in revenue. In comparison, the domestic increase was €79.8m, while the outbound increase was €20.1m."
According to ComReg's Parcel Data for Ireland report, since 2018 there has been a 78% increase in parcel volume for Parcel Delivery Service Providers, which was mainly driven by exceptional growth in 2020. In that year, the number of parcels delivered jumped 46% to 155.9 million, from 106.9 million in 2019. Last year, 161.9 million packages were delivered which was a 4% increase on the 155.9 million in 2020.
ComReg said that revenue generated from domestic deliveries last year totalled €420m compared to €208.9m in 2018.
Domestic volumes grew by 92% since 2018, with 89 million domestic parcels delivered in 2021.
Given the large amount of shopping expected today on Cyber Monday, gardaí are warning people to be wary of fraud and to "avoid special offers by email or pop-up ads with 'deals'."
Gardaí said people should shop only on "trusted website and auction sites", use secure payment platforms, monitor account transactions, and avoid completing purchases offsite. They also warned shoppers not to reveal personal or account information to sellers.
