Earth has 510,000,000KM² of surface ground, with about 155,000,000KM² inhabited by mankind. Even though delivery is very well established, there are still many places in the world that are not very well connected to the cities or delivery hubs. Places that are not well commuted, those are what we usually know them as remote areas.

Remote Areas

A remote area as defined by DHL is known to be an address that has the absence of a conventional part of an address (Post code, suburbs/town name) or simply an address that is difficult to serve.

More commonly these addresses are usually out of the conventional routes couriers take when they make their delivery rounds.

How does it affect you?

Generally speaking, you are likely not situated in a remote area. But if you do, you can be prepared to front an additional Remote Area Delivery Fee of SGD 45. The fee is paid to courier companies to ensure the delivery will not be Returned to Origin just because of a remote area restrictions.

How can I check if my address is situated in a remote area?

There are many services that you can search online if your address is situated in a remote area. However, it is also important to note that remote area changes overtime due to the demand shifts and route changes taken by the respective delivery companies (DHL, Fedex, UPS and many more).

One of such services is Trackingmore’s checker. It is thus far, one of the more reliable and updated sources from major delivery companies published information on remote areas.

My address is in a remote delivery area, what can I do to avoid the RAD fees?

Well, there are a few ways:

1. Using a delivery address that isn’t in a remote delivery area – This can mean delivering to a friend’s or relative’s address. Or in some extreme cases, you can consider a PO box/Post Lockers that are in a non-remote area.
2. Consolidate your order with a local forwarder in a non-remote area, and have them deliver to you after a period of time.

How will I be charged for RAD?

We have implemented a system to check your address to see if it’s within the range of major delivery companies. Should your address fall under the remote delivery areas, we will total your checkout value with the RAD fees.

However, there are times where such addresses are missed by our beta systems. Hence, in such cases, we would contact you (a.k.a. The customer) to see how we can resolve the issue.

Remote addresses hardly would have options to avoid the fees. Hence, it is important if you’re based in a remote location to source for a secondary address that can avoid the fees altogether.