New research from Descartes shows that even as more consumers have made online purchases, delivery problems still pose a substantial problem for e-commerce retailers. 

Descartes spoke to 8,000 consumers in Europe and North America about their online buying behavior over the first quarter of 2024. Of that group, 67% said that they've encountered delivery problems within the last several months. Around 63% of those consumers said they took some sort of negative action against the company responsible. That included an overall loss of trust in the delivery company, avoiding placing orders from the same retailer again, telling friends and family to avoid the retailer altogether, and making fewer online purchases in general. 

Read More: Brands Balancing Cost of Fast Delivery With High Demand

“While this study reveals the industry is achieving small, year-over-year improvements across a number of dimensions related to home delivery performance, the level of consumer dissatisfaction remains high,” Descartes EVP Chris Jones said. 

Even so, consumers appear to be more committed to e-commerce buying than ever, with 44% saying that they intend to increase their online purchasing frequency to at least once every two weeks. That's up from 34% in 2023's iteration of Descartes' survey and 32% in 2022. Consumers also said they believe they'll make nearly half of all their purchases online inside of the next year. 

When it comes to what consumers prioritized for their delivery experience, 44% said that speed is less important to them than lower costs. Another 20% said they prefer a precise delivery window to faster times.