MARKS and Spencer have put the mouse among the pigeons with the announcement of a new £750 million deal with Ocado to offer their customers online grocery ordering. There is some confusion, however, over whether this service will stretch to Scotland when it launches in September 2020.

Perhaps M&S are hedging their bets on Scottish independence, but the deal has reopened the delivery charge can of worms, prompting renewed calls for more parity from online retailers.

Richard Lochhead, SNP MSP for Moray, has long been campaigning for fairer charges and, in response to mounting concern, the Scottish Government last year launched its Fair Deliveries for All Action plan reinforcing its commitment to fair parcel deliveries for all parts of Scotland.

In a radio interview last week, Lochhead recounted the story of a constituent in Speyside asked to pay £50 extra for the delivery of a pair of hand towels that cost £5.99. Clearly, this just doesn’t wash.

Parcel delivery in general can be fraught with difficulty. I remember one particularly frantic Christmas being extremely excited to receive a mystery parcel. On opening the gift there was indeed a surprise, but not in a good way. The package contained a gift intended for my nephews which I’d sent to myself in error. Thank goodness for electronic gift vouchers.

Another year it was us on the receiving end of not receiving. My brother was wondering why we’d never said thanks for a rather splendid bottle sent our way as a Christmas gift. He eventually asked us if we had enjoyed the gift. Alas, we hadn’t taken delivery of it and no slip had been left to indicate that there was a parcel for us to pick up. My brother duly complained to the retailer and a replacement was successfully delivered.

Fast forward to spring … It’s a beautiful day in March and we’ve been tidying the garden for the first time after a long winter. We wheel out the green bin to deposit some dead leaves for recycling. On lifting the lid we discover an intriguing box at the bottom of the bin. Closer inspection reveals a rather splendid Christmas bottle.

So it had been delivered after all, but I’ve no idea how we were meant to find it. The delivery driver might have left some sort of clue. On reflection, it’s just as well it was the green bin option that the driver had gone for. If it had been the general refuse bin, it may well have been buried under rubbish bags and never been found. Oh well, no harm done. We did of course send the rather splendid bottle back to the company with a full explanation.

Meanwhile, electric car company Tesla has announced it is embracing online retail. The company is to start selling a version of its Model 3 in the US at a price of $35,000 (£26,400). To help lower the price of the environmentally friendly vehicle, the firm plans to close showrooms and is switching to an online-only sales model.

I can’t begin to imagine what the post and packaging charges will be for this, let alone the delivery costs. But if you’re not in when your new Model 3 arrives, the green bin is surely the perfect place for it.