what3words ao partnership

Frustrated delivery drivers struggling to find the exact address for a drop-off could become a thing of the past after an online retailer began working with innovative grid location experts what3words.

AO.com is rolling out the technology, which divides the world into a grid of 3m squares, each with a unique word and which can pinpoint a person’s location.

All its drivers will have access to the app and its customers will be able to share their three-word location for deliveries.

What3words, which is also used by the emergency services, said nearly 46 million people in the UK have an address that does not lead directly to the door of their home or business property and using a traditional street address will only take the driver to the precise front door for 30% of houses.

Dave Ashwell, MD of AO Logistics, said: “It can be difficult for our drivers to find certain addresses, due to duplicated road names, the UK’s many unnumbered houses and single postcodes covering extensive rural areas.”

Chris Sheldrick, co-founder and chief executive of what3words, said: “I grew up in a rural part of Hertfordshire, and constantly felt the frustrations of poor addressing. I’d have to flag down delivery drivers who drove past our house, and as we shared a postcode with our neighbours, spent my childhood running their parcels over to them."

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