A Royal Mail question...

[TSR2]

Having moving house in Novemeber we had some funnies with the post. To be fair we didn't have a doorbell until just after Christmas, and we thought that was the nub of the problem when it came to delivering anything that wouldn't fit through the letterbox. However we kept getting the "sorry you were out" cards through the door, even though Lucy is at home almost every day. We then had to wait 48 hours and drive down to our local sorting office where more often than not there would be the one item that wouldn't fit and any other letters etc that were for our address bundled together.

Today Lucy was in the living room and thought she heard someone at the door, and when she went to look the postie was walking away having put a "sorry you were out" card through the door. When she asked if she could have the package a rather sheepish looking postie said, I don't have it, its at the sorting office your never in. She pointed out that she is an at home Mum (who doesn't drive) so is rarely out. Given that someone has paid for the royal mail to deliver the package I thought this was bang out of order. To my mind the postie shouldn't be selecting which post he doesn't even take with him, but why the hell would the postie be carrying any packages that won't fit through a letter box when they should be being delivered by van.

Needless to say I'm verry p155ed of with RM, but I think both the postie and the organisation have screwed us over. Does anyone know if this is some sort of RM policy?

[Tomliner]

Hi Ben.Not come across this one before.Maybe Rick will have some info.Is there any relevant info on RM's website? EricT

[Garry Russell]

It would be different if it was a "you have post to be collected card"

But to give you a card that says you were out when you were not is out of order no matter what excuses they say... the card is clear enough and they seem to be trying it on.

They have been paid to deliver it and so they should. If you are not there then fair enough, but clearly as it is, they are not doing what they have been paid to do and as such are in breach of contract.

[Molyned]

My wife got fed up with running after the postie but a phone call to the local Royal Mail office soon sorted a similar problem here - we got a letter of apology and the postie said later that he had been reminded of the correct way to do things, ie. push letters through the letter box, not throw them in the wet porch.
HTh Cheers
Dave M(oly)
.

[Rick Piper]

Hi Guys

I'm not the one to ask.

I left because of the total BS way the company is run like it's still 1955 but also where every foreign worker is never challenged to actually work as the management are too scared of Racial or PC cases.
It basically needs all of it's managment removed and replaced with people that are willing to work for a living.

Royal Mail works on a "chain of blame" system rather than a "chain of command" which i am used to.

i really don't want to think about it as i'm scarred for life by what could so easily be a really efficient company apart from idiots in charge

Regards
Ricik

[DaveB]

However we kept getting the "sorry you were out" cards through the door, even though Lucy is at home almost every day.

That's standard here too and we're NEVER out. Bridon Bear reckons the postie must beat on his door with a sponge too so you're not alone I've chased after our 'olympic' post lady before with a 'sorry you were out' card and on one occassion, she said she didn't have the package. Now.. I guess it's possible that a-n-other postie tried to deliver (quietly) and just shoved the card through the letter box where it sat unnoticed until the 'real' postie dropped the mail on top of it. I dunno to be honest.. they seem to operate in mysterious ways

ATB
DaveB

[TSR2]

Well... we went to the collection office tonight to pick up the packet. He had ticked "to be signed for" but hadn't attached the barcode thing so there is no way we could have arranged redelivery (hes done that before too.)

Anyway, the chap manning the collection desk at the sorting office pointed out that we needed to wait 24hrs, so we explained that this was a regular occurance and that when the postie had been corned today hed said he hadn't bother taking it as it was heavy.

The guy searched the office and couldn't find it and was very appologetic and filled in an incident report thingy.

then just as we were getting into the car he came running out having found it in the half of the office which was for the Hebburn area (we are in the Jarrow area). It seems he found it along with several other items our postie was supposed to deliver today, none of which had had their barcode sticker removed and put on the card the had gone through the other victims doors. This was so if anyone phoned to complian, they couldn't track the items and he couldn't be blaimed. I think someone is going to get a boot up his arse tomorrow morning.

[DaveB]

Thank goodness for a successful conclusion mate

Before the 'recent' mail shake-up (if I post a letter in my letter box to Goring (Goring being down the road), it will go to Goring then to Swindon and back to the address in Goring!!) we used to have a sorting office.. in Goring on t'other side of the river as it happens.. and while they still 'sort', the office is no longer open to the general public. Any mail that needs to be signed for goes back down the road to Goring.. then, to Pangbourne (3 miles away) where the little sorting office is still 'officially' open Last time I had the 'Sorry you weren't in' card.. I thought I'd try the Goring sorting office on the off chance a postie was in there and bless my soul, there was one there and I got the package without having to wait until either 3PM that day or next day.
The bottom line is, there are good posties and bad ones as in all walks of life. Surprising just how annoying a bad one can be!

ATB
DaveB

[Felixx62]

This was featured on the BBC "Watchdog" programme a few months ago, where some Royal Mail posties were leaving these "sorry you were out cards" in peoples letter boxes. It turned out some of the parcels had never even left the sorting office to be delivered. Royal Mail were going to investigate the problem ??

[ianhind]

I have had that happen to me at least once. I work from home and can see the postie arrive. The explanation on one occasion was that they left the card because it was too heavy for the postie to carry! So what are those red vans for? Should have asked for a refund but that would have got me nowhere.

Is it surprising that the likes of UK Mail/Home Delivery Network and the couriers DHL/UPS have made such inroads into the parcel business?