Spill the beans... on cutting Post Office queues (revisited)

smartcat04

Took 6 small recorded delivery parcels into my local PO monday PM only to be faced by the counter staff sighing very loudly. I was tired after being on nights and felt a bit brave so asked her if there was a problem. She replied that it was because they would all have to be typed into the computer/sticker printer machine. I had put my own address stickers on the back but my Po doesn't issue the recorded stickers anymore that I used to fill in at home to save time.
Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that what the post office is there for? I wasn't asking for her to do anything above and beyond the call of duty.
Now I know we all have off days but when staff moan at us for expecting a reasonable level of polite service is it any wonder that certain PO's get better levels of custom then others.

Slimboy_Fat

zipman23 wrote: »

I'm a postman. Sure you can buy your car tax online but then you'd have to wait 3-5 working days for us to deliver it so especially for those who tend to "forget" or leave it until the last minute its the quickest option. At a Post Office you can get it there and then by showing the necessary documents (motor insurance policy etc) which you should have to hand anyway incase you have an accident.

If you regularly send items via recorded delivery like me, ask for a few more so that you can fill in the address etc before you get to the PO which saves both you and them time. That way, the only thing left to do for them apart from scanning it is to stick it on the package.

Not trying to knock the PO's but buying your car tax is so easy online, plus I got a letter with the last one stating that the law has changed so you will no longer be breaking the law if you are up to 5 days late displaying the licence as long as you have already ordered it online or over the phone.

As for Recorded Delivery, we send loads out at work and our local PO supplies us with books of these. There about the size of a haynes car manual and with about 10 per page they take a while to be used up. Stick on the label and stamps to cover the cost before you go. PO only has to scan them, ink stamp the pages in the book and throw them in the sack. So much quicker.

custardy

Slimboy_Fat wrote: »

Not trying to knock the PO's but buying your car tax is so easy online, plus I got a letter with the last one stating that the law has changed so you will no longer be breaking the law if you are up to 5 days late displaying the licence as long as you have already ordered it online or over the phone.

As for Recorded Delivery, we send loads out at work and our local PO supplies us with books of these. There about the size of a haynes car manual and with about 10 per page they take a while to be used up. Stick on the label and stamps to cover the cost before you go. PO only has to scan them, ink stamp the pages in the book and throw them in the sack. So much quicker.

a little tip for people using these books
make sure you have your address/business details on the book somewhere
these often get posted by mistake and can end up in the sorting where we have no idea who the belong to

postofficegirl

I work at a crown post office (the big ones) and the queues are known for being about 30 mins long at times. We are about to have some redundancys so please keep coming in, also the queues are getting smaller as many people are doing things like car tax online. Next month we are due for a huge refurbishment, this will be an end to the traditional queue as you will have to take a ticket on entering. A good point to this is that people doing transactions such as special delivery and passports will have priority over less profitable and more popular transactions such as cashing giros.

I get asked all the time when is best to come in but there is not a good time, if we are quiet then you are lucky, however first thing Monday and Tuesday there are loads of pensions to cash,(but more staff) 3pm and later is often when the job centre gives out the majority of the giros. Giro and benefit payments are on the rise and unfortunately are are now the main customer base. Wednesday evening are when we check all the tills and stock, although this doesn't make much difference as we are not half day closing. End of months are not as bad as they used to be but can be busy for tax and bill payments.

Tips for less waiting time is simply come in prepared:

I still people who are about 30 years old and do not know how to post a parcel! Why have they not done this before, i have no idea. Surely thay've received one in the post before. Just wrap it , have it sealed and put on the address before getting to the counter.

If your doing car tax have your certificate of insurance there, don't argue about why you don't have it as we do not break the law for aggressive people even if you have queued for 20 minutes (also that give you plenty of time to read your form which tells you what to bring)

Ebayers, if you are buying postage online, put in the right weight, if there is no price on your prepaid label and it is underpaid you will have to go home and re print and gat a refund on the first one. If you put the price on the label however you can add postage to the underpaid item.
Post and go machines are being fazed in at the mo so that will make coming in quicker too.

Many people in the queue are just asking strange random questions, we sell are own products now and are not trained as world information advisors, we do not know advise on holiday visas or how to get British nationality or how to buy a london transport pass when we are based in North of the country.

However please still come in and keep me and royal mail staff in our jobs!

cyberbob

Some good points there Thankyou


Although this bit

postofficegirl wrote: »

A good point to this is that people doing transactions such as special delivery and passports will have priority over less profitable and more popular transactions such as cashing giros.

It sounds like the less well off in our society will be penalised again. The sort of people that cash these cheques are more likely to be pensioners so they will get the but end of this

All those sort of changes do is encourage me to do more of my transactions onlne. As the idea of customer service seems to have been thrown out of the window

omshanti

If you are sending recorded delivery (aka Signed for) items, there is a very easy way to save time at the counter - amazing how much time is saved even with two or three items!

1. Get some recorded delivery labels from the PO in advance
2. Keep a note of the addresses to which you are sending items
3. Stick the recorded delivery label to the parcel and peel off one of the small parts of the label - stick this to the corresponding address (for your records)
4. When you give your parcels over at the PO tell them you already have the address noted down

This allows the teller to skip the 'find address' screens for each parcel thus saving time.

N.B. Using the online methods of paying for recorded and special deliveries will NOT save you any time as the PO clerk will still have to process your parcel in the same way as if you had brought it directly!!

slimpikins

Just read through lots of replys etc about post office q's, thought i might give you some insight as ive just retired from working behind a busy city centre counter for 30 years. (Yes you would have a miserable face as well) Lots of people queue outside post offices especially the senior citizens , so there is always a queue at opening time. 9.00am.But after that and before dinner breaks begin 11.30am its quiet.11.30 till 2.30 pm its busy as staff go to dinner, and customers arrive from offices etc.Then between 2.30pm and 4.00pm when cashing up begins its also quiet-ish, or when most staff are at the counter.Aviod Mon morns (weekend traffic) Wed afternoons(weekly cash -ups) and days before bank-holidays as the work doesnt move back it just gets shifted from the bank holiday to the days either side. Aviod month ends (Car Tax, everyone gets paid,) Get handfuls of recorded delivery slips,Certificate of posting (free sevice offering£30 compo)have them ready and completed.
Remember the Post Office is a Britsh institution that should be kept, (not the view of the Govt or the Fatcats at the top who want privatisation )
Finally realise that the staff are working under extreme pessure all the time, carrying out 150 plus transactions , being pressurised into selling credit cards, home insurance etc,while being pleasant and helpful to ALL members of the public.Be they OAP's, people with health problems, mental and physical,as well as those with wider drug issues.

postofficegirl

I work in a crown city office and everyday is very busy however a Thursday morning is the shortest queuing time. There is a ticket machine so you get z number and wait for the number to be called. It is possible to nip out to another store whilst waiting for your number but this can backfire if you mis- time. Yes local sub offices are smaller and quieter but I have found people can get alot of wrong information and end up coming to the main crown office anyway. The only way queues will bd shorter is if customers are ready and don't waste staff time at the counter. Many people do not have envelopes written or parcels wrapped and sealed, bizarre when they have queued so long. Definitely avoid the day before and after a bank holiday and end/ beginning of the month.

soolin

AS this thread is over 2 years old I think it is probably best to close it to avoid confusion

EDIT- Reopened as referred to by MSE

Whirly

Online posting is currently messed up because the Royal Mail decided that a month before Christmas would be the very best time to "upgrade" (read screw up) their on-line systems.

My tips for using the Post Office.

1. Find a local one and use it regularly - that way you get to know the busy times.
2. Use stamps or on-line posting whenever you can and use a post box (check for collection times if the letter is urgent). If it's too big for a post box, many local post offices have a place where you can leave pre-paid parcels without queueing.
3. Always assume there will be a long queue and give yourself plenty of time. If you don't (and you are anything like me) you'll find yourself more and more annoyed as the person in front decides to pay in pennies and then drops them.

Hope that helps someone.