experiences of new postal rates

apprentice_tycoon

Hi becky - it does sound as if your PO has got it wrong and I can understand you going elsewhere but if it was me I'd phone the PO customer services and report it because if he's going to do this to everyone then it's just not fair, he's overcharging either by mistake or hoping that confusion will hide a bit of sharp practice.

soolin

I like your idea about phoning Customer services AT, this is difficult enough without post office staff who obviously haven't understood the PIP training.

Soo

mah_jong

Yep, I agree with what has been said, you should have been charged large letter rates.

I would doubt that the PO concerned would have gained anything at all by overcharging, its appears to be an error by the staff.

I found that many packets were cheaper than before so there are winners and losers.

Contains_Mild_Peril

becky004 wrote:

I did complain! I was told if I'd "left the books loose in the A4 envelopes they would be a letter, but because they'd been folded and taped (to prevent damage) they were not letters but packets"!
Will try another post office tomorrow and if I get same problem my RISI days are over, will just stick to Amazon. Was over £12 to post books that would have cost £7 odd before!

I'd go to a different PO (not an option for everyone, but I live in medium-sized town with more than one PO) and put my complaint about the first PO overcharging in writing. The leaflet clearly states that if your "item" fits within the large letter dimensions and weight limit, it is posted as a large letter. It does not say, or even imply, that a "large letter" has to be a letter, and it certainly doesn't say that Large Letter envelopes shouldn't be folded! It looks like the PO may have skimped on staff training for the new system.
Today, I sent a tie in an A4 size envelope folded and taped along the long edge so I could post it as a "large letter". Packing stuff to post as cheaply as possible is going to get a lot more time-consuming.

dawn1

the parcel i posted today usualy costs 88p today it was £1.39 :sad:

Print_Screen

I just sent an N64 game in a Jiffy Bag and was charged for Packet price not large letter. The pack was 25mm as I measured it and it needed a push to go through the slot, not a hard push but obviously it slightly scraped the sides. I was then promptly charged for packet price as it was implied it had to go in smoothly i.e without touching the sides. Clearly this is impossible it the envelope is at the limt!
This annoyed me but I payed the extra.
The girl seemed to be very confused about the new system and was saying so to her collegue.

Later on I wanted to get some Airsure address labels and was told I could not as the package had to be put through the slot because of the new postage rates etc. I informed the clerk that this does NOT apply to Airsure and was again told I needed to bring it in for the slot etc.
I repeated this was NOT the case as Airsure is NOT affected and I would be sending to the USA. It was only when I said 'USA' that the guy understood that this was an international package.

Doesn't bode well for the Royal Mail I'm afraid

mrsw

My worry is that the PO might classify something through as, say, letter but then the sorting office rejects it because they class it as large letter or parcel. Will the receipient be charged for the excess postage?

soolin

mrsw wrote:

My worry is that the PO might classify something through as, say, letter but then the sorting office rejects it because they class it as large letter or parcel. Will the receipient be charged for the excess postage?

I did wonder about that as well. I know wrap my 'squashable' items in a plastic mailing sack in the morning, then put them under my chair seat for the rest of the morning until they go to the post office. They then pass through the slot but expand very quickly afterwards as air gets back into the mailing sack.

So they are a larg eletter when I post them, but a package by the time they arrive!

Contains_Mild_Peril

I wondered about that, too. I guess we'll find out soon.

Joto_2

frivolous_fay wrote:

Ok, after staggering to the sub PO with 5 parcels, I'm facing a dilemma. I've overcharged a bit on postage... mainly due to the new pricing, and also not knowing how special delivery is priced! Could I please have your opinions on which of these people I ought to refund some money, bearing in mind I didn't spend any significant amount of money on packaging.

Item value: £137
Postage Paid: £10 (SD)
Difference between paid and actual postage value:£2.60

Item value: £56
Postage Paid: £10 (SD)
Difference between paid and actual postage value: £4.30 (!!)

Item value: £23.50
Postage Paid: £10 (SD)
Difference between paid and actual postage value: £2.60

Item value: £7.07
Postage Paid: £5.50 (RD)
Difference between paid and actual postage value: £1.62

Item value: 99p (sigh)
Postage Paid: £5.50
Difference between paid and actual postage value: £2.12

Oh, the guilt!!

Why are you feeling guilty? I don't sell very much on Ebay, but have bought a lot in the past. The price of the postage and packing is clearly stated, I've always taken that cost into consideration when bidding and if I have thought the packaging was excessive I simply don't bid or I have emailed to ask why their cost is so expensive.
I've found most people bump up the postage costs to cover themselves for packaging, time and paypal costs.