Confirmation of a letter without using recorded delivery

eastc742

Hi everyone,

I'm someone who has used the forum for years now, and only signed up a couple of months ago, after needing help with something very specific, which I was then chastised for and nearly deleted my account.

However instead, I decided I'd give it another go, and hope that it was just me over-reacting to the situation.

Anyway down to the topic in hand;

I need to send a letter to a senior person within my local council, and another letter to someone within the adult social services team, both of which are very important, and I think that at some point I will need to be able to prove that the letters were indeed delivered to the local council in the first place.

Money is tight, as it always is, so I've built a document, which I think that if I give it to my carer, and get her to get the person who takes the letters from her to sign, is it enough proof? Do the document and the letters both need to have matching reference numbers on?

The document reads like this

"Proof Of Delivery

This document is to simply confirm the delivery of a single DL envelope sized letter, which is addressed to;

[NAME AND ADDRESS OF RECIPIENT]

The delivery of this letter is being attempted on _[DAY]_ September, 2013. This delivery attempt is taking place by hand, and is being delivered by [NAME OF PERSON DELIVERING LETTER]. This document is designed to enable to replacement of the recorded delivery process currently offered by The Royal Mail. This has been done by the person wishing to send the letter, purely to save the significant costs involved with making use of the Royal Mail Recorded Delivery service.

By signing this document, you are confirming that you have taken delivery of this letter on behalf of the named addressee, and that you will ensure that this letter is delivered to the addressee promptly.

Name of the person receiving the letter:

__X_______________________________________



Signature of the person receiving the letter:


__X________________________________________

Date and time which the letter is handed over (to within 5-10 minutes):


Date: ___________________________


Time: ___________________________

Thank you for taking the time to sign, date, and put the time on this document. It has just saved the person, who is on state, income-based statutory benefits sending this letter nearly £2.00, and allowed them to eat another meal, pay more of their rent, or pay another bill on-time. Something which we are sure they will be personally grateful for. "


Have I missed anything important, do I need a reference number on the letters? Do I need anything else?

Thanks everyone for your help in advance.

pmlindyloo

I think it is quite likely that the person you deliver it too will refuse to sign as it will not be in their 'remit' to sign such documents.

The correct way to do it is to send the letters addressed to the specific person you need to receive it.

Send the letters from the local post office and collect a free proof of posting receipt for each one. Keep a copy of the letters and then telephone after 5 days and ask them to check that they have received it.

If you want to have complete proof that the letters were sent you can send them from two different post offices and keep the proof of posting. Such 'proof' would be sufficient for any court as one letter could go astray but not two.

In the end you presumably want these people to communicate with you so you will need to keep 'nagging' them to respond to your letters.

jacques_chirac

It is unlikely that a front line worker would sign your document. However, they will be able to give you a standard receipt, which is all you need as proof of delivery.

TOBRUK

I agree with the answers the above have provided. You could also send by recorded telivery or if you look on post office website you can get information on all services, you can even 'track' your letters! On post office website:

1. How can I get proof of despatch?
   
   A proof of posting certificate is available free of chargeSome banks may charge. at your local Post Office branch for all services. Proof of despatch is provided automatically with guaranteed deliveryParcelforce Worldwide guarantee: A refund of the whole or a proportionate part of the consignment charges in the event of late delivery in line with our UK or International Conditions of Carriage for Retail Services. Delivery time begins from date of collection. services, and should be retained as it will be required should you need to claim for compensation.
   Back to the top
2. How can I get proof of delivery?
   
   For inland services, you can view the signature of the person that signed for your Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed by 9am™, Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm™, or Royal Mail Signed For™ item via Electronic Proof of Delivery – ePod
   Back to the top
3. I’d like to know more about tracking
   
   If you have used a trackable service, you will be given a tracking number. You can use this number in the Track and Trace area of our website to find out when your item was delivered. The following services are trackable: Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed by 9am™, Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm™. Full International Tracking is available through our globalexpress and globalpriority products.

Why don't you request a confirmation of receipt on the letters you are sending and just do a 'proof of posting' service?
I believe a tracking service letter will cost £1.60 - details on post office website. If these letters are really important as you say then, although things are tight, it is worth finding £1.60!

rogerblack

eastc742 wrote: »

Money is tight, as it always is, so I've built a document, which I think that if I give it to my carer, and get her to get the person who takes the letters from her to sign, is it enough proof?

Utterly useless alas.
It is your responsibility to deliver whatever to the appropriate department.
In most cases, you can do this by post.
Royal mail has a special place in much law - if the post loses it - you will be generally treated (there are exceptions) like it was recieved in normal time.
If you delegate this to someone else, and they do not perform it, you have not delivered the information to the proper department, and may miss out on benefit or face other penalties.
Sure - in principle you might have a civil claim for damages against the person who failed to do what they said they were going to do - this is quite unrelated to the benefits authorities position - which will be 'you diddn't send' - and then you're relying on them to agree that you had good cause to not submit it late.

HB58

I would be reluctant to sign something which said "and that you will ensure that this letter is delivered to the addressee promptly. " as there could be myriad reasons why this was not possible, even with the best of intentions.

[Deleted User]

recorded del everytime,not as expensive as you might think and always worth it