Royal Mail does not deliver for weeks on end then....

Bronvahl

I have been having a problem with Royal Mail for several years with mail deliveries on normal post.

I have raised complaints over and over again only to be told it was a staff shortage or that depot has been told and they will improve, but it never does,

Then I heard a guy on a consumer show describe the exact issue I am having, he was not local to me which makes me wonder if it is a policy.

It was only when I got a video doorbell that I was able to collate the times and dates and noticed the pattern.  Here is what I have been able to establish.

Royal Mail does not deliver mail, regardless of first class or second class for 3 to 4 weeks at a time.

The mail that Royal Mail delivers is dated up to a month earlier than the day it was delivered, sometimes as long as 8 weeks. It is always a bundle of mail.

Sometimes Royal Mail delivers two such bundles say 2 weeks apart but the latter bundle has older dates than the bundle delivered 2 weeks earlier.

Royal Mail only deliver mail when they are delivering leaflets.  When I noticed this I started to take photos of the mail and the leaflets then took photos of the dates.

I have missed important NHS appointments, including one for Cancer, so when NHS got a no show they put me back 6 months.  If I was to get a fine or a court summons I would miss the deadlines imposed.

When I got my water bill it said I had to pay by a date that had already passed, when I checked the date of the letter it was between 3 and 4 weeks earlier, I called the water company and they said they sent it earlier than the date on the letter but used a later date to allow time for printing etc.

I want to know if anyone on here works for Royal Mail and could give me some explanation of what it is they do that makes this happen. Is there a policy of holding mail until there are 3 or 4 leaflets to deliver to my address?  I never get leaflets alone and I never get mail without leaflets.

When I tried to escalate my complaint I was told that there is nobody to escalate to, I have a recording of that.  Then I tried to contact OFCOM who I gather regulate Royal Mail and they said they only take complaints where it is affecting a lot of people, they also suggested I go back and escalate again.

I did that, I also quoted the reference numbers from previous complaints and they said someone would call me from some team, about 2 weeks later someone did call but just wanted to confirm the details of what was happening.

It has been a while since she called, when I called back I was told that there is a escalation to bespoke level  and that there is also some sort of review panel that I can refer the complaint to, they said they would note that I wanted that but nothing new.

She did tell me that 1st class is supposed to be a 1 day service and 2nd class slower, but she said something about these services being conditional of when they have resources or something.  Yet she said they are legal obligations.

I checked the postage letters and there was a mixture of 1st and 2nd class, I even checked the prepaid envelope licenses, I thought I was onto something when I found two were 3rd parties but there was also one from Royal Mail itself.

I wonder if I opt out of leaflets whether I would ever get mail again!!

I have seen Royal Mail in my street but not deliver to me.

I want to opt out so that companies like Farmfoods, check a trade and others will stop using them, I have started calling the companies who pay Royal Mail and telling them I am refusing leaflets because of this.

I read that Daniel Kretinsky's EP Group have been cleared to buy Royal Mail with some legal undertakings, I wonder if there is any kind of protection from what is happening to me.

The last mail I got included three letters from DVLA which was quite important, if this is a widespread management practice then I wonder  how much harm it is doing. I hear all the time about parking fines not being received and Court papers not being delivered for evictions etc. I read on one site that even Court Orders allowed for the fact that mail was taking weeks and so granted immediate possession because they knew it would take that long.

So far I have people from two counties where this is happening, I thought that they might move staff for a period when I complain but it does not seem to be the case.

If others are experiencing this and want to join to an OFCOM complaint  I would be grateful for a PM.

Okell

What sort of area do you live in?  Urban, suburban, rural, remote, isolated?

I live in a (smallish) city and I see postmen and RM delivery vans on my road every day.  We may not get a delivery every day ourselves, but it's obvious that deliveries are made on our road on a daily basis.

Not delivering mail and letting it accumulate for two or more weeks and then delivering it in batches sounds a bit unlikely to me  - but if you have evidence that that is what is happening then you have evidence of it.  Their excuse that delivery is conditional on resources and no staff shortages also sounds unlikely to me, but if that is whet they told you...

Is this the procedure you've followed so far, and if so, where are you in the stages?  I'm a personal customer, how do I make a complaint?


[Edit:  out of interest what was the consumer show you heard or watched?]

swingaloo

Do you live in a remote area. We never go weeks without a delivery, maybe a couple of days but we have never been in a situation where we have missed appointments and most things we are expecting seem to arrive within a few days. Its blatantly untrue to say Royal Mail do not deliver mail for 3 or 4 weeks at a time or that they hold letters till there are leaflets. The leaflets are a weekly thing which have to be delivered. The delivery offices couldn't hold such a backlog.

I can tell you as an ex postie that its far better to get out onto your round with a reasonable amount of mail. No postie wants to wait until there are enough letters to bundle up for each customer on their walk because of the weight. If the postie is in your street and not coming to you that is simply because there is nothing at the delivery office for you, they cant pick and choose which houses to go to. There is a delivery frame where all the letters are stacked for each address on the round and that has to be emptied, thy cant choose to do number 34 and 38 but not bother with 36 and 42, it just doesn't work like that.

I used to work for RM but things have changed considerably since then. I doubt very much that you opting out of leaflet deliveries and telling companies why will have the effect you desire.  Those leaflets are known as 'Door to Doors' and RM are obligated to deliver them unless the customer opts out, But with the income from those leaflets stamp prices will rise even more and delivery offices will cut back on staff and you may get even less deliveries. 

The whole system has changed since email became the main way of corresponding. There are a fraction of actual letters in comparison to what once was and parcel delivery is now the main focus. The days of each area having their own postman are long gone in most places and it isnt going to get any better.

Ergates

I don't see anything in what you've said that suggests the leaflets are at all relevant and it's not clear why you're fixating on them.  Also - given leaflets aren't addressed there is little point in telling companies that you don't want them.

You say you've seen RM in your street - have you spoken to any of your neighbours about their post?

greyteam1959

Use the Royal Mail opt out service if you don't want leaflets.
You need to renew it every 2 years.
It does work and if it doesn't complain. 

sheramber

Ask other householders in your street if they have problems with delivery.

If you have a local community facebook site then ask on there is any others are having problems.

Gather evidence for OFCOM 

user1977

Reducing the revenue that the Royal Mail get from the junk mail is hardly likely to improve their service...

I've certainly heard of areas where there are staff shortages so they're e.g. alternating days when they deliver letters and parcels.

p00hsticks

Bronvahl said:

I have missed important NHS appointments, including one for Cancer, so when NHS got a no show they put me back 6 months. 

I've not experienced the problems with Royal Mail you describe, but as you obviously have online access I'd suggest you see if your NHS Trust will send you appointment details electronically - you get a text and /or e-mail to alert you to a new appointment that you then access and can download on line.

 My local Trust and I believe many others use DrDoctor. https://www.drdoctor.co.uk/for-patients

Bronvahl

Ergates said:

I don't see anything in what you've said that suggests the leaflets are at all relevant and it's not clear why you're fixating on them.  Also - given leaflets aren't addressed there is little point in telling companies that you don't want them.

You say you've seen RM in your street - have you spoken to any of your neighbours about their post?

I am not "fixating"

I noticed after camera evidence and what I heard guy on radio made me look into it more deeply.

Royal Mail only deliver leaflets on Thursdays in my area.

I tagged all the deliveries and downloaded the videos, there are zero deliveries without leaflets and I get mail when they have several leaflets to deliver. 

Bronvahl

Okell said:

What sort of area do you live in?  Urban, suburban, rural, remote, isolated?

I live in a (smallish) city and I see postmen and RM delivery vans on my road every day.  We may not get a delivery every day ourselves, but it's obvious that deliveries are made on our road on a daily basis.

Not delivering mail and letting it accumulate for two or more weeks and then delivering it in batches sounds a bit unlikely to me  - but if you have evidence that that is what is happening then you have evidence of it.  Their excuse that delivery is conditional on resources and no staff shortages also sounds unlikely to me, but if that is whet they told you...

Is this the procedure you've followed so far, and if so, where are you in the stages?  I'm a personal customer, how do I make a complaint?


[Edit:  out of interest what was the consumer show you heard or watched?]

Thanks for your considered reply, I did complaint by phone and got reference numbers, I was told it is slightly different to what you listed because stage 4 is for products you buy, when for me it is for receipt.

I live in the centre of what you might call a market town, about 100k residents I think.

Now you mention it I used to see Royal Mail van every day and they used to come at the same time every day, I remember because they used to park below my window.  I never see them now, even if I am home all day.

I live on an estate that is about 13 years old I would guess, it is a mix of flats and houses.

I have evidence, probably about 2 years worth as I started saving all activity when we had some issues that normally I would ignore but became important.  I heard someone on radio complain about mail in their area and so I went through the videos.

So when they said they they were short staffed I imagined it was like Christmas when mail is piled up and they can't get to the sacks at the back for a while, which might have explained why some mail posted earlier was delivered later, both in batches, both on a Thursday and both with leaflets.  As I said I don't get leaflets on any other day and only with mail, while at same time I only get mail when I get leaflets, always at least 3 weeks apart but sometimes as long as 6 weeks.

99% of my life admin is by email and online accounts, e.g. Energy bills, which is why I did not worry about it too much for a while, but hospital and important things are now being missed. 

After hearing on radio I started taking photos too, both of leaflets and of letter dates. 

At first they told me it was staff shortages, would not escalate and so I just made a note of the reference number.

I had a few times when they were rude, one said that I had already reported it SIX MONTHS BEFORE and hung up on me.

The person on radio was not in my county, Radio was LBC I think but I have heard others mention it on BBC channels too as part of other complaints. I heard LBC presenter not believing a Statutory Letter and a Court Summons had not arrived, but I could certainly believe it. 

Jenni_D

Even though you responded to @Ergates, you've not addressed the key question asked ... what do your neighbours say about their mail?