Post Office Charged for Evri Delivery

Hooli

I sold an item on Vinted, posted via Evri at the Post Office. The Post Office member of staff misplaced it in a Royal Mail (RM) bag so RM delivered it and charged the recipient £5.00 for incorrect postage.

I have raised a complaint with RM, I have my Evri receipt and photo evidence of the recipients parcel with the RM labelling and charge on. Royal Mail have replied apologising and offered me a book of stamps 'as a means of refunding the surcharge'.

I replied advising not acceptable and please refund £5. They replied 'When dealing with customer complaints, our priority is to try to identify why problems have occurred and address the specific concerns relating to that complaint; however, we must also ensure that we treat everyone in a fair and equitable manner, as per the agreed guidelines and policies.'

I have asked for a copy of their guidlines and policies.

Is anyone able to help as this is the first time i've experienced this. The member of staff at the Post Office said RM should have returned to sender.

Obviously I can't reimburse the recipient a book of stamps.

TIA

Grumpy_chap

The RM will refund you a book of stamps of value £5 or greater.

You can use the stamps to post stuff. Anything over time. Maybe Christmas cards if not used before then.

Refund the purchaser the £5.

Is it that critical whether you have £5 or £5-worth of stamps?

Hooli

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81888149#Comment_81888149

Thank you, I understand the value will be £5 or greater but I rarely use the Post Office to post anything. It's also a matter or principle. I am not the one at fault here, Royal Mail/Post Office are.

savergrant

Post office are at fault if they posted the item in the royal mail bag. If you have a receipt for posting it is worth complaining to them, not royal mail

https://www.postoffice.co.uk/contact-us

My understanding is that Royal Mail would charge £5 plus the amount of underpaid postage. And I'm not sure they'd be able to 'return to sender' if the sender's address is encoded in the evri label.

Hooli

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81888233#Comment_81888233

Thank you @savergrant. I did pop up the Post Office initially but they said I need to complain to Royal Mail. I'll get on the case. Thank you very much 😊👍🏻

soolin

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81888149#Comment_81888149

actually to me it would be critical. I have absolutely no need for stamps, I’ve got hundreds of pounds worth, more than I’ll ever use in my lifetime. If I was out of pocket by £5 I would expect to be reimbursed £5 in money that I can actually use.

Hooli

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81888260#Comment_81888260

Thank you @soolin. I agree. Had I been the recipient and been charged £5, would Royal Mail have allowed me to give them a book of stamps. As it stands, I had 2 replies from Royal Mail this morning, in very quick succession. However, my last reply was asking for a copy of their guidelines and policy they quoted me ….. I've not heard back as yet 🤔 I wonder if they're frantically just cobbling together said docs?

I've just looked on PO website to complain but you just get sent round in loops to Royal Mail so i've now gone on Facebook and messaged PO on there. I'll keep you posted.

Grumpy_chap

"Had I been the recipient and been charged £5, would Royal Mail have allowed me to give them a book of stamps"

Yes

Hooli

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81888278#Comment_81888278

UPDATE - I've still not had email reply from Royal Mail, funny that! But Post Office Facebook, they've messaged to say 'I've arranged for a payout voucher to be sent to you to cover the cost of the error. You will receive this via email within 10 working days. There will be instructions in the email on how the voucher can be exchanged for cash. Again I am sorry about the issue.'

So, Post Office customer service 1 - Royal Mail 0.

molerat

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81888452#Comment_81888452

The error was nothing to do with Royal Mail though, they carried out the delivery they were tasked with by the Post Office and made the charge in accordance their published policy for underpaid postage. The Post Office were the ones who made the error and owe you the compensation in the same way that you, not Royal Mail, owe the recipient compensation.

Hooli

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81888562#Comment_81888562

Hi @molerat . You are correct, thank you. I have learnt today that RM and PO are separate. However, Royal Mail still should not have posted, they should have returned to sender as parcel was clearly marked Evri. Every day is a school day. 😊