Royal Mail.......lost items!!!!!

[dancestationdirect]

Hi, has anyone noticed an increase in UK Royal Mail packages going "missing" recently. In the last 2 days I have had 3 different buyers claiming item has not arrived. One looks genuine as it is Recorded Delivery which has not arrived. The other 2 are fairly low value First Class items and of course I have no way of knowing if  this is genuine or not.

Prior to this (I have "lost" a few international parcels) but only 1 UK parcel last year went astray and never turned up.

Anyone else having problems with this?

[bukormen]

The problem is not royal mail but ebay money back garantee. Ebay should remove the limit for under £20 items. Buyers can still leave negs.
I buy online without proctection. Dont have problems. Sell that way too. No fees and never get lost parcles.
Royal mail does a very good job. Pity ebay wont do anything about it.

[oakleaffy]

I have  had delayed post, especially around Christmas, but not always.

My mother years ago ordered a Christmas tablecloth that never arrived, but that was years before the internet!

She lost the money.

Always received my ebay items eventually though, sometimes a couple of weeks late, but thankfully this is rare.

  For some reason, items sent to London used to get delayed [to family members, so I know they weren't fibbing]..maybe the huge sorting offices can cause items to be placed in wrong bag, and sent up country? who knows.

Maybe a Royal Mail worker will see this thread and answer?

Normally my bought items get delivered before the stated date, even if sent from far away [like Ukraine!]

It is a shame that people have learned that if they say INR simply to get a refund..it isn't honest, and I wonder if there are categories of item where this is more likely?

It is theft, after all, to lie and say INR when you have the item, and want a refund too. So seller loses twice.

[beauty-fragrances]

Have any other sellers had issues in the past week with items going to Leicestershire?

[chicken_tika_mossala]

Ive had the same problem its definitely royalmail Christmas staff messing up badly this year

[chicken3_123]

Yes I have also .. I have had at least 4 go missing in last couple days

[thefantasycollectiongiftware2014]

Hi

I have had about 6 in the last 10 days i'm sure customers think we don't post .

Can't believe how people react over 4.25 item missing .

Closed my shop monday for some peace worst year so far for INR so although shop closed i have had conatant e-mails complaining about delivery times .

[posterworld2015]

Same here ...shocking service this year ... again

[arty_facts]

As well as being a seller I buy a fair bit on ebay too. I can't remember anything not arriving that I have purchased. Of course I have had buyers claim that an item has not arrived. Royal Mail isn't perfect but in my experience, and having worked there some years ago it is rare for items to actually get lost in the post.

At the end of every shift in our sorting office the place was clear. Occasional items got damaged in transit and would be returned to the sender if there was a return address. This was more so with letters than parcels.

If you've packaged and addressed your items correctly, and are regularly having INR's in the UK then the Royal Mail shouldn't be your first port of call for your suspicion. In my opinion.

[jeffvickers]

Royal Mail are very good at their job.

It is still a FACT that Ebay is the 1st point of call for a dodgy buyer as it is too easy to e-shoplift from us thanks to the Ebay money back scheme.

I've sold on Amazon and Game Marketplace this year and my defect rate is ZERO. None one INR.

I've had a few "try it on", but it's easy to weed them out.

I follow some simple rules, use a small barcode sticker with random numbers below it. Don't print "Tracked Mail", just put doubt in the buyers mind that this label "just might" be some kind of Royal Mail Pilot Scheme. 

Insist to your Post Office Cashier, you want a QR code on all your stamps.

Check the "demographic" of your customer.  ie. Someone who is Married and lives in a nice house will not scam you.

If in doubt, send Signed For, even if it means profit is pitiful. I have a label on my Signed For Mail that reads "ROYAL MAIL SIGNED FOR. Please obtain signature or issue 'Something for you' card and return to Sorting Office. Thank you".

[patriciabclothes]

Whaqt is a QR code?

[samslocker]

I agree RMG do an excellent job on the ground, they are however badly let down by there backoffice and senior management a few dinosaurs need to be moved on. 

Game Marketplace is excellent, it accounts for more and more of our sales now.

no commision on post fees, genuine delivery timescales and they have decent fraud protection.

Game are pretty used to dealing with the sorts themselves. PLus they are actually interested in genuine feedback from the 3rd party traders. Not just GAME either we have signed up to 3 other Mirkal markets it is the way forward for us. eBay and Amazon are the big boys and am sure always will be, however the cut is to much. They are our most expensive sites. 

You will  get those trying it on all the time. We do that we make judgement calls all the time and then sometimes add a bit of security to packets pretty much on eBay, you can spot them you get that used to it. 

1 INR of Amazon about 5 years ago (will admit last 2 years mainly been FBA however) , however with 2d barcodes now in operation we will be doing more merchant to cut down on costs.

0 everywhere else, eBay LOST COUNT. All go in the same bags. 

With  2d barcodes the INR claimers are getting put out of business. Everything is getting scanned through the system right to the postman. You dont need to make a barcode up they are barcoded anyway even standard. Plus because it is AUTOMATED it cuts down on human error (just check all those wrong eBay address's). 

Watch what will happen " a huge increase" in claiming items defective will be the issue. Trying to get automatic refunds. We take the £2.99 hit and get it back, nothing has ever come back actually DEFECTIVE yet.

[caroleannbelle]

Hi 

yes I have had a parcel not arrive there , and the buyer had a few items that hadn't arrived  over the last year 

[madaboutpotteryandgiftware]

I am running at about 15 at the moment......only one on Ebay though. definately my worst year in 10 years. Most were sent at the beginning of December. recorded items sent on 20th still in transit or signed for by THE POSTMAN.

[andytaurus]

I feel the pain! Just a quick glance at recent UK item not received cases based on invoice numbers Royal Mail have lost a staggering 2% nearly all UK large letter relatively low value so I have no doubts in regards to customer honesty.

Every Christmas period seems loss rates seem to go through roof but invoice numbers are not lying …. This year they really have!!!!

I have been a small online seller for 10yrs+ posting an average of 15 small parcels a day globally via my local post office I pre-paid my post office drop and go card with app, £7k last year.

Last year I wrote directly to Alex Perkins Chairman of Post Office, asking her to justify why I should remain a post office customer? Her response was completely ignore my question and forward my complaint to Royal Mail. “Whom had already admitted postal fraud likely committed, but I’m very sure due to a conflict of interest covered up!”

It seems to me the Government/Post Office Bureaucrats do not want our business.

My advice, if you have no bond with your local Post Office print your labels online 5p cheaper! Real irony Tweet @royalmail and ask how to get proof of postage they will reply take to post office. Whilst I’m sure post office unions have a case they would do well remembering, no paying customers no problem!

As a loyal local post office customer I appreciate some of the problems you have with your antiquated systems but cannot sustain these losses with little or no protection …….. What is wrong with post office in conjunction with your unions start demanding royal mail give a proof of collection for your drop and go customers.

[arty_facts]

I just don't recognise this. I don't remember the last domestic item I sent that definitely didn't arrive. Ive had just a couple of claims in the last year from buyers but they were both questionable in my opinion. International sales are another matter.

[maisuk-2016]

Rings very true I can barely remember the last lost small uk packet international losses seem specific to South America & Itally  but on the whole i find manageable. UK 100g large letter, well reviewed long trusted lines,  since beginning of December have been the bulk of my INR's

[half_price_is_nice]

Ive had a few large letter items go missing then 2-3 weeks later the buyer gets a card saying that not enough postage was paid !  They have all been around 80 gramms and below the thickness for LL.  One buyer was asked for £4.20 extra for a £3.99 item for which postage had already been paid.   I told her to ignore it, sent another which arrived in 2 days.  5 weeks !  later I got the same card asking for £4.20. I too have just ignored it, so I guess the item belongs to RM now.

Ive also had items declared as ' no postage paid'   I use Ebay postage and would not be able to print the label unless I had paid.  Buyers then think I havent paid and I have to refund the postage they have been charged. 

I can only use online postage for personal reasons and it does work well 99% of the time, but these charges and losses ( when Ive had to refund after 2/3 weeks, then it gets delivered,but the buyer says nothing even though I check the tracking ) are a drain. 

[half_price_is_nice]

Also, I had a return case opened  16th December  - the buyer posted the day after -  it arrived yesterday !  It shows the postage date, so I know its RM at fault. 

[into-healthsupplements]

---

@samslocker wrote:

I agree RMG do an excellent job on the ground, they are however badly let down by there backoffice and senior management a few dinosaurs need to be moved on. 

Game Marketplace is excellent, it accounts for more and more of our sales now.

no commision on post fees, genuine delivery timescales and they have decent fraud protection.

Game are pretty used to dealing with the sorts themselves. PLus they are actually interested in genuine feedback from the 3rd party traders. Not just GAME either we have signed up to 3 other Mirkal markets it is the way forward for us. eBay and Amazon are the big boys and am sure always will be, however the cut is to much. They are our most expensive sites. 

You will  get those trying it on all the time. We do that we make judgement calls all the time and then sometimes add a bit of security to packets pretty much on eBay, you can spot them you get that used to it. 

1 INR of Amazon about 5 years ago (will admit last 2 years mainly been FBA however) , however with 2d barcodes now in operation we will be doing more merchant to cut down on costs.

0 everywhere else, eBay LOST COUNT. All go in the same bags. 

With  2d barcodes the INR claimers are getting put out of business. Everything is getting scanned through the system right to the postman. You dont need to make a barcode up they are barcoded anyway even standard. Plus because it is AUTOMATED it cuts down on human error (just check all those wrong eBay address's). 

Watch what will happen " a huge increase" in claiming items defective will be the issue. Trying to get automatic refunds. We take the £2.99 hit and get it back, nothing has ever come back actually DEFECTIVE yet.

---

All my stuff is barcoded and I've noticed in the last 3 months a lot more "unauthorised use" chargeback claims filed through paypal - is this just a blip or co-incidence, or is it buyers trying other ways to steal their money back.

Luckily sellers can easily be covered from an unauthorised use chageback with a proof of posting receipt.

[hazegiftproducts]

Before christmas a buyer contacted us to say her mug had not arrived. Christmas was looming so we did what we normally do.

Our mail is franked and photographed and we sent her an image of her parcel, asked her to check address and sent another.

Apparantly it arrived a couple of days after Christmas.

None of this went through ebay as she just contacted us. We find more people do this since we enclosed a leaflet with the item.

Yesterday she kindly took the trouble to phone us to tell us that the first one had just arrived. She confirmed absolutely no difference in either the pckaging or the address label. No clue at all as to where it had been???

Bit late now as item was personalised but I would love to have an explanation from Royal Mail as to where on earth it could have been.

Royal Mail are pretty good but do fail here and there.