9 Tracked 48 items posted via Parcel Locker all disappeared from system

[just_recycleit]

On Monday this week 6th October I sent 9 items all via Tracked 48 through our local Parcel locker. They should of all been delivered on Wednesday, and none of them have been. All are showing "we've got it" on the Royal Mail website, but no other information apart from the time and date of when I dropped them off.

After spending nearly an hour on the phone to RM all they were able to tell me is exactly what I can see on the website and can't do anything more as they don't own the lockers just collect from them.

Understandably my buyers are now openeing cases for items that have been received and RM don't put an item as missing until after 14 working days which will be too late for my buyers and I will have to refund them.

Being a business seller RM will only allow me to claim what I purchased the item for and not what it sold for meaning I will be out of pocket after everything.

Is there any other advice anyone can suggest?

Thanks

JJ

[cobwebcottage]

In the past 4 moths, I had to send one parcel with RM as the address ( new build) wasn't recognised by Evri. 

They lost it. After completing all of the claims requirements, weeks later, they sent me two books of stamps rather than a refund. It was a low cost under £15 item so I assume that's their procedure although the stamps did not cover the value plus postage paid.

90% of my parcels go by Evri through Packlink.

Evri are not perfect and a few have been lost although Packlink are great at chasing up deliveries and processing loss claims and the refund, including postage is sent straight to your bank.

As a business seller, I am happy with the service ( yes you have to use extra packaging but you should anyway) and the tracking updates are usually good, with just the occasional blip, and show the journey of the parcels. 

[just_recycleit]

It does seem like RM haven't collected from the lockers that is very strange as it is now over 2 days (Monday & Tuesday) that I dropped off and have not moved on the system.

I have used Evri in the past and had nothing but trouble with them.

[porte2425]

You’re not the first to complain about issues with parcels not moving on from Parcel Lockers. And in general Royal Mail are getting slower.

I have always regarded Royal Mail as the best courier, in terms of reliability. While it may still be true, it is a low bar, which keeps slipping every day.

I’ve only ever made one claim for Royal Mail, and that was in the past year, and that was a joke. The postage was bought online (via eBay) and tracking confirmed no delivery, but I still had to fill out forms and provide evidence (including proof of postage – the proof of postage is that it was tracked through their system, surely!), and in the end they just sent me stamps to an equivalent value (which I could have bought on eBay for half the price!).

At the start of the year, I was disliking the sound of Simple Delivery, but it is unfortunately becoming more appealing. It’s become a necessary evil for a lot of listings.

I’m pretty sure Simple Delivery will be rolled out to business sellers in the near future.

It will push costs up, but will basically be an additional insurance against multiple postage-related issues. eBay have introduced the problem – defects for late delivery, allowing buyers to leave neutral/negative feedback for delivery issues that are clearly the courier’s fault – and now they are selling the cure – i.e. we’ll protect you from the aforementioned, as long as you buy your postage via us (so we can get a cut).

[cobwebcottage]

None of them are perfect and it's what you are used to but I like to keep an eye on the tracking and as you say, RM do not update theirs until it's delivered. That would make me pull my hair out. Especially this time of year.

[just_recycleit]

This is the first time I have really had a problem with RM.

I does seem that they haven't emptied the lockers as checking items I sent Tuesday are now showing the exact same message, and the only phone number is the 0345 main number so you can't speak to anyone at the local sorting office to see if they have collected from the lockers.

[just_recycleit]

Just checked and on Tuesday I dropped off some more items and the only one collected was an Evri Parcel, the rest of the RM ones have the same 'we've got it' message on the website.
It really doesn't seem like it has been emptied by RM and their customer service can't tell me if the lockers have been emptied or not as it is a 3rd party locker and not their own, which seems a bit weird.

[porte2425]

As soon as you said Royal Mail don’t own the lockers, then that was enough for me to know there will be problems. Not only is it a case of another party being involved – which always can slow things down – but then when things go wrong they like to pass blame and not take responsibility.

It is pretty bad that even customer service can't tell you anything!

[just_recycleit]

Yes I can feel problems with Royal Mail, but they email a scanned confirmation with every parcel, which I have so they can't say I haven't dropped them off.

In total it's 12 parcels dropped off over two days, I'm just worried this is going to cause me problems with eBay for non delivery.

I have been using the lockers since March when they put they in and they have Royal Mail plastered all over the lockers so I would of assumed they were RM property