Royal Mail losing mails almost every week???

[aksluk]

From last 2 months or so Royal Mail are losing my mails almost one or two every week. I sent around 20-30 large letters and small parcels all dropped in the post box. All postage are 2nd class purchased on eBay. It is happening from both my personal and business accounts. It's so frustrating. I drop all letters in a box once every day so not sure why some are missed? It stared happening from last 2 months, prior to that I almost have 0 lost items. Is anyone also experiencing similar issue with Royal Mail? Any suggestions?

[aksluk]

Forgot to add they even missed a big parcel which we posted through post office. I use 2/3 different post boxes around my area and 2-3 different post offices so it is not problem with one post box/post office. Something is really messed up at Royal Mail.

[goingfishing]

I've had a horrendous amout of lost mail in the last three to four weeks.  Talking over 100.

[aksluk]

Blimey!!!

You are losing 100s of itmes every month?

[bravergrace]

I wonder if the mail is taking longer than usual to process, because of the sheer number of items posted by people (and businesses) "using up their stamps", since the old ones expire at the end of the month? 

This must generate a lot of stuff that isn't machine-readable or barcoded in the usual way.  And dealing with it might well create backlogs in certain parts of the system.  

Even if your mail has barcodes and printed labels, if it's being handled by a sorting office where a few big businesses have decided to stick 1980s stamps on to everything rather than sending them with their normal business account or franking machine, it might well get delayed.  In which case, of course, it will be delivered eventually.

[4_bathrooms]

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@aksluk wrote:

I use 2/3 different post boxes around my area and 2-3 different post offices so it is not problem with one post box/post office.

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They will all get taken to the same Delivery Office - which also functions as a sorting office for outbound mail. That is where the delay will be.

[qualitycardsandgifts]

I have been told by a postie, that they are being told to  prioritise packages over letters /  large letters and sacks of these are sitting in sorting offices.     I am seeing some letters / large letters take up to two weeks to arrive, by which time buyers have opened INRs and bern refunded.   I did message one such buyer requesting payment, but of course, I was ignored.  

[goingfishing]

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@aksluk wrote:

Blimey!!!

You are losing 100s of itmes every month?

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It seems to go in fits and starts.  I know my depot has had a lot of changes recently.  New working shifts and opening hours.  I was also told there was an accident involving a pallet of mail so I lost some there.  Just with RM and problems with eBay its been a horrid six weeks.

[goingfishing]

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@qualitycardsandgifts wrote:

I have been told by a postie, that they are being told to  prioritise packages over letters /  large letters and sacks of these are sitting in sorting offices.     I am seeing some letters / large letters take up to two weeks to arrive, by which time buyers have opened INRs and bern refunded.   

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...been told exactly the same.

[bravergrace]

I think the interview by the Select Committee - at which RM management denied this "ignore the letters" policy existed - made it perfectly clear that it did exist.  They promised to stop it happening - when the MPs pointed out that letters might not matter to RM, but they mattered very much indeed to Old Alfred who was notified of his hospital appointment 2 weeks too late, and now has to rejoin the waiting list, or Old Ethel who missed her old schoolfriend's funeral, or young Jane who didn't receive the notice of her tenancy ending.

[qualitycardsandgifts]

I try to make sure I have at least one parcel in the sack with my letters / large letters in the hope that this will get them processed.

[wgwillia]

Hi I sent a parcil on Monday 24th first class recorded delivery showing will got it on 27th thursday.

[aksluk]

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@qualitycardsandgifts wrote:

I have been told by a postie, that they are being told to  prioritise packages over letters /  large letters and sacks of these are sitting in sorting offices. 

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I doubt this is the case. I've been sending tiny C6 size letters for over 2-3 years now and not a single one missed. The missing ones are 1x very large parcel handed over to PO and large size letters. 

I had a weird feeling that it may be down to the colour of enveloes but I've to rule thisout as all those tiny C6 size envelopes are white. 

It is funny that small C6 size envelopes are not missed while large ones are missing.

No clue what is going on with royal mail, all I can think of is that they are also going *bleep* up like the rest of the bunch (business/govt/country).

[aksluk]

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@4_bathrooms wrote:

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They will all get taken to the same Delivery Office - which also functions as a sorting office for outbound mail. That is where the delay will be.

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Yes, u r right.  In my case it is not delay. They are missing it. I send like 10-20 letters every day. Most of them are delivered. Atm one letter a week is missing which is a recent issue. Never had any single item missing before last 30 days. Something is happening at RM.

[237ben]

We have had problems with Royal Mail deliveries for some years now. I'd taken this to be a local issue but perhaps it has become more widespread. It involves an unusual number of missing items, and it was actually RM posties who told me where the root of the problem lay.

Our area has a high level of theft by RM staff. Depot managers continually try, without success, to pin down who is responsible by rotating the delivery staff so we no longer have a regular postie but instead get a constant stream of unfamiliar faces. So none of them ever become familiar with the routes and so a lot of mistakes are made, on top of the ongoing problem of thefts. 

We get items delivered for the wrong house number, wrong street, and even the wrong town. Similarly our post goes missing to doG knows where. We get online notifications of tracked items which have "been successfully delivered" but the item is nowhere to be seen; and, no, these are not down to porch pirates: it happens when we’re at home. If it’s eBay items then we’re royally stuffed because eBay will always rule an INR case in the seller’s favour the tracking 'proves' it was delivered. 

We also get the red 'sorry we missed you cards when we are in, from posties who approach with no parcels in hand: we even see them wave to the children in the front room.

[aksluk]

Looks like it is nation wide screw up. How are we suppose to do business. Feeling sic....

[jreg-fuchsias]

@bravergrace wrote:

I wonder if the mail is taking longer than usual to process, because of the sheer number of items posted by people (and businesses) "using up their stamps", since the old ones expire at the end of the month? 

This must generate a lot of stuff that isn't machine-readable or barcoded in the usual way.  And dealing with it might well create backlogs in certain parts of the system.  

Even if your mail has barcodes and printed labels, if it's being handled by a sorting office where a few big businesses have decided to stick 1980s stamps on to everything rather than sending them with their normal business account or franking machine, it might well get delayed.  In which case, of course, it will be delivered eventually.

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Guilty  - however have you seen the prices you could buy stamp collections for in auction the last few months?  

On a more relevant note, as I've been using old new stamps for a lot of items, I've been keeping a careful record on Royal mail success rates . If they suddenly decide they're not going to deliver items with Princess Anne's wedding stamps on then I want to know as soon as possible so I'm not  too exposed.

One trend that has come out of this is post-strikes, items sent online,  via the Royal Mail website using the free collection service have had a 100% delivery rate.

Items sent via the post office, for me that was mainly LL signed for, the delivery rate was constant at just under 90% for the last couple of years, until the 3rd week of May.  Something happened then and it plummeted to below 60%.  I know the items were still getting delivered due to feedback and lack of claims, but no delivery was being recorded by Royal Mail.

Since then I've not used post offices apart from odd days where I've been away and taken (unpaid) orders with me, or the Royal Mail website is down - but when I do the result is the same. Last week was one such day -  12 posted signed for, only 6 delivered, but some of the others have feedback, so more have got through.

So why?  Some of it I put down to those orange signed for labels - they stick worse than the aforementioned 1973 wedding stamps.  I know one or two labels have come off  from messages from regulars - but half of them? 

Is it software problems - the post office's horizon system isn't exactly a shining example of accuracy?  Is it a deliberate attempt by Royal Mail to cut out the post office?  (the cheaper prices online, and the new surcharge for post office drop off would indicate that this probably is one of their longer term aims) Who knows, but the only certainty is that a lot of signed for mail is not getting a delivery scan any more -  and that would potentially increase INR's

[claymorejackets]

If your using 2nd class then theres no other option unless you get it tracked at cost and then it might not be viable, so we have to put up with Royal Mail.

I post around 15-30 2nd class every day and its taking more than 2 week if not 4 weeks. This has happened from when Royal Mail put the first class stamps up on Oct 1st, never had a problem until then with delivery time.

So whats changed, Personally i think there trying to get everyone to use 1st class by simply holding back 2nd class.

The other problem i have now is that buyers are claiming items have not arrived a hell of a lot more then having all that krap to deal with, Well I'm getting rather pi ss ed of with it all, Good luck

[nigel_paul_wright7557]

I suspect its because RM are prioritising signed for items and the none signed for items are piling up in sorting office somewhere. Add to that xmas rush and the jobs a bad one.

[claymorejackets]

Like i said it started as soon as RM put the 1st class stamps up on Oct 1st so it nothing to do with xmas in my eyes, RM have always employed more staff at this time of year !!