New Royal Mail Tracked 24 / 48 Service at Post Offices counters NOT YET WORKING

[the-almighty-inquisitor]

Just been to the Post Office and the new Tracked 24/48 at Post Offices as listed in the new 2nd April Price list is not on their systems yet, and looking further into this, I saw a blog in which it was mentioned that negotiations between Royal Mail and the Post Office had broken down with reference to profit share for the service.  Apparently Post Offices where alerted to this on the 28th March.

This is unbelievable !,  you would have thought that such things would have been signed and sealed BEFORE Royal Mail printed the new prices/service guides months ago.  But no, this is the shambles that is Royal Mail AND the Post Office...

Luckily I hadn't updated and listings with the new service and most of my stuff goes 2nd Large Letter 101-250g and the price as it happens dropped from £2.40 to £2.10 today, so not all bad news I suppose.

[sawjuggler]

Yes I found this out today when I went to post this weekends sales.

The new prices are on the system though and compensation has dropped tp £20 on signed for service.

Not happy as one of my sales was over this so not sure if  I'm fully covered. 

Also the new tracked is on ebay label list but not on RM.

My local counter staff are expecting to be on the end of grief over this total s*it show.

[4_bathrooms]

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@sawjuggler wrote:

Also the new tracked is on ebay label list but not on RM.

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I can find the Tracked services on Royal Mail's website. Note that if the item is a parcel and you want to drop it off at a Post Office counter you need to choose the PO counter option and pay the extra 16p else the label will be rejected at the PO counter.

[sawjuggler]

I'm not using a preprinted label I'm using stamps and referring to rm counter services price list

[4_bathrooms]

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@sawjuggler wrote:

I'm not using a preprinted label I'm using stamps and referring to rm counter services price list

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I don't think Royal Mail have ever accepted stamps as payment for Tracked services; only for 1st Class & 2nd Class services. I could be wrong so I'll wait for someone to correct me if I am but I believe that is likely the problem. As far as I'm aware you either purchase Tracked services online or pay by cash or card at the PO counter.

[6709christine]

If stamps are used, no one will know what the postage corresponds to.  I think you have to have a label which states tracked 24/48 hr

[wellingnorth]

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@4_bathrooms wrote:

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@sawjuggler wrote:

I'm not using a preprinted label I'm using stamps and referring to rm counter services price list

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I don't think Royal Mail have ever accepted stamps as payment for Tracked services; only for 1st Class & 2nd Class services. I could be wrong so I'll wait for someone to correct me if I am but I believe that is likely the problem. As far as I'm aware you either purchase Tracked services online or pay by cash or card at the PO counter.

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The April 2024 Royal Mail retail price list includes Tracked 24 / 48 where it didn't before and so I think from this people thought that you would now be able to buy Tracked services at the Post Office when the new prices kicked in. In my Post Office today the manager said that it should be available from the 10th, but who knows...

As you say for now you can still buy Tracked services online and drop off at the post office, otherwise if you want more than £20 compensation in branch it looks like you need to use Special Delivery.

This is the retail prices pdf

https://www.royalmail.com/sites/royalmail.com/files/2024-03/our-prices-april-2024-v1-ta.pdf

[cerulean-blue]

If you buy a 48hr tracked label through eBay is there a way to add the extra 16p for using the Post Office? The only options I can see are for collection or drop off points.

Thank you for any advise.

[brookheather]

I think only Tracked 24 requires an extra 16p when dropped off at the post office - last time I did this it was accepted at the counter and I received an email later with a 16p charge on it to my card that I used to buy the label.

[4_bathrooms]

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@cerulean-blue wrote:

If you buy a 48hr tracked label through eBay is there a way to add the extra 16p for using the Post Office? The only options I can see are for collection or drop off points.

Thank you for any advise.

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I only purchase postage labels via Royal Mail's website. The option is always available there although I never use it as the postie will collect such items for free.

[rjwilmsi]

The situation, at least prior to 2 April, was that eBay's Tracked labels for Large Letter were valid for post office drop off. However, Small Parcel or Medium Parcel were not (some Post Offices may be lenient, others not) - there is no option within the eBay labels integration to pay the 16p PO drop off surcharge. When buying Tracked labels via Royal Mail (send.royalmail.com or Click & Drop) there is the option to choose PO dropoff and pay the 16p extra.

The above applied equally to Tracked 48 and Tracked 24.

For Parcel size the online and retail prices for 2 April show a more significant price difference for Tracked between online and PO prices (up to £1.20 extra on Medium), so I infer that the 16p surcharge option is going away. But it's not yet clear.

[farrahflicks]

Just had exactly the same situation myself. Was planning on sending an £80 item via Royal Mail Tracked 48 now supposedly on offer at the Post Office. However, I was also told by the person at the Post Office this morning that negotiations with sub post masters was not completed satisfactorily and there is a delay, no one really knows how long for. I sell regularly between £20 & £50 which Second Class Signed For covered insurance wise but not anymore, only covered up to £20. This means to follow eBay rules of insurance anything over £20 in value needs to be sent via Royal Mail Special Delivery if you wish to use a Royal Mail service, this is ludicrous. Royal Mail should have at least reversed the decision on reducing the insurance value on First & Second Class until they can sort this mess out, not happy to say the least. Oh, just so anyone who is reading this is aware, I use two different Post Offices on the way home from work as this is convenient for me, I do not have a printer & I'm unable to be at home for the postman to collect should I use an online service. The best part was the Post Office I visited this morning (who are super friendly by the way) said the best service I can use there at the moment is Evri through Royal Mail, prices available when you search the internet. Surely that means Royal Mail will lose business long term? Or is that what they want? Frustrating too that I had changed all my listings to reflect Royal Mail Tracked, oh well, here we go again.....

[tommystrezures]

No you were slightly misinformed. Post offices also can offer DPD and EVri (Evri is by invitation only to post offices so not all PO's of the will have this service.) They are run as seperate 'business units' if you will and all mail handled for DPD or Evri, will be collected by their relevant drivers. Royal Mail have no involvement in it. These additional services available at your post offices are those which have been negotiated with the post office.

Royal Mail and Post office have an agreement called the second mails distribution agreement, which was signed in 2020 and is valid until 2032. It was the second time they have done this agreement but on this occasion Post Office negotiated a clause that allows them to work with other parcel companies/couriers. - eg DPD and Evri.

Regarding the tracked24/48 fiasco, whilst not official it could be towards the end of next week, our sub postmaster has muted the 10th/11th, but thats not official or confirmed, that it will be available from post offices.

[samnight7772010]

I put the tracked Royal Mail straight in the post box for collection. Isn't that the purpose, to save on queues. You then track it online at the royal mail website. Frankly most of my parcels are going Evri or Yodel. Post office is priced out.

[double_o_heaven]

I enquired about tracked 24/48 at my PO last week and nobody there had a clue what I was on about.

This morning they are finally aware and will be offering it, but said there will be a delay in implementing it.

Also what are the "eBay rules of insurance" referred to a couple of posts above?!  So long as you self insure there is no issue.  I never used to send recorded unless the item was worth about 50 quid, yet alone by SD!  Business sellers can only claim back the item cost so what is the point?

[tommystrezures]

@double_o_heaven post offices were informed of this in a quick reference guide to new rates on the 1st March, it gave a highlights and suggestions on how to manage the tracked services etc, along with other key changes, and a key tariff change page!

[double_o_heaven]

I guess they didn't have time to read it all!  😄

It is very busy shop in fairness, and open about 15 hrs a day, 7 days a week.

[dougbat20]

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@sawjuggler wrote:

Yes I found this out today when I went to post this weekends sales.

The new prices are on the system though and compensation has dropped tp £20 on signed for service.

Not happy as one of my sales was over this so not sure if  I'm fully covered. 

Also the new tracked is on ebay label list but not on RM.

My local counter staff are expecting to be on the end of grief over this total s*it show.

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There's no point whatsoever in using Signed For if they will only compensate to £20. The standard Royal Mail 1st/2nd Class compensates to £20, and paying over £1 more for a signature (which is NOT equal to full tracking) is not worth it against just buying Royal Mail Tracked 24 or 48 online.

The mad thing is, Post Offices are printing labels off at Post Offices so there really is no point in using anything other than Tracked 48 (or maybe 2nd Class on less valuable items), purchased online, because you buy the label online through eBay, it takes the money out of your PayPal or your bank (which you need for selling anyways) and the Post Office, who are keen to upsell you some *bleep* you don't need, will print your tracked 48 label off anyway, so you win by getting a superior service for less money than what you'd have paid at the post office...

edit: Why the hell do you need to censor "*bleep*"?!

[dougbat20]

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@wellingnorth wrote:

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@4_bathrooms wrote:

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@sawjuggler wrote:

I'm not using a preprinted label I'm using stamps and referring to rm counter services price list

---

I don't think Royal Mail have ever accepted stamps as payment for Tracked services; only for 1st Class & 2nd Class services. I could be wrong so I'll wait for someone to correct me if I am but I believe that is likely the problem. As far as I'm aware you either purchase Tracked services online or pay by cash or card at the PO counter.

---

The April 2024 Royal Mail retail price list includes Tracked 24 / 48 where it didn't before and so I think from this people thought that you would now be able to buy Tracked services at the Post Office when the new prices kicked in. In my Post Office today the manager said that it should be available from the 10th, but who knows...

As you say for now you can still buy Tracked services online and drop off at the post office, otherwise if you want more than £20 compensation in branch it looks like you need to use Special Delivery.

This is the retail prices pdf

https://www.royalmail.com/sites/royalmail.com/files/2024-03/our-prices-april-2024-v1-ta.pdf

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Aah, so that's why they do it, reduce the compensation of Signed For and don't offer any sort of alternative so the Post Office staff can upsell you Special Rip-Off, which is a complete and utter RIPOFF!!!!

Funny thing is, if you go to Yodel's website, they compensate you to £50 anyway and anything Yodel provide is way, way, WAAAAAYYYY cheaper than Special RipOff!!!

If I hear about anyone being unnecessarily clobbered with £10+ delivery quotes for a rip-off service they don't need, I will recommend to them they buy Tracked 48 online and get the QR code scanned at thye PO... or flat out recommend they use someone else!

[dougbat20]

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@rjwilmsi wrote:

The situation, at least prior to 2 April, was that eBay's Tracked labels for Large Letter were valid for post office drop off. However, Small Parcel or Medium Parcel were not (some Post Offices may be lenient, others not) - there is no option within the eBay labels integration to pay the 16p PO drop off surcharge. When buying Tracked labels via Royal Mail (send.royalmail.com or Click & Drop) there is the option to choose PO dropoff and pay the 16p extra.

The above applied equally to Tracked 48 and Tracked 24.

For Parcel size the online and retail prices for 2 April show a more significant price difference for Tracked between online and PO prices (up to £1.20 extra on Medium), so I infer that the 16p surcharge option is going away. But it's not yet clear.

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That's strange, because I always used to buy my eBay Tracked 48 labels directly from eBay's services and I have never had a single time where Post Offices would refuse to take a tracked 48 or 24 label, and I've used a number of different Post Offices.

Yes they never used to offer the service at the PO but they would take parcels and they would even scan QR codes in order to print off the label.

Also, if purchased from eBay, I've never been charged any more than what the price is for online purchase. So no 16p or 20p or whatever else.