Tag: Postwatch

Royal Mail loses 2 million presents

Posted by | Dec 23, 2007 | |

Royal Mail faces an angry consumer backlash this weekend over more than 2 million parcels and letters lost or delayed in the Christmas post.

Customers across the country are in danger of being left without their presents as postal workers are overwhelmed by the GBP 10 billion boom in online shopping. The backlog has allegedly been compounded by postal workers deliberately failing to deliver presents to save time on their rounds.

About 1.2m letters and parcels are already estimated to have been lost in the Christmas post. Hundreds of thousands of other items are delayed or awaiting collection at depots where queues of up to two hours have formed.

Postwatch, the independent watchdog, last week wrote to Adam Crozier, chief executive of Royal Mail, to demand that the recorded mail service be improved or scrapped, because so many customers who had paid extra for recorded mail complained that postal workers were routinely failing to get a signature on delivery.

The chaos managed to disrupt the last weekend before Christmas for thousands as they were forced to queue up to collect undelivered packages.

Royal Mail will handle about 120m parcels this Christmas, more than a 20 pct increase on last year. It says the vast majority will be delivered, but admits that it is recorded as a successful delivery even if a “you were out” card is dropped through the door.

Postwatch said Royal Mail’s most recently available figures indicated that it lost about 1m items of mail a month. Royal Mail said it was no longer publishing figures on the amount of mail it lost because the information was commercially confidential.

Read More

Royal Mail faces investigation over late letters

Posted by | Dec 10, 2007 | |

Royal Mail is facing an investigation over claims that letters are being delivered late because postmen are failing to complete their rounds.

The mail watchdog, Postwatch, will look into the issue after receiving complaints from the organisation’s staff as well as customers.

Problems with postal deliveries have been blamed on new working practices introduced after strikes by the Communication Workers Union, and a new 56 mph speed limit for lorries, which means that mail is arriving later at sorting offices.

Postwatch will survey thousands of householders to find out whether mail is arriving on time.

The investigation will focus on a practice known as “cutting off”, where workers take undelivered mail back to the delivery office at the end of a shift, rather than finishing the round in overtime.

Royal Mail says it has already fitted its lorries with speed limiters in advance of European Union rules which will restrict their speed from January 1.

Postal workers, writing in an online forum, have threatened to disrupt deliveries at Christmas. One said: “I am cutting off every day in December.” Another said: “I for one will be finishing at my time.”

Read More

Postcomm proposals aim to simplify Royal Mail's compensationschemes

Posted by | Dec 6, 2007 | |

Postcomm has outlined proposed changes to Royal Mail’s compensation schemes for lost, damaged and delayed mail to make them fairer and more suited to customer needs.

The regulator has conducted a public consultation and worked closely with Royal Mail and Postwatch to address concerns about the complexity of Royal Mail’s current compensation schemes for retail customers and some inconsistency in how they are applied.

Following this review, Postcomm is proposing to remove bulk mail from a regulated compensation scheme for delay. Competition for bulk mail customers has developed to a point where the regulator is proposing that it is more appropriate to move towards a market driven option allowing the growth of schemes which reflect the differing needs of large mailers.

Royal Mail’s retail customers should face less difficulty in pursuing their claims because, for retail mail that has been lost, damaged or delayed, the proposals aim to simplify and align:

* the processes for making a claim;
* the evidence required to support a claim; and
* the compensation payments themselves.

Read More

Postwatch: Inquiry into post office closures

Posted by | Dec 5, 2007 | |

The House of Commons Business & Enterprise Select Committee has just announced a new inquiry into early experiences of the Post Office’s ‘Network Change Programme’ for restructuring the sub-post office network. It will also look at the implications of the changes to the Crown post office network and the transfer of many such offices to retail outlets, such as branches of WH Smith.

The Trade & Industry Committee (which this Committee recently replaced) examined the Government’s proposed framework for a new round of post office closures in two reports earlier this year. These reports persuaded the Government to refine the access criteria and their application. The Committee will now look at how the process is being carried out in practice.

The Committee intends to focus on:

– experience of the local consultation process so far;
– the extent to which final decisions have taken local views into account;
– the nature of the proposed 500 ‘Outreach’ services and service quality;
– the role of Postwatch in the current Programme and in the future;
– how changes to the Crown post office network interact with sub-post office closures;
– the future of both Crown and sub-post office networks.

Postwatch will submit evidence to this inquiry and appear before the Committee.

Read More

Poor postal results hit Scotland

Posted by | Nov 30, 2007 | |

Postwatch Scotland said that this summer’s strikes and widespread flooding seriously affected the quality of postal services across the UK.

Dundee, Falkirk, Kirkcaldy, Edinburgh, Perth and Motherwell were in the worst 20 performing postcodes.

Royal Mail said the low quality of service results were due to the industrial action.

Speaking after Royal Mail’s release of their half-year performance results, Alan Alexander, chair of Postwatch Scotland, said: “Given the floods and the industrial dispute, customers will not be surprised that Royal Mail’s performance has been seriously below par during the summer.

Next year, customers in Scotland should expect Royal Mail to be announcing a much improved performance

“It is particularly disappointing that six out of the worst 20 performing postcode areas for the delivery of first class mail are in Scotland.

“Industrial peace between Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union means the industry, after a step backwards, can take great strides forward.

“Next year, customers in Scotland should expect Royal Mail to be announcing a much improved performance. That should help all of us to post with confidence.”

A Royal Mail spokeswoman said the low quality of service results in Scotland were due to the official and unofficial industrial action which took place during this period.

Read More

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

P&P Poll

Loading

What's the future of the postal USO?

Thank you for voting
You have already voted on this poll!
Please select an option!



View ResultsHide Results

Post & Parcel Magazine


Post & Parcel Magazine is our print publication, released 3 times a year. Packed with original content and thought-provoking features, Post & Parcel Magazine is a must-read for those who want the inside track on the industry.

Subscribe to the Magazine

 

Pin It on Pinterest