Do letterboxes need modernising?

[bustedflush]

I must admit letterboxes are ridiculous:
How many have had this happen. You have a book or short Specsavers Contact lens box (which DOES fit through most boxes) and as it's flat you just stick it in your bundle. It doesn't need to be kept separate as a packet. You get to the house, and sod's law it's the only one in the street that has the very wide but slitty-narrow letterbox with about 2 cm height in the aperture.

The brass-bastard with a 300 foot-pound spring behind it that can actually guillotine a letter.

The asswipe that grows evil-looking brambles/roses in front of it.

The bell-end that has a broken flap on his box, and insists on balancing it back on every day after you leave on his doormat when it clatters to the floor.

[Chelseablue]

Some people are too posh to put a number on there door ,p

[Jpro747]

I must admit letterboxes are ridiculous:
How many have had this happen. You have a book or short Specsavers Contact lens box (which DOES fit through most boxes) and as it's flat you just stick it in your bundle. It doesn't need to be kept separate as a packet. You get to the house, and sod's law it's the only one in the street that has the very wide but slitty-narrow letterbox with about 2 cm height in the aperture.

The brass-bastard with a 300 foot-pound spring behind it that can actually guillotine a letter.

The asswipe that grows evil-looking brambles/roses in front of it.

The bell-end that has a broken flap on his box, and insists on balancing it back on every day after you leave on his doormat when it clatters to the floor.

This one is the worst, even with just one letter or D2D you can never get it to go all the way through without being damaged in some way

[Sir Henry]

The springs on the letter flap with the sharp bit that jabs your finger and makes you think "Hep C!"

[toomuchcoke]

BT Homehubs "WE FIT THROUGH MOST LETTERBOXES" <<<< liars!!!

I'm still waiting for the day when I get my first one of those through!

Having discussed with this with quite a few of my colleagues, it seems to be the case that there's about 5 houses[1] in the entire area covered by the office where it's possible!

[1] Not including the ones without letterboxes where we open the front door and throw the mail inside!

[toomuchcoke]

Some people are too posh to put a number on there door ,p

Especially when one moves into one's new home, removes the perfectly serviceable number from the outside and then gives one's house a pretentious name?

[sophie97]

Some people are too posh to put a number on there door ,p

Especially when one moves into one's new home, removes the perfectly serviceable number from the outside and then gives one's house a pretentious name?

Yes we have a very posh road, the numbering now goes 3, 3a, Sundance, 3b, outlook. Nightmare if you do not know the names, as the two names houses get alot of mail addressed to 3 as do the a and b!

[clashcityrocker]

Yes we have a very posh road, the numbering now goes 3, 3a, Sundance, 3b, outlook. Nightmare

Is the last house on Elm Street.

[fb1969]

Some people are too posh to put a number on there door ,p

Especially when one moves into one's new home, removes the perfectly serviceable number from the outside and then gives one's house a pretentious name?

Yes we have a very posh road, the numbering now goes 3, 3a, Sundance, 3b, outlook. Nightmare if you do not know the names, as the two names houses get alot of mail addressed to 3 as do the a and b!

Or those on the corner of one road who decide to "move" their house into the road round the corner!! So "5 High Street" becomes "End Cottage, North Street" or similar.

[stan_lers]

It would be easy for the government to bring in regulations for letterboxes on all new doors - minimum size (wide enough for A4, tall enough for a Specsavers box), and minimum height from the floor. A letterbox has one purpose - for us to put letters through, it's amazing how out of their way some people go to make our job as difficult as possible.

The worst was a vertical, spring-loaded brass one that had a knocker over the top, so you need 3 hands to lift the knocker, push the letterbox and then put the letters through, and because it's at head height your can't hold the rest of the bundle under your arm so you have to put it on the floor. That one had to have been made intentionally awkward.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

They don't have to bring in legislation the EU already have a directive all they have to do is include that directive in legislation and Building regulations and hey presto we are protected. I know some see the EU as being too intrusive, but this is one case where the EU want more action to protect posties, and its our own governments that haven't gone that 1 step further.

http://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communit ... es#p193727" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The positioning of Letter Boxes is not covered by the current UK buildings regulations. The current European Standard EN 13724 entitled "Postal Services - "Apertures of Private Letter Boxes and Letter Plates - Requirements and Test Methods", specifies the height, positioning and design of "letter boxes" or “letter plates” in order that the safe delivery of Mail can be made without the risk of injury. EN 13724 states that for "ergonomic and safety reasons the centreline of the Letter Box aperture should be at a height between 700 mm (2 ft 3.5 inches) and 1700 mm (5 ft 7 inches). However, in the absence of this being enshrined in buildings regulations it is not compulsory or retrospective.

As far back as 1958 the Council of Industrial Design and British Standards Institute issued a British Standard specifying letter box/letter plate aperture size, maximum flap spring tension and a recommended height position for the letter plate in the door of between 2 ft 6 inches and 4 ft 9 inches from the ground with an ideal height being 3 ft 6 inches (waist high). The standard was introduced after the Union took the matter up with the Postmaster General who subsequently raised the matter with the Council of Industrial Design and British Standards Institute.

The absence of it being a legal requirement to meet the EU standard means that UK Postal Workers are more at risk of back injury and ill health than their counterparts in Ireland for example where there is such a legal requirement and where ground level letter boxes have been banned in new properties since January 2001.

Whilst government ministers have in the past fully supporting adherence to EN13724, sadly the absence of its inclusion in building regulations makes it a waste of time and dialogue with the industry has not been universally successful.

[trevjim]

I've also encountered an upside down letter box, this is actually surprisingly dangerous as it springs back and traps your fingers

[TrueBlueTerrier]

I've also encountered an upside down letter box, this is actually surprisingly dangerous as it springs back and traps your fingers

If the letterbox is incorrectly fitted and therefore dangerous or likely to cause harm then the Manager should be informed and the householder informed of their responsibilities. If the defect isn't addressed then deliveries should be suspended.

[saddlerposty]

a woman on my walk has a got really tight box, lift the flap and try has hard you might on a cold morning like today I cant get anything in.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

a woman on my walk has a got really tight box, lift the flap and try has hard you might on a cold morning like today I cant get anything in.

I know her - she lives in Innuendo Lane