Woman can't get post delivered to new housing estate and even sends letters to herself that vanish

[TrueBlueTerrier]

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wale ... w-34280993

The mum-of-two said she'd missed important health letters, information from the Department for Work and Pensions and scan results

A Cardiff mum-of-two has been left frustrated after waiting several weeks for her post to be delivered. Due to the delays she has missed important hospital appointments, been unable to get the results of her son's brain scans, and been waiting for a disability blue badge and access card to arrive.

Kelly Watts, a full-time carer to her two children, moved to a new housing development in Canton, Cardiff in December 2025 but despite triggering a postal redirection she immediately noticed she was receiving a lot less post.

"At my old address I would get letters every other day, it was very rare there would be four or five days without mail," she said.

Kelly said that it wasn't until the end of January that she eventually had post delivered. After that, she went another two months without receiving anything.

"I was thinking I've not had any mail for two months, what is going on." Never miss a Cardiff story by signing up to our daily newsletter here.

After contacting the postal service, Kelly said she eventually had 37 letters delivered in April. When she sorted through the delivery it included electricity letters saying they'd contacted her four times in the post and disability letters about her six-year-old son.

Kelly explained that he suffers with global developmental delay, learning disabilities, hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP), is non-verbal, and will never be able to walk.

Through the post they rely on receiving important documents including the results of brain scans, time-sensitive letters from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), and letters about hospital appointments among other correspondence.

"My six-year-old son has constant letters from neurologists at the Heath Hospital about brain scans and things like this," she explained.

Since then, she went another two months without any post having had a delivery in mid-May, and then having to wait until Monday, July 13, for her next one.

She said: "It's really bad. It's Royal Mail, there's nothing royal about the service. It's so frustrating, I feel like banging my head against the wall."

Kelly knew that in the second week of June she'd been sent time-sensitive letters from the DWP, as well as letters from the disability access card, disability UK and Cardiff and Vale Health Board - all of which she hadn't received.

She asked them to re-send the letters in the hope she might be able to get them that way, but still had no luck. "Two weeks ago I posted myself a first class plain envelope and I haven't had that, " she said.

Kelly said the lack of postal deliveries had also almost led to her son missing out on an essential wheelchair-fitting appointment.

She explained: "I was waiting ages for the appointment and I was thinking it was taking a while. Luckily I rung them and they said they'd sent out two letters regarding the appointments and were going to take us off the list.

"If they take you off a list you are waiting years to go back on it."

Kelly was in such desperate need of a parcel relating to her son that she paid around £12 for Royal Mail's 'special delivery guaranteed service'.

She said: "I'm so desperate for something in regards to my son's disability which is time-sensitive that I rung the company last week and paid £12 to have it sent out with special next day guaranteed delivery. I've been waiting since Friday and as of Monday it still hasn'

"On Friday afternoon they said they'd investigate it but it just needs immediate action. None of us are getting post around here, I've paid for special delivery and I'm still not even getting that.

"It feels like I've got cabin fever because I've been in for four days waiting for this special delivery thing which hasn't come, on top of four weeks of mail which hasn't come.

"I need to get out and get some fresh air but I feel like I'm stuck inside waiting for post that I know isn't going to come. But I'm waiting on the hope that it does. It's really bad."


Since speaking to WalesOnline on Monday morning, Kelly had a sea of post delivered, including the special delivery item. In amongst the letters, there was one which had been sent on June 23 about a hospital appointment being scheduled for July 7 which she has now missed.

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: "We know how important reliable deliveries are, particularly when people are waiting for hospital appointments, benefits or other important correspondence.

"We are looking into the concerns raised about deliveries to this address with the local delivery office so we can establish the full circumstances.

"Our current performance shows that more than 92% of all letters are delivered on time and over 99% within a week, meaning longer delays are rare. However, we know there is more to do and remain focused on improving reliability for all customers."