Royal Mail post arrives 'once a week if we're lucky', Lewes residents say

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https://www.itv.com/news/meridian/2025- ... idents-say

Royal Mail customers in parts of Lewes say they have failed to get deliveries for more than a week.

In the BN postcode in Lewes, 73% of post arrived on time according to the latest yearly data.

Elsewhere in the South East, in some parts of Dartford and Maidstone, the service was even slower and below Royal Mail’s target of 93% first class post turning up on schedule.

In the DA postcode, first class post arrived on time 67% of the time, while the ME post code saw 64% of first class arrive when it should.

Royal Mail says it recognises performance in some areas has fallen short, and is working hard to improve.

In Lewes, more delivery staff have been recruited and Royal Mail says people who have concerns about delays should reach out to them directly.

Lewes resident, Suzy Nelson said: "It’s a failing system that instead of daily post we’re getting it once a week if we’re lucky, sometimes if we’re less lucky, it’s once a fortnight.

"We’ve had medical letters that have come after the date of the appointment. We sometimes get appointments by text but older people in the neighbourhood don’t have the internet or smartphones so they’re reliant on the post."

Decades ago billions of letters were delivered each year but nowadays, numbers have dramatically reduced meaning the service is far less profitable for Royal Mail.

The Lib Dem MP James MacCleary says the post in Ringmer has been 12 days late and he has called the regulator to step in.

In the last two years, the regulator Ofcom has fined Royal Mail more than £15m for missed delivery targets.

Ofcom is due to decide whether to allow the firm to reduce the number of days it delivers second class post so the company can save millions and focus on improving reliability for first class letters.

In a statement, Royal Mail said: "We recognise that performance in some areas has fallen short, and we’re working hard to improve service levels.

"We are sorry to hear about the concerns raised and take them seriously. We understand how important timely and reliable deliveries are, especially for urgent or time-sensitive items."