ASK TONY: I'm paying for my Post Office's phone blunder

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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At my local Post Office branch on July 11 I asked to withdraw £100 cash and have £20 of this put on to my Orange mobile phone as a top-up.

The branch officer mistakenly put £80 on to the Orange phone, leaving me more than £100 in credit.

I am a pensioner and rarely use the mobile phone, so it would take me years to use this money.

The branch sent me to an Orange shop, which said the refund should have been organised by the Post Office, but had to be made within 15 minutes.

The Post Office has refused to refund the money even after the Citizens Advice Bureau wrote to them on my behalf.
Mrs N.R., Lincoln.


Sometimes the reaction of customer services departments just beggars belief!

Here you are, a pensioner, who has been the victim of a mistake by your local Post Office.

The £80 error is a trivial amount to Royal Mail, the Post Office owner that had a turnover of £9.2billion last year. But it is a significant sum to you.

Instead of simply paying the money, the so-called ‘customer care adviser’ chose to dispute it.

Her action must have wasted more of Royal Mail’s money than it would have cost simply to admit the mistake and pay up.

Once I became involved, Royal Mail immediately coughed up the £80 plus a £20 goodwill payment.

But if they really want to persuade the public to continue using post offices, they need to do a lot better than this without the national Press having to represent their customers.