Widow angry over lack of compensation from Royal Mail

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.cornishguardian.co.uk/Widow- ... story.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;?

A WIDOW from Rock is fuming after Royal Mail offered her just six first-class stamps as compensation for the loss of supermarket vouchers worth £84.

Patricia Bentley, 73, sent the Morrisons vouchers to her daughter via recorded delivery on August 23. When the envelope failed to arrive a few days later, she asked the Post Office to investigate.

Last week the Postal Review Panel of the Royal Mail told Mrs Bentley that while it did not dispute that her letter to her daughter had contained £84 in supermarket vouchers, it was not obliged to pay compensation.

"What's the point of sending something recorded delivery if the Royal Mail isn't going to do anything about it when they lose the envelope?" said Mrs Bentley.

"I was able to prove that I'd posted the envelope, and that it had my own name and address on it so that if they couldn't deliver it for any reason they should return it to me.

"Instead they've just written to me saying that I should have sent the envelope by Special Delivery and insured against any loss.

"They say they've reviewed the details of the case and that they're not obliged to pay any compensation, but they've offered me six first-class stamps as a refund on the cost of my recorded delivery letter. It's really not good enough. It's an insult, really."

Mrs Bentley had sent the vouchers to her daughter and granddaughter, who live at Kilkhampton.

"The Royal Mail agrees that it's lost the envelope," she said, "but because I can't prove what was inside I get no compensation. Recorded delivery is really worthless."

Last year the Royal Mail said it wanted to cut the maximum payout for lost or damaged mail by more than half, from £46 to £20, despite latest figures showing there had been 7,000 more complaints about unsatisfactory delivery than in the previous 12 months.

Countries including Germany, the Netherlands and the US offer no compensation at all for untracked mail.

In 2011 the Royal Mail was forced to pay out £5.1 million in compensation to customers for lost items in the previous year – the equivalent of almost £100,000 every week.

Royal Mail had not responded to requests for a comment as the Cornish Guardian went to press.

[GoingRoundTheBend]

Why don't Royal Mail just get rid of recorded signed for and replace it with tracked?

[bustedflush]

Years ago I used to sell on the net. I used recorded for every item, and in over 500 postings, RM managed to lose 7 of them. Recorded delivery covers you to the value of 100 first-class stamps, so £62 is the maximum compo available for this service. They paid 5 of my claims after I posted the form off to Sheffield along with a print of the webpage/item that the packet contained. Bizarrely they refused 2 of the 7 claims despite them being identical - the last 2. I think this was because they thought I was claiming too frequently and decided to stop considering my genuine claims.
The woman should've used Special Delivery, and the PO counters should have advised recorded would NOT fully cover her item.

[Spedley]

Recorded Delivery never has been any kind of guarantee of anything, it is merely a formal handing over of responsibility on delivery. Anyone who is capable of understanding why they are signing is permitted to do so.

If the customer wishes to know where their letter has gone they can request a copy of the name and signature, date and time. That is all it is, nothing else.

[bustedflush]

Recorded Delivery never has been any kind of guarantee of anything, it is merely a formal handing over of responsibility on delivery. Anyone who is capable of understanding why they are signing is permitted to do so.

If the customer wishes to know where their letter has gone they can request a copy of the name and signature, date and time. That is all it is, nothing else.

Yes, and I'll hazard a guess the postie DID deliver it, because he couldn't be assed to write a card out just stuck it through the letterbox. The person who posted it then checked online for the signature scan/time of delivery and it was blank. It obviously then stayed blank for the required 15-day pending period (before claiming) and the sender saw the opportunity to claim. The postie was interviewed and swears he/she posted it so RM refused full compo. I sold some vouchers on ebay once and some c*&t tried the same scam on me. Fortunately I photographed them and their serial no's before sending and rung the company up after the recipient's claim. I then informed the buyer of my diligence and never heard another thing.......

[wabbithunta]

Sending something of value through the post, especially when its value is worth way more that the cost of stamps and a signed for delivery!?

RM Consequential loss coverage.jpg

http://www.royalmail.com/personal/uk-de ... 6-19350049" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;