parcels and postage stamps

[tonyholbury]

Look this is a good long MOAN switch off now if yer aint interested!
2nd deliveries it was a mistake to change the way the mail was sorted and dump second deliveries, typical British management make it cheaper by slashing the service
Tracking, I purchase a lot from ebay and RM is my least favourite courier, totally whack a Mole on delivery times, some stuff just disappears for nearly two weeks, occasional next day delivery!
The Tracking is rubbish, some couriers are so quick I know it has arrived from the tracking info before I even check my porch, NEVER with the RM its reads DESPATCHED and continues to read this two days after delivery!!
STAMPS...........Got caught out here, late for my Sisters Birthday, I shove some money in her card, shove on a stamp and post, two weeks later it hasnt arrived, I complain and ITS MY FAULT, the stamp with 1st class on it is no longer valid, I purchased the book 2 years ago expecting FIRST CLASS to always mean FIRST CLASS, now its my fault as I dont buy Newspapers, havnt had a TV licence for 4 years and rarely read JUNK MAIL so missed the golden opportunity to see my stamps are no longer honoured by the RM, the card hasnt been delivered they have received nu red card to ask for a pickup and pay, FORTY POUNDS has just vanished, I added a strip of sellotape to the back and the card has not got any buttons or trim which the sorting machines love to rip apart (used to do xmas work with the RM) So I assume its sitting in the system and there appears to be no way to locate it and pay the postage, I did try ringing southampton sorting office but got transfered to an ANSWERPHONE, not a good way to make me a happy bunny
Tony

[ted_e_bear]

That'll teach me, wish I'd taken your advice when you said switch off now

[postslippete]

Our Tracking, in terms of the delivery window, is not as good as other couriers because we are also delivering mail and having to do priority parcels/letters, which are usually done first and could be in another area of our delivery. Obviously, it makes sense to deliver the mail when we have these priority items because our duties have been extended and some of these additional calls are miles away from the usual route.

Regarding stamps, you won't be able to use one (with the exception of Xmas stamps) if it doesn't have a barcode on. This came into effect on 31st July last year. If there was no return address on the card the recipient would likely have received a grey surcharge card to pay for the postage of the item instead. They only keep these items in the office for a short period (18 calendar days) and if there is no return address it gets sent to the National Return Centre in Belfast. I don't have their contact details to hand.

You may need to ring Royal Mail Customer Care 03457 740 740. Most offices have gone the modern way of having to ring a call centre. Our office doesn't even bother with the answerphone anymore as they have reduced callers office hours. They make it very difficult to actually speak to someone in person and it's all to do with saving money. You didn't actually say if you sent this item with money in via Recorded or Tracked, but it is advisable because it would be a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack considering the thousands of items that get sent there.