Hi all,
As I'm new to this forum and not a postman myself, let me first express my gratitude and respect to all of those who ensure our mail delivery. It's only after reading some of the messages here that I've come to understand that even if countries that on the face of it seem to have things sorted out better than is obviously the case here in France, that I've come to understand the pressure you're under and the risk you're taking, notwithstanding any support Royal Mail might be giving.
Also, I'm sorry for coming here with my question, but I didn't know where else to turn to, seeing as both inquiries at Royal Mail and La Poste (France) aren't being responded to.
Thing is, I've got a couple of packages that haven't changed their status for weeks now - the oldest of which still only mentions that it "has left the country of origin" (info: La Poste) after three weeks. As I therefore don't know in which country the packages are located (that is, they seem to be "between customs", as it were), I'm getting kind of worried. I mean, normally it wouldn't take that much time, to get across the Channel, right? I don't mind the wait so much as that the packages are currently not registered in any of the systems, UK or France.
I'm hoping someone here will be able to tell me whether mail is still travelling from the UK to France, under which conditions and by what means. Last status according to Royal Mail is "Item Leaving the UK" at Langley HWDC. But as I understand, this just means the parcels have been dropped off at customs.
By which means would parcels normally travel from Langley to France, and has this changed due to Corona? I can imagine airoplanes not flying, for example, and know certain airports around Paris were or are currently closed, as are some major overlay/sorting centres there. Would anybody know where parcels from the UK would arrive, which sorting centre?
My current thought is that with that information I could at least follow the news to see what's going on. Again, I don't mind the wait so much as not knowing whether I should actually still wait, and on whom.
Anyway, thanks in advance for any help!
Best wishes, lots of luck, and stay safe!
Alexander
ANNOUNCEMENT : ALL OF ROYAL MAIL'S EMPLOYMENT POLICIES (AGREEMENTS) AT A GLANCE (Updated 2021)... HERE
ANNOUNCEMENT : PLEASE BE AWARE WE ARE NOT ON FACEBOOK AT ALL!
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Forum rules
For help with tracking please see...HERE
For information about your item being in HWDC Langley please see...HERE
For information about any other mail or if you have a complaint or general query, we first suggest you contact Royal Mail, see the link HERE.
Implications on mail after the UK's exit from the EU
From 1st January the rules for sending and receiving items to and from the EU will change.For more details please see... HERE
For help with tracking please see...HERE
For information about your item being in HWDC Langley please see...HERE
For information about any other mail or if you have a complaint or general query, we first suggest you contact Royal Mail, see the link HERE.
Implications on mail after the UK's exit from the EU
From 1st January the rules for sending and receiving items to and from the EU will change.For more details please see... HERE
-
VonLipwig
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 17 Apr 2020, 21:45
- Gender: Male
-
eggraidonmojo
- Posts: 120
- Joined: 06 Nov 2012, 16:44
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Hi VonLipwig, I'm a postman though not based in a mail centre, but I am also a customer with an item on its way to Canada currently also being prepared for despatch at Langley HWDC.
So, I'll do my best to help.
There is, as far as I understand, a massive backlog across most postal operators.I think La Poste went down to a 3 day week for a while, right? (though I think they've gone back up again after customer complaints)
What I can only surmise is happening at Heathrow is that there is massive backlog of packets (due to staff sickness, disruption to the domestic and international network, the necessity of social distancing etc.) literally sitting in containers waiting to be sorted up and put on a plane. There's probably a reduction in flights too.
You can look on this page to see what is going on with mail to France (and other countries): https://personal.help.royalmail.com/app ... t-bulletin" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The short answer is that mail is traveling, just very slowly. Unfortunately we'll just have to be patient.
Hope that helps, maybe you've even got your items by now!
So, I'll do my best to help.
There is, as far as I understand, a massive backlog across most postal operators.I think La Poste went down to a 3 day week for a while, right? (though I think they've gone back up again after customer complaints)
What I can only surmise is happening at Heathrow is that there is massive backlog of packets (due to staff sickness, disruption to the domestic and international network, the necessity of social distancing etc.) literally sitting in containers waiting to be sorted up and put on a plane. There's probably a reduction in flights too.
You can look on this page to see what is going on with mail to France (and other countries): https://personal.help.royalmail.com/app ... t-bulletin" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The short answer is that mail is traveling, just very slowly. Unfortunately we'll just have to be patient.
Hope that helps, maybe you've even got your items by now!
-
VonLipwig
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 17 Apr 2020, 21:45
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Hi eggraidonmojo,
Thanks for your answer. As you state in your last line, my packages (at least the first and last) have indeed arrived by now - though I still expecting others.
Last Monday the status of my oldest parcel suddenly changed as having arrived in France, with an e-mail further informing me it was, at that point, located at Roissy Hub BSCC PIC, which I know to be a customs' overlay centre here in France. Although, for that reason, I feared it might be quite some time yet before I'd actually receive the package, it arrived yesterday - which I think, all things considering, is very soon after the status update (if not to say surprisingly quick). I hope the remaining parcels will resolve themselves in a similar way.
I still have no idea what caused the delay though, as - even though La Poste is indeed delivering with a reduced schedule of three days a week - other mail and packages have been coming in, and not even always with a delay. My best guesses are that the destination airport where mail is normally shipped to from the UK here in France has been locked down for a while (as I know certain airports around Paris were shut down, but don't know where parcels would be flown in to); that lockdown of certain major sorting centres around Paris meant packages passing through there could not be processed; that customs is just understaffed to process the volume of mail coming in due to absenteeism (as of the beginning of this year I've noticed an increase in time for shipments from the UK to arrive, which I think might be due to the French trying out how to implement the new customs' requirements once Brexit takes effect); or that somehow the contents of packages were determined to be non-essential.
But I think your hypothesis about air traffic just being an issue right now might be the most reasonable, since my parcel actually got through French customs very rapidly. Alternatively, it's La Poste having opened up mail delivery and processing in areas in and around Paris formerly closed down due to suspected Corona-invection or heightened risk. Oddly enough, the second parcel I received yesterday was the last / latest to be shipped, but was processed by another courier (not Royal Mail / La Poste - not sure whether I'm allowed to mention their name here) and arrived in only 10 days. Does that mean that the timing was just better with Paris opening up again, or is this service using a different means of transportation?
Anyway, I must say it's a relief to now have received at least these shipments and know that mail is still flowing from the UK to France, even if slowly. However, I also honestly hope this is happening in a safe way. Because I'd also have been happy with some other form of re-assurance that my parcels were safe and not lost.
Anyway, thanks for the help, and hope the above similarly is able to help those in similar situations.
Best wishes, and stay safe!
Thanks for your answer. As you state in your last line, my packages (at least the first and last) have indeed arrived by now - though I still expecting others.
Last Monday the status of my oldest parcel suddenly changed as having arrived in France, with an e-mail further informing me it was, at that point, located at Roissy Hub BSCC PIC, which I know to be a customs' overlay centre here in France. Although, for that reason, I feared it might be quite some time yet before I'd actually receive the package, it arrived yesterday - which I think, all things considering, is very soon after the status update (if not to say surprisingly quick). I hope the remaining parcels will resolve themselves in a similar way.
I still have no idea what caused the delay though, as - even though La Poste is indeed delivering with a reduced schedule of three days a week - other mail and packages have been coming in, and not even always with a delay. My best guesses are that the destination airport where mail is normally shipped to from the UK here in France has been locked down for a while (as I know certain airports around Paris were shut down, but don't know where parcels would be flown in to); that lockdown of certain major sorting centres around Paris meant packages passing through there could not be processed; that customs is just understaffed to process the volume of mail coming in due to absenteeism (as of the beginning of this year I've noticed an increase in time for shipments from the UK to arrive, which I think might be due to the French trying out how to implement the new customs' requirements once Brexit takes effect); or that somehow the contents of packages were determined to be non-essential.
But I think your hypothesis about air traffic just being an issue right now might be the most reasonable, since my parcel actually got through French customs very rapidly. Alternatively, it's La Poste having opened up mail delivery and processing in areas in and around Paris formerly closed down due to suspected Corona-invection or heightened risk. Oddly enough, the second parcel I received yesterday was the last / latest to be shipped, but was processed by another courier (not Royal Mail / La Poste - not sure whether I'm allowed to mention their name here) and arrived in only 10 days. Does that mean that the timing was just better with Paris opening up again, or is this service using a different means of transportation?
Anyway, I must say it's a relief to now have received at least these shipments and know that mail is still flowing from the UK to France, even if slowly. However, I also honestly hope this is happening in a safe way. Because I'd also have been happy with some other form of re-assurance that my parcels were safe and not lost.
Anyway, thanks for the help, and hope the above similarly is able to help those in similar situations.
Best wishes, and stay safe!
-
eggraidonmojo
- Posts: 120
- Joined: 06 Nov 2012, 16:44
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Glad you got your items!
-
VonLipwig
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 17 Apr 2020, 21:45
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Thanks! Hope yours get delivered soon too!eggraidonmojo wrote:Glad you got your items!
-
Whitejas75
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 10 Apr 2020, 19:32
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Hi folks.just like to say.im delighted you got some of youre parcels+hopefuly you will get your other ones shortly.
It was decent of that person to give you an insight into what is going on in langley this past month or so+i hope you get luck on your mail from(or to) canada.(sorry i just had a brainfreeze)
I in the same boat,like i suppose loads of other pple.my mail was supposely leaving langley on the morn of the 27th of last month.(1 day shy of 4 weeks).cant be an easy working for the likes of royal mail at the mo,with loads of staff out sick or isolating.the health+safety of the workers+their families has to come 1st+formost.i know it can be very frustrating for customers who are waiting or sent important mail .im sure the staff are doing there best to get our mail out to us.
It was decent of that person to give you an insight into what is going on in langley this past month or so+i hope you get luck on your mail from(or to) canada.(sorry i just had a brainfreeze)
I in the same boat,like i suppose loads of other pple.my mail was supposely leaving langley on the morn of the 27th of last month.(1 day shy of 4 weeks).cant be an easy working for the likes of royal mail at the mo,with loads of staff out sick or isolating.the health+safety of the workers+their families has to come 1st+formost.i know it can be very frustrating for customers who are waiting or sent important mail .im sure the staff are doing there best to get our mail out to us.
-
VonLipwig
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 17 Apr 2020, 21:45
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
I'm still not entirely sure what exactly is going on, though. Seems odd that your parcel hasn't come in while mine has, since yours was sent just one day after my first. Also, my parents sent our son a letter and parcel, dated the 20th and 23rd respectively, which have both come in already (that is in 4-7 days). Being as my other packages were sent one week after the first, I was expecting them to change their status as having arrived in France today, as they too will pass their 20 working day expiry tomorrow and all other mail, including international - though continental - seems to now flow at normal speed with may be just a couple of days of delay. Makes me wonder whether there might still be connection issues between the UK and France, whether statuses are just not being updated, or whether newly incoming mail is being prioritized over the backlog. I guess only time will tell...Whitejas75 wrote:Hi folks.just like to say.im delighted you got some of youre parcels+hopefuly you will get your other ones shortly.
I in the same boat,like i suppose loads of other pple.my mail was supposely leaving langley on the morn of the 27th of last month.(1 day shy of 4 weeks).
-
eggraidonmojo
- Posts: 120
- Joined: 06 Nov 2012, 16:44
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Hi Whitejas75, yeah it's strange that your item is still there after a month.
It may be time to consider making a compensation claim (sorry!) (https://personal.help.royalmail.com/app ... /a_id/317/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;), but you might find that after the claim the item turns up once the backlog clears. I'm a bit worried about mine too, since it's been there a week! You could also try customer services, but I'm not sure they can find your item (amongst however many others). Or maybe just hang on a little longer...
I'd say that usually the backlog gets cleared in date order, but it's possible that a container of packets gets placed in the wrong order,
With the scanning,items get scanned at so many points these days, it's possible that a scan might get missed, but there would be another scan soon after, so you wouldn't be waiting too long for an update. Since I don't work in a mail centre, I also don't know how many scans are automated, I think at least some.
It may be time to consider making a compensation claim (sorry!) (https://personal.help.royalmail.com/app ... /a_id/317/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;), but you might find that after the claim the item turns up once the backlog clears. I'm a bit worried about mine too, since it's been there a week! You could also try customer services, but I'm not sure they can find your item (amongst however many others). Or maybe just hang on a little longer...
I'd say that usually the backlog gets cleared in date order, but it's possible that a container of packets gets placed in the wrong order,
With the scanning,items get scanned at so many points these days, it's possible that a scan might get missed, but there would be another scan soon after, so you wouldn't be waiting too long for an update. Since I don't work in a mail centre, I also don't know how many scans are automated, I think at least some.
-
VonLipwig
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 17 Apr 2020, 21:45
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
In my area in France scans don't seem too compulsory. Though La Poste was making improvements as to their reporting before Covid-19, my last package just said that it has arrived in France and nothing after that. I therefore thought it was still stuck in customs, until it finally arrived without status update. Only after delivery the status was updated again to having been delivered.
I still have two packages that haven't arrived yet. And since both of them have the same status and were sent from the same location with one day difference (really stupid miscommunication), I feel that for the time being I should just be more patient and not give up hope yet. I mean, one item getting lost can happen, right? But two, nearly bundled items, getting lost seems unlikely. I will, however, be chasing this up again later this week to see if that makes a difference, since I would expect a change in status or delivery soon. So if neither happens, time to see again what might be going on... Also, I feel that things frequently start moving when I actually chase them down with couriers in our area. It might be just an impression I have, but... who knows...
I would not despair yet, Whitejas75, give them until the end of this week, then contact them next week and, based on that, decide whether you'd like to file a claim. I, myself, feel reluctant to do so before actually having given up on the shipment: it might just be superstition, but I'm afraid this might mean that if the parcel is missing already anyway, there's no need to invest effort in trying to recover and deliver it after that (I've had some odd experiences over here in the past, not related to RM).
I still have two packages that haven't arrived yet. And since both of them have the same status and were sent from the same location with one day difference (really stupid miscommunication), I feel that for the time being I should just be more patient and not give up hope yet. I mean, one item getting lost can happen, right? But two, nearly bundled items, getting lost seems unlikely. I will, however, be chasing this up again later this week to see if that makes a difference, since I would expect a change in status or delivery soon. So if neither happens, time to see again what might be going on... Also, I feel that things frequently start moving when I actually chase them down with couriers in our area. It might be just an impression I have, but... who knows...
I would not despair yet, Whitejas75, give them until the end of this week, then contact them next week and, based on that, decide whether you'd like to file a claim. I, myself, feel reluctant to do so before actually having given up on the shipment: it might just be superstition, but I'm afraid this might mean that if the parcel is missing already anyway, there's no need to invest effort in trying to recover and deliver it after that (I've had some odd experiences over here in the past, not related to RM).
-
Snaggletooth
- EX POST OFFICE
- Posts: 2226
- Joined: 13 Sep 2011, 20:17
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
So the hold up is in customs. If French customs are like the UK service, then some batches of mail are selected at random for extra checks. This means that it is perfectly normal for mail to leave in a different order to the order in which it arrived. But it is more obvious right now due to the Covid-19 related delays extending all the timescales.VonLipwig wrote:Last Monday the status of my oldest parcel suddenly changed as having arrived in France, with an e-mail further informing me it was, at that point, located at Roissy Hub BSCC PIC, which I know to be a customs' overlay centre here in France.
-
VonLipwig
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 17 Apr 2020, 21:45
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Hi Snaggletooth,Snaggletooth wrote:So the hold up is in customs. If French customs are like the UK service, then some batches of mail are selected at random for extra checks. This means that it is perfectly normal for mail to leave in a different order to the order in which it arrived. But it is more obvious right now due to the Covid-19 related delays extending all the timescales.VonLipwig wrote:Last Monday the status of my oldest parcel suddenly changed as having arrived in France, with an e-mail further informing me it was, at that point, located at Roissy Hub BSCC PIC, which I know to be a customs' overlay centre here in France.
Although this is indeed true for that specific package, I received a separate e-mail about that. As such, this is not to say this is true for any other packages that are said to have left the UK but haven't been updated to have entered France yet... But anyway, the main question (for me, at least) has been answered: mail is coming through, just very slowly still.
-
SpacePhoenix
- MAIL CENTRES/PROCESSING
- Posts: 12117
- Joined: 12 Nov 2008, 17:03
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Could also be staff shortages in customs on both sides of the channel adding to hold ups (customs staff off sick, self isolating, etc)Snaggletooth wrote:So the hold up is in customs. If French customs are like the UK service, then some batches of mail are selected at random for extra checks. This means that it is perfectly normal for mail to leave in a different order to the order in which it arrived. But it is more obvious right now due to the Covid-19 related delays extending all the timescales.VonLipwig wrote:Last Monday the status of my oldest parcel suddenly changed as having arrived in France, with an e-mail further informing me it was, at that point, located at Roissy Hub BSCC PIC, which I know to be a customs' overlay centre here in France.
-
eggraidonmojo
- Posts: 120
- Joined: 06 Nov 2012, 16:44
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Just an update, to give some hope to any others with delayed items: my item got moving after about a week at HWDC!
-
VonLipwig
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 17 Apr 2020, 21:45
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
Glad to hear it, eggraidonmojo! On my end, another package (dated April 2nd) has also just moved to having entered France. My guess is, if all goes well, it should arrive in a week from now.eggraidonmojo wrote:Just an update, to give some hope to any others with delayed items: my item got moving after about a week at HWDC!
What's got me a bit concerned, however, is that a parcel send a day earlier hasn't changed it status yet. I'd have expected them to do so in the same order of shipping. Then again, I guess it depends on when it arrived in France, which itself depends on the order in which they were shipped from the UK. And under current conditions, in case of a backlog, on when the container containing the package is actually pulled out of storage for processing. So, again, will give it more time and will not quite give up on it yet - even thought the 20 working days deadline to Europe for the shipment to be considered lost has long since passed already. What is throwing me off a bit, though, is the fact that this tracking number starts with "LB", which I get from https://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communi ... =6&t=77203 should be express post. Now I don't know what express international mail means for RM, but I'm assuming it means faster delivery times - under normal circumstances. Yet, even then, I'd expect it to be processed sooner than something that came in using regular international shipment...
Not too much I can do, though, so I guess I'll just have to wait and see...
-
VonLipwig
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 17 Apr 2020, 21:45
- Gender: Male
Is mail still moving between the UK and France?
For who's interested, just found out the difference between LB000000000GB and RN000000000GB mail tracking codes: the LB-one refers to shipments that have a tracking code only, whereas the RN-one is both tracked and signed.VonLipwig wrote:What is throwing me off a bit, though, is the fact that this tracking number starts with "LB", which I get from https://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communi ... =6&t=77203 should be express post.
Also, one of the two packages I was still waiting for has come in last Monday. No news yet about the last of my shipments, however, the one with the "LB" tracking code that was sent one day earlier than the parcel I just received.
Any news on your package yet, Whitejas75?