Outrage as RM delivers to rural community on alternate days

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Outrage as Royal Mail delivers to homes in rural community on alternate days only

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Royal Mail was accused of providing an ‘appalling’ service yesterday after it emerged some customers are having letters delivered on alternate days.

Villagers in Cavendish, near Sudbury in Suffolk, have endured the reduced service since March after losing one of their two regular postmen.

Under its universal service obligation Royal Mail must deliver letters six days a week between Monday and Saturday and parcels five days a week, from Monday to Friday.

Failing to deliver: The Royal Mail has been forced to cut services in some rural areas - despite an order that it must make deliveries six days a week

Any breach is punishable by a fine of up to 10 per cent of turnover, although such a penalty would only be imposed in exceptional circumstances.

However, Royal Mail’s letters division – which generated £6.56billion revenue last year with a profit of £121million – could still face a fine for letting down customers.

Regulator Postcomm said such a breach of the USO was ‘serious’ and it plans to investigate whether similar failures were happening elsewhere in the country.

Problems in Cavendish are understood to have begun around six weeks ago. Another village, Newton Green, may also have been affected.

Lesley Cooper, who lives in Cavendish and works for the Association of School and College Leaders, said: ‘We have never been told they were going to downgrade the service and when we try to complain we can never get an answer.
‘I work from home, so it is very frustrating not knowing when letters are going to arrive. A lot of businesses locally must also be suffering.’

Retired chartered accountant Bill Worth, 74, added: ‘We used to have two postmen on this round but now we only have one. It means he can only do half the village in one shift and because they don’t allow him overtime he has to come back the next day to do the other half.

Serious breach: Regulator Postcomm says it will investigate whether similar failures were happening elsewhere in the country

‘Royal Mail just ignore our complaints. It’s very frustrating. I have tried to speak to the manager at the sorting office but the phone is either never answered or permanently engaged.
‘Our postal service has been curtailed without warning.’

Peter Stevens, a member of St Edmundsbury Borough Council, which covers the villages, said: ‘It’s astonishing and appalling. If you pay for a first-class stamp you expect a first-class service. Delivering letters up to 48 hours after you send them is just not on.’

Postcomm said the USO, enshrined under the Post Services Act 2000, was a ‘duty’ for Royal Mail except in ‘exceptional circumstances’.

These include geographical reasons or health and safety issues, such as staff being threatened by a dangerous dog.

Customer interest director Sean O’Hara added: ‘They shouldn’t be allowing service on alternate days. It is a serious allegation and I will be taking this up with Royal Mail.

‘Either the manager at the delivery office should be standing in for the missing postman or he should arrange for cover. It shouldn’t take longer than a day or two to solve the problem.’

In December it was announced the price of a first-class stamp for a standard letter was rising 5p to 46p, while second class would go up 4p to 36p. The price for larger letters went up 9p to 75p.

The higher prices follow major cuts in services, with fewer collections, thousands of post office closures, and a switch to a single late daily delivery.

A Royal Mail spokesman yesterday said there were no plans to reduce its ‘comprehensive’ coverage.

He added: ‘There has been a short-term problem in that village which we couldn’t resolve. If the situation hasn’t been resolved yet it will be soon.’

[hans solo]

strange that all those short term problems all over country in small towns and rural areas
real customers ie you and i are subsidising big business especially banks for a service they pay a lot less for getting better service and priority over rural customers who get worse service and pay more and its getting worse
this is happening now all over time cwu went public on rms common work practises

[fishtank]

Never mind...in a few years the headline will read...

Outrage as Royal Mail delivers to homes in rural community on alternate weeks only

[youwot!!!!!]

Never mind...in a few years the headline will read...

Outrage as Royal Mail delivers to homes in rural community on alternate weeks only

your right fishtank it's only gonna get worse.

[peterhazell]

every other day dels the norm for every residential address one day, or pay extra eg special................

[Lounge Lizard]

" and because they don’t allow him overtime "
‘Royal Mail just ignore our complaints. It’s very frustrating. I have tried to speak to the manager at the sorting office but the phone is either never answered or permanently engaged.

[DavidUK]

The way in which RM is 'managed' is truly abysmal.