Christmas delivery fears as Gants Hill residents report post delays

[POSTMAN]

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Residents in Gants Hill don’t dare to do their Christmas shopping online because the post delivery has become “so unreliable”.

Janet and Colin Foster MBE, from Ethelbert Gardens, Gants Hill, complained to Royal Mail after not receiving any post for seven days last week.

“I am not taking the chance to order any Christmas gifts through the post because I am afraid I won’t get them,” said Mrs Foster.

Her husband, Mr Foster is still waiting for a gift ordered online, and Christmas cards still had not arrived a week after being sent.

Barry Howe, 68, from Fencepiece Road, Barkingside, sent a Christmas card for the first time in his life to his cousin Christine Gardener, from Basildon, who he had not seen for 53 years until the pair got back in contact through Facebook in March.

Mr Howe sent his card first class for 95p on December 3, but was disappointed when the card took over a week to arrive.

“I rarely send anything, but it is frustrating when, after 53 years of not being in contact with my family and finally finding them, she did not [initially] receive the Christmas card I sent her,” he said.

These latest problems come after the Recorder reported in September of postal delivery problems in the Chigwell area, which Royal Mail put down to “staff shortages” in the Ilford sorting office.

But the company said it had recruited new staff since.

Ellen O’Connor, also from Ethelbert Gardens, who works in a bank and is a mother of three, said she was worried about being fined for not paying her bills after she was charged £30 twice for delayed payments.

She also waited more than a month to receive a £270 Tesco voucher.

After contacting the Royal Mail customer service, she said she was told there was “major sickness” at the Ilford sorting offices.

Mrs Foster said the street’s two usual postmen had not been seen for the past three weeks, with the replacement postman saying they were on sick leave.

A spokeswoman from Royal Mail said: “We have recruited some new staff for our offices in the Ilford area and we have taken some additional temporary workers to help support our postmen and women in the run-up to Christmas.”

[TrueBlueTerrier]

why do they call it Ethelbert gardens - most have them have concreted them over

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