RMCtv : Nick Landon : Feedback on the rollout of photos on delivery and how that will best work alongside longstanding local safeplace instructions : ***Update 3 Apr***

[chrisj]

I just cannot understand why the instructions on the PDA was so specific in the first place. It not only wanted photos taken but with the door open... Why specify the 'door open' part of the instructions. It is as if they had no consultation with actual posties or do not know or realise all the possibilities of delivering a parcel...

They did it on purpose because they do not trust us Posties and they want to appear different from other couriers. It was particularly annoying that the manager later decided to clarify things after many parcels were brought back. They now talk about local arrangements and common sense... We have the common sense but do they?

[POSTMAN]

Nick 'Behind the plant pot mate' Landon

I said I would give you an update this week on a new safe place delivery instructions now that we've rolled out the photograph on delivery for track items. I asked you last week to come back to me with any suggestions on how that should work. and many of you did thank you very much for that. it was very helpful. we've gone through with all of the stakeholders. senders CWU ect, and we've agreed a new process, and we will be rolling it out for Monday this week.

So just wanted to talk with you briefly with how it's going to work, the full instructions will be issued through the normal channels.

So how's it going to work?

so first you should obviously, as always, attempt to deliver to the customer first, and if they are not in then follow the safe place instructions that come up on the PDA if those safe place instructions are there, if they aren't, but you have got a local agreement with the customer. then there's two different ways that you can followed that.

So for all tracked parcels, and this is for tracked twenty four tracked fourty eight, then you'll be able to select safe place on the PDA, and that will prompt you to deliver it to that safe place, and then take a photograph.

Please make sure that you do take that photograph when it's prompted because it's really important to the sender to defend any claims they get for non delivery of an item.

If it's a signature item, and that's special delivery or signed for, then we can't leave it in a safe place and that's obvious, the customer has paid us, and we got a contractual requirement to get that signature, so we need to abide by that process.

For other unsigned for items, so these are the standard items are going to be Royal Mail twenty four and forty eight, first and second class or international standard items, then in some circumstances, the sender will have given a safe place instruction, and the same prompt will come up on the PDA it does for track items, but that's a relatively small proportion of that traffic currently.

For most items then you have to scan delivered, leave it in that safe place, and then, for all of those items, whether it's tracked or untracked complete that something for you card and leave it through the postbox so customers know where the item has been left.

So final piece of request is if you have got those local arrangements, then record them wherever possible back at the office in a walk log if you've got one, so that people were are covering your round to know what those local agreements are, so can give a consistent level of service to that customer.

So that is it thank you once again, for all of your input tonight, we are going to be making some more changes in this process. soon we want to give you even more capability to deliver to a safe place, even if you haven't got a local instruction, but we need to test that properly.

I'm going to be doing that in a smaller geographic region in the next month. I'll let you know more about that as soon as I can, but for now then hopefully this new process answers many of the questions that you were raising a week ago and I'll update you again, and when we bring some more changes in, thank you again and have a great week.



From Monday this means that you can leave non-signature parcels in a safeplace if you have an agreement with your customer. This will apply for Tracked24 and Tracked 48, Royal Mail 24 and 48, 1st and 2nd Class and International Standard Parcels. It can’t apply for any parcels where the customer has paid for a signature or age verification check for obvious reasons.

Here’s how it works:

1: always attempt delivery to the customer first. If the customer is not in, folow the safeplace instructions on the PDA if there are some. If there aren’t any and you have an arrangment in place with the customer then you can leave the item in their safeplace.

2: for Tracked Parcels, when you scan the barcode on the parcel you will be able to access and follow the safeplace process on the PDA, including taking a photo of the parcel in it’s safe place. We really need this photo so the sender knows where the parcel has been delivered.

3: for standard parcels, some senders will have selected a safeplace and the same process will apply on the PDA. But for most standard parcels this will not come up and you will need to process the item as delivered and leave them in the safeplace agreed with the customer.

4: you will need to follow the existing guidance on what is an acceptable safe place. Enclosed porches, sheds, greenhouses, garages or outbuildings are fine, but bins, doorsteps and underneath parked cars are not.

5: don’t forget to always post a Something For You card whenever you leave a parcel in a safe place so your customer knows where it is.

6 and finally, record your safeplace instruction back at the office so colleagues who cover your route know what to do and we can give a consistent service to customers.

[Acca Dacca]

Regarding the last point - do they believe reserves have the time to go through the walk log and remember where everyone wants their parcels left? Or have they to take the walk log out on duty with them and flick through it at every doorstep they are at with a parcel? They do know we deliver to, in most cases, 600+ delivery points right?

[SpacePhoenix]

Regarding the last point - do they believe reserves have the time to go through the walk log and remember where everyone wants their parcels left? Or have they to take the walk log out on duty with them and flick through it at every doorstep they are at with a parcel? They do know we deliver to, in most cases, 600+ delivery points right?

Are the walk logs even remotely accurate/up to date?

[Kenfandango]

Our walk logs haven't been updated in the time I've been there, so most of them are for pre-revision. Checked in one last week so I could find something out and it had 2 streets missing

[Dorset Plodder]

Nick 'Behind the plant pot mate' Landon


So final piece of request is if you have got those local arrangements, then record them wherever possible back at the office in a walk log if you've got one, so that people were are covering your round to know what those local agreements are, so can give a consistent level of service to that customer.

The Famous "Covers all eventualities" Walk Log! Simply just another Umberalla Job so managers can say, "Well it should have been in the Walk Log" when someone falls down a set of damp slippery stairs and breaks a leg!

As mentioned by other posters: Do they really think anyone's got the time to sit there and read through the Walk Log before they head out on Delivery? We were recently asked to make sure they were updated with Aggressive Dogs, due to the increase in Dog Attacks. One clever bollocks on a Rural was making a big thing about, "Well I've got over 200 dogs on my round. The Dog Warnings look like a pack or cards"! I suggested perhaps he should just concentrate on Aggressive Dogs he's had a problem with over the years. "Any dog can be aggressive" was his reply. Fair enough but he failed to grasp the point that he wasn't helping his Reserve by listing every bloody dog on his walk when he could have just highlighted the few problem ones.I would suggest that if you do have problem dogs you, as the Duty Holder, should be discussing it with your Residents and perhaps suggesting they get a box on the gate?

He was later heard asking the workplace coach if he should be including Holiday Let addresses .... "Because they MIGHT have brought their dog with them". FFS!

[Dorset Plodder]

Are the walk logs even remotely accurate/up to date?

I think the point is SP they are not fit for purpose. Even if they were up to date, and accurate, they're the size of a Telephone Directory. As previously mentioned there's no way anyone reads them before delivery (cue somone posting they read them everday and just leave more mail behind). Sometimes they're handy for perhaps looking up an obscure address ... IF the Duty Holders included a list of House Names.

Certainly for Aggressive dogs I think a smaller "Dog Aware" sticker for use on the frame would be more helpful (the current ones nearly cover the address). God knows how you'd use a "Recognised Safe Place" sticker?

[2yearpostie]

Nick 'weve balls it up so just do what you were doing anyway' should be this guys name.

[POSTMAN]

if you've got one
And if you ain't?

[Clappedoutpostie]

When someone asked a question about why there was no walk logs after the revision at ours they were told they were going digital and will all be online

[mjd24]

Regarding the last point - do they believe reserves have the time to go through the walk log and remember where everyone wants their parcels left? Or have they to take the walk log out on duty with them and flick through it at every doorstep they are at with a parcel? They do know we deliver to, in most cases, 600+ delivery points right?

Yet more “box ticking”.

[claretandblue]

I have a sh!t list, everyone starts off on the good list, complain, or be a knob, and you go on the list. Luckily my customers are ace, single digits are on the list.

[DGH]

When someone asked a question about why there was no walk logs after the revision at ours they were told they were going digital and will all be online

Surprisingly there's some truth in that. Route Manager now has the facility to store 'address information' so specific hazards can be flagged at the relevant delivery points. I'm not quite sure how that'll work in the real world, but it may well involve some kind of pop up once you've scanned an item for the address (which may well then be too late . . .), or, more daringly, it might alert you when the GPS 'sees' you've left the previous address (which I'm more sceptical about being achievable).

[POSTMAN]

New today...

LTB 156/22 – Royal Mail & CWU Capture Photo on Delivery Joint Statement Addendum

Where there is a customer dispute or complaint as to whether there is a pre-existing agreement in place, the delivery colleague will not face any repercussions or conduct action.

[Clappedoutpostie]

When someone asked a question about why there was no walk logs after the revision at ours they were told they were going digital and will all be online

Surprisingly there's some truth in that. Route Manager now has the facility to store 'address information' so specific hazards can be flagged at the relevant delivery points. I'm not quite sure how that'll work in the real world, but it may well involve some kind of pop up once you've scanned an item for the address (which may well then be too late . . .), or, more daringly, it might alert you when the GPS 'sees' you've left the previous address (which I'm more sceptical about being achievable).

Oh right, I thought they were taking the Micky. Not sure how “scan at the door and not before” would fit in with any hazard/risk if they are planning on doing it that way.