Related Articles
In February, the BBC reported that, according to postal workers, letters sit in the postal department for weeks, while priority is given to delivering parcels.
Residents in Basingstoke have repeatedly reported problems with postal deliveries in the town, including one who said a letter which arrived 13 days late caused her to miss a hospital appointment.
One Tadley resident reported that it took 14 days for Royal Mail to deliver a letter from Abingdon.
Royal Mail executives are expected to be called to parliament to answer questions about issues with its letter delivery service, according to the BBC.
On February 17, Royal Mail was given two weeks by The Business and Trade Committee to respond to allegations, reported by the BBC, that parcels were being prioritised over letters.
Gazette reporter Jasmine Kelly decided to test the service by posting a series of letters and two parcels to see which arrived first. Here is her account of what happened.
Each letter was sent from the same post box at the same time each day and to the same location.
On the morning of February 24, I posted two parcels, one first and one second class. Inside each parcel was a packet of M&S dark chocolate digestives with demerara sugar- my biscuit of choice.
The cashier at the Post Office looked at me inquisitively, expressing that the address was just around the corner, and I could walk. I shrugged- the experiment had to go on.
From that same morning for a week, I then posted two letters a day, one for each class, with the date it was sent written inside each envelope.
Typically, first class postage should arrive in one to two days, while second class is two to three days.
Within one day, on February 25, I was delighted to see the first class packet of biscuits had arrived, but the accompanying first-class letter was nowhere to be seen. Could this prove Royal Mail is prioritising parcels?
The enclosed biscuits in the parcel were a little crumby but not broken, so they had clearly been handled with care, and they were delicious as usual.
On February 26, I received four items on my doorstep.
One of these was the second class packet of biscuits. It was accompanied by three letters, the first and second class ones sent on February 24, and the first class one sent on February 25.
Interestingly, the first class letter sent on February 24 showed a stamp from the distribution centre with the date of February 24.
This means that the letter had arrived there on the same day as the first class parcel, but was not delivered until the day after the parcel. Is this an indication that the BBC report could be correct that parcels are being prioritised, even if there was only a delay of one day?
From then onwards, each letter was delivered in a timely manner, with no letter taking more than two days to arrive.
According to the Royal Mail website, letter-receivers can expect first class deliveries on a Saturday but not second class ones.
On February 28, a Saturday, I received three letters, two of which were second class.
Towards the end of the week, the first class and second class letters began to arrive on the same day, with March 2 bringing me both sets of letters sent on February 28 and March 1.
Our investigation suggests that the BBC’s allegations could also be true in Basingstoke, particularly as the first class parcel was the first to be delivered, despite a first class letter also being sent on the same day.
This experiment cost me £20.56 in stamps, £1.10 in envelopes and a further £6.51 at the post office.
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “Every single letter and parcel is important to us, and we aim to deliver all items on time.
“The vast majority of mail in Basingstoke is delivered on time. Our latest published, independently verified figures show that 76 per cent of first class mail in the RG postcode area is delivered the next working day, with the near total arriving in the days after.
“This is broadly in line with our national performance, where 73.4 per cent of first class mail is delivered the next working day and 96.2 per cent within three working days.”
Have you had problems with post in Basingstoke? Let us know by commenting below.
