Concerns over poor postal service in Worcester and Malvern

Delays to postal deliveries have caused concerns to Worcestershire residents with one man having to go to the sorting office to pick up his mail.

One woman received her birthday cards a week after the event, in a bundle held together by an elastic band. Hospital appointments and other urgent letters have arrived late, residents have said.

Some people in Worcester, Malvern and Upton-upon-Severn said they have only been getting one delivery a week. West Worcestershire MP Harriett Baldwin said she had written to the Royal Mail chief executive about the situation. Her office was dealing with a dozen reports of late mail.

Royal Mail said they were investigating the concerns.

Worcester resident Sharon Ballett said: “I first realised there was a problem in October when it was my birthday.

“My friends sent me cards using first class stamps, but they only arrived a week after my birthday in a big bundle, held together by an elastic band.

“It seemed very odd. Since then myself and husband both had our bank cards cancelled because we were scammed. The bank was great and said ‘you’ll have replacement cards within five days’.

“But we had to wait at least 10 days for replacements to arrive.”

Mrs Ballett also said it was affecting other people who live in her neighbourhood.

“I’ve had hospital letters arrive later than they should – it’s a real concern,” she added.

“The bosses seem more interested in making profits than having a proper service.”

Clive Smith, a pensioner who lives in Upton-upon-Severn, ended up travelling to a sorting office in Worcester in October to collect his mail.

“It really is quite stressful – when I collected my post they blamed staff shortages and said things would go back to normal, but they haven’t,” he said.

“It’s stuff like hospital appointments and bank statements that aren’t arriving when they are meant to.

“We don’t want to be the town with no mail. It’s affecting a lot of people.”

Baldwin said she had seen a “serious increase in the number of people” complaining to her.

“My biggest concern is that people may be missing urgent hospital appointments or test results, which are often still sent through the post.

“I’ve heard reports of events being cancelled because people cannot rely on a first-class service.”

The Royal Mail was bought by new owners in 2024, but the sale came with a pledge to maintain their obligations to deliver first class mail six days a week.

A spokesman for Royal Mail said: “We take any reports of delay seriously and will further investigate these concerns.

“We want to reassure customers that the overwhelming majority of mail is being delivered on time – where a route is affected we prioritise any delayed items the following day.”