How to ensure your postal votes are on time despite unreliable Royal Mail | General elections

I am writing in response to the concern raised by Serena Nuttall (Letters, 10 April) regarding postal votes cast in upcoming elections arriving after the deadline of 10pm on polling day and being ineligible to be counted. Given the very rapid decline in service levels provided by Royal Mail, the risk of disenfranchisement of postal voters is a very valid worry for upcoming local and UK elections.

In my local area, residents are receiving less than one Royal Mail delivery per week, and can wait a month for a second-class letter to arrive.

There are two possible solutions to this. One, post your vote back as soon as you receive your voting pack. The packs are produced approximately three weeks before polling day. Two, having a postal vote means that you cannot then opt to cast your vote in person at a polling station. But if you can’t post your postal vote in time, you can take it your polling station. You may also be able to hand it in to your local council office, but you should contact your electoral registration officer to check if this is possible. I hope this helps.
Jess Taylor
Ewhurst, Surrey