Man’s fury as postie pushes ‘fragile’ package over fence smashing £100 antique inside

A MAN has been left furious after a postman pushed his fragile parcel over the fence destroying the £100 antique that was inside.

Michael Hamill from Leeds said he was “disgusted” after the delivery man shoved the package over the gate and says the “irreplaceable” ashtray has now been chipped.

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Michael and his wife Sara Shepherd caught the moment on their security camera on January 7.

The footage shows the postman knocking on the couple’s door and moments later pushing the package over the fence which then drops to the ground. 

Michael told Leeds Live: “He could have left a card in the letterbox. It said fragile huge on the package.

“I was livid that they just pushed it over a gate. He only waited a couple of seconds after knocking to do it. I was so excited about getting them and it was heartbreaking to open the package and them be ruined.

“We’re disappointed at Royal Mail’s response when we sent them all the evidence and they said ‘we don’t know how this has happened.”

Michael who is a collector of antique ashtrays from the 1940s and 50s said the parcel contained two antique ashtrays he bought off eBay, worth £100.

He has received an apology from the Royal Mail alongside six first-class stamps as compensation.

Royal Mail wrote: “My investigations into your enquiry have included checking all available service information and I cannot identify any reason why this problem occurred.

“Due to the millions of pieces of mail that pass through our massive postal pipeline each day, I am sorry that I cannot say where, when or how the item was damaged.

“Mechanical handling and the weight of other mail can sometimes cause damage, but we do everything possible to prevent mail arriving in poor condition.”

It added that it would need photos of the packaging and proof of the item’s value in order to compensate him for the damaged items.

Sara tweeted about the incident saying she was “disgusted” at the response and explained that there is a letterbox next to the gate where the delivery men can leave an attempted delivery note.

A Royal Mail spokesperson told the outlet: “Royal Mail expects the highest standards of behaviour from our people while out on deliveries and collections at all times.

“We regularly remind our postmen and postwomen of the important role they play in their local communities.

“We would like to apologise to the customer concerned and will be getting in touch with them directly to discuss the matter further.”