‘My father’s ashes went missing in the post from US to Doncaster’

A grieving daughter who says her father’s ashes were lost in the post in a transatlantic mix-up has criticised the Royal Mail for their disappearance.

Lisa Barrett, 63, said her sister in the US had sent her dad’s ashes to her home in South Yorkshire late last year but she had never received them.

The Royal Mail said the parcel arrived in Doncaster in early January, but was later returned to the US after exceeding its retention period as the customs fee was not paid. However, the United States Postal Service said it never received the parcel.

Ms Barrett said she was never told she needed to pay the duty or where to collect the package, adding: “This has got my family torn up on two continents.”

Ms Barrett, who moved from Missouri to Doncaster in 2001, said her father, Kenneth Wilson, had died in 2021 in the US of natural causes aged 85.

She said she had not been able to return to the US for his funeral due to financial reasons and her own health complications, and she had since been unable to find closure.

“A part of me still wants to pick up the phone and call him – it hasn’t hit me even yet,” she said.

With that in mind, Ms Barrett said her sister, Laura Greeno, 56, had decided to send her the ashes from the US.

Ms Barrett said: “When I found out Laura was sending me a piece of Dad, I didn’t know how to say thank you. It was just such a precious thing.”

Her sister had cared for their father in his final years and said she wanted Ms Barrett to have “a part of him” as well, Ms Barrett said.

The missing urn containing the ashes was about 3ins (7.6 cm) tall and within the Royal Mail’s limits of 50g or less for human remains, according to Ms Barrett.

She said it was not just an “everyday package” which had been lost in transit – and both sisters were frustrated and upset at being unable to recover their father’s ashes.

Ms Barrett said: “The Royal Mail needs to realise these things affect people’s lives.

“This has got my family torn up on two continents.”

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We are actively working to discover the whereabouts of this important item.

“We will engage with the customer to advise on the measures we’re taking.”