Residents ‘not receiving mail for weeks’ and ‘missing hospital appointments’ due to Royal Mail delays, MP claims

Residents have been ‘missing’ hospital appointments and notices from debt collectors after waiting for ‘weeks’ for their mail in a Greater Manchester town, an MP has claimed.

In a letter penned to Royal Mail CEO Alistair Cochrane, Heywood and Middleton North MP Elsie Blundell said that constituents had reached out over ‘frustrations’ with ‘ongoing postal delays’ across Middleton.

She said she has been left ‘outraged’ by the postal service that has been ‘letting people down, especially in Middleton, for far too long’. It included one example of someone who had not received a letter from Manchester Airport until almost a month later.

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There were claims made that people had ‘missed’ hospital appointments and also notices from debt collectors due to the delays in the delivery of post which caused further financial difficulties.

“Many of the residents, who have contacted me via email, have stated that they often do not receive any mail for a number of weeks, and will then, receive a bundle of letters, which have built up over time,” she penned.

“At a recent meeting between myself and the Director of External Affairs, I was advised that people do not actually receive a lot of post anymore, and that residents may have outdated expectations of the postal service.

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“However, from the correspondence I have received from constituents, the issue is not that they receive a small quantity of post, but that the post they do receive, is delivered late. For example, one constituent contacted me stating that they received a letter from Manchester Airport, which was delivered on the 25th of May, but the date the letter was sent out was the 26th of April.

“Due to the ongoing postal delays, constituents have missed hospital appointments, and experienced financial difficulties, with some constituents missing final notice warnings from debt collection agencies advising them to contact before the appeal dead line, which is often within seven working days from when the letter was sent.

“I am aware that Royal Mail has stated there are a number of staff shortages due to illness and retention issues, and as such, some areas across the country will experience delays. However, this has been an ongoing issue since December 2024 and is wholly unacceptable.

“I receive emails on a daily basis from constituents, detailing the difficulties they have experienced due to the delays.”

Ms Blundell added that she would raise the issue in Parliament and Ofcom ‘if things don’t start to improve’.

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