Sun-seeking Brits missing out on holidays as thousands of passports lost in post

Sunseekers are having to cancel trips because so many passports are lost in the post.

Thousands have gone missing over the last year, with figures showing the number has doubled in 12 months.

Many families have had to cancel upcoming Easter holidays due to the ongoing issues, which the Passport Office has blamed on courier TNT.

Around 1,200 passports or supporting documents were lost in the first six months of 2021.

Reasons for the documents going missing include application form errors, people moving address or errors by Passport Office and TNT staff.

Others have had their passports delivered to the wrong address.

TNT, owned by FedEx, was awarded a three-year contract worth £77million to deliver new and renewed passports with Royal Mail instead.

Frustrated holidaymakers have now started a petition, demanding an inquiry into failings at TNT.

Travel consultant Paul Charles said: “Many people have had to cancel their travel plans and as a result have lost out on hundreds or even thousands of pounds.”

A HM Passport Office spokesman said: “Between Jan 1 and July 31 HM Passport Office sent over 3.3million items to its customers.

“Less than 0.04% of those were reported as having been lost during delivery.”

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