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A CANCER patient missed five hospital appointments because Royal Mail has failed to deliver her letters on time.
Stratford resident Laura told the Herald she’s often left waiting three weeks for her post to arrive. And she said it was “disgusting” that it’s delayed her treatment.
Laura is one of many who have said that instead of being delivered daily, their post comes in fortnightly or three-weekly batches – or not at all.
One reader contacted the Herald because his elderly mother who lives in Clopton Road, and many of her neighbours, had no Royal Mail deliveries for a fortnight. When they asked their postal worker, they were told their best bet was to go to the sorting office between 8am-10am and collect their own mail.
The reader, who asked not to be named, said: “My mother is in her eighties and like a lot of people of her age, she doesn’t use email, so she’s heavily reliant on the post and having things delivered.
“She doesn’t have the best mobility, so it’s a bit optimistic for Royal Mail to expect her to walk all the way to the sorting office to fetch her own post.”
Katy Markham, who also lives in Clopton Road, was told to expect just one delivery a week ‘for a while’.
She said: “The delivery office told us we’d get one delivery a week for a while as they don’t have the staff.”
Another woman has been waiting for important documents since March, which finally arrived this week.
Charlotte Cole-Mayo, who lives in Mulberry Street, says she and her neighbours have the same problem.
She told the Herald: “We don’t get any post all week, then one day it’s a massive bulk. We even got post last Sunday.”
She added: “It just varies from one week to the next. It’s not reliable.”
Darren Grasby is another whose post is unreliable and says he’s had “several cases where post has arrived after the appointment it was supposed to be notifying us of.”
Helen Elliott, who lives in Clopton Road, said “the post seems to be coming in batches” of twice or three times a week, but it is “better than before”.
And Jez Roberts made the point that there is a problem across the whole of Stratford, not just Clopton Road.
A spokesperson for Royal Mail told the Herald: “We are sorry some customers have experienced delays in Stratford-upon-Avon. Every item of mail is important to us, and when delays occur, every effort is made to ensure post is delivered and the reasons behind the delays are addressed.
“The local service has recently been impacted by resourcing issues, including vacancies. Efforts are under way to resolve this and bring the service back to the high standard customers expect.
“Managers are actively recruiting, and new posties are expected to begin within the coming weeks.
“Delays are not universal across the area with deliveries across many routes being made on time, six days a week when there is mail to be delivered. If a route is not completed, those addresses will be prioritised the next day.
“We encourage anyone who experiences repeat delays, or who has concerns about the delivery of their mail, to please contact Royal Mail customer service on 03457 740 740 or via www.royalmail.com.”
On Monday, postal service and communications watchdog Ofcom opened an investigation into privately owned Royal Mail’s failure to meet delivery performance targets.
Royal Mail managed to deliver only 74 per cent of first class mail within one working day, far below the Ofcom target of 93 per cent.
If it decides Royal Mail is in breach of its obligations, Ofcom could impose a hefty fine.
Last year, Ofcom warned Royal Mail it could no longer use the impact of Covid-19 as an excuse for poor delivery performance.
Royal Mail Group, which includes the UK and international parcels and letters delivery businesses operating under the Royal Mail and Parcelforce Worldwide brands, last week announced its chief executive Simon Thompson is stepping down after just over two years in the role.
Royal Mail has also blamed its failures on a long-running industrial dispute with the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU), which included 18 days of strike action.
Speaking on BBC radio this week, CWU general secretary Dave Ward blamed senior management for creating a ‘toxic workplace culture’.
He accused them of creating “an unachievable workload for postal workers” and completely alienating the workforce.
After admitting it had missed its targets, Royal Mail chief operating officer Grant McPherson, after an apology.
He said: “We’re sorry to any customers who may have been impacted by our performance during a year that has been one of the most challenging in our history.
“With the plans we have in place to drive service levels and reduce absence, we hope and expect to see further progress in the coming months.”
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