Royal Mail delivery disasters continue amid reports of delays and lost letters
Royal Mail has reportedly failed to deliver on postal targets across the whole of the UK this summer, in the latest episode of trouble for the service.
Royal Mail is supposed to deliver letters six days a week, excluding Sunday, and parcels five days a week, excluding the weekend. But in some UK postcodes, the postal service is doing the rounds less than once a week, according to a report by This is Money.
Posties have described the situation as “diabolical” as they face “angry backlash” on doorsteps, with people complaining about missing health documents and other important letters.
Shares in International Distributions Services, the parent company of Royal Mail, were down as much as 1.5 per cent on Wednesday.
Caroline Lucas, Green MP for Brighton said: “My constituents are experiencing very real problems with post deliveries, causing them to miss hospital appointments because letters do not turn up in time, as well as the delays compounding grief and heartache.”
It is understood that Royal Mail are unaware of any area that would not receive postal service for a week.
Ofcom launched a probe into previous delivery failures by the company earlier this year.
According to Royal Mail’s own data, only 73.7 per cent of First Class letters were delivered on time in May this year, when the rate should be at 93 per cent.
The watchdog checks that Royal Mail is meeting annual delivery targets from April to March each year. It has the power to fine the company if it falls short of its responsibilities.
In 2020 it fined Royal Mail £1.5m for missing one of its 2018/19 delivery targets.
“We know how frustrating and disruptive it can be when your post is delayed. We assess Royal Mail’s performance every year against annual delivery targets, and we are currently investigating its failure to meet its targets for 2022/23,” an Ofcom spokesperson said.
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We have dedicated teams responsible for identifying delays at our delivery offices and taking immediate action.
“This includes extensive recruitment – 6,000 new postmen and women have been hired in the last 12 weeks – and detailed plans to improve quality and provide a reliable service moving forward.”
The 6,000 new hires are on top of the 16,000 festive workers that Royal Mail have recently employed to help with Christmas deliveries.