Reply to: royal mail

[Bagpuss]

Yes, after this experience I will never use royal mail for anything important ever again!

just as an update - I rang the skills assessment people in Oz last night and they HAVE received my parcel... in fact they received it only about 5 days after I posted it.

Does change the fact that RM's tracking software doesn't work and they weren't able to tell me whether they had delivered it.

To get it in 5 days is pretty good, IMHO Parcel Force are second only to UPS in terms of service. The royal mail is very good if you know how to use it. People complain about the service but a lot of the independants are worse or vastly most expensive.

Tip for the day: Recorded post goes in the stream with special delivery, so you get the premium service for 50p.

[janey]

Having sent thousand of parcels overseas..If you ever need to send a parcel overseas, or internal for that matter, never ever send them through 'Royal Mail', always use parcel force (which goes a totally different way). 9 times out of ten it will be quicker, cheaper and trackable.

Yes, after this experience I will never use royal mail for anything important ever again!

just as an update - I rang the skills assessment people in Oz last night and they HAVE received my parcel... in fact they received it only about 5 days after I posted it.

Does change the fact that RM's tracking software doesn't work and they weren't able to tell me whether they had delivered it.

[Bagpuss]

Having sent thousand of parcels overseas..If you ever need to send a parcel overseas, or internal for that matter, never ever send them through 'Royal Mail', always use parcel force (which goes a totally different way). 9 times out of ten it will be quicker, cheaper and trackable.

Problem is most people go into the post office and ask the numpty behind the counter which way to send it.

[janey]

[threaded]

Mailman: You are quite correct. I kept getting them so I set up some spare HDTV cameras to watch as the guy got out of his van, just put the note through the door, went back to the van and drove off. He never made any attempt to deliver and certainly did not ring the door bell.

IIRC I sold the video to Central TV and it got on the local news. Which was nice.

Didn't get any mail at all for a few days after that, until they swapped the posties around.

[Mailman]

I complained to the Royal Mail a couple of years ago about the Post Man - he kept dropping off the whole streets mail through my letter box and going home early. The response from the RM was that it was my legal responsibility to make sure that the mail got delivered regardless My response was that to prosecute me they would first have to admit deliberately putting the mail through my letter box enabling me to not deliver it. The problem stopped the next day when they got a postman that could read numbers.

The thing the fecks me off the most is when there is a "we tried to deliver blah to you today but you werent home" when I was home all the time!

I suspect the dodgy algerian who does our mail round cant be fecked carrying the letter to drop off in the first place!

However, I guess, if you pay peanuts all you are going to get is monkeys doing the job. Maybe if RM paid a little better (ie. above the minimum wage) they might actually get some people who are actually prepared to deliver the mail!

Mailman

[janey]

You need to trade your man in for an uprated model.

I don't have a man... perhaps that's the problem!

*janey in celebate for 2.5 years and counting mode*

EDIT: ok well maybe not celebate but single, yes!

[threaded]

*Janey in no better mood today mode*

You need to trade your man in for an uprated model.

[janey]

I sent something recorded delivery once and the intended recipient told me they hadn't had it. I rang the Post Office and they told me "there is no record of delivery for that item". Well worth paying the extra I thought.

That's what I've thought.

after a bit of trawling around on their web site it says that for inland signed for delivery you can request a copy of the signatiure that was given on delivery, however for international it's not possible.... what's the feckin point then!??!!!!!!



*Janey in no better mood today mode*

[Fleetwood]

[xoggoth]

I sent something recorded delivery once and the intended recipient told me they hadn't had it. I rang the Post Office and they told me "there is no record of delivery for that item". Well worth paying the extra I thought.

[janey]

Do you have photocopies..? Often ive found that a fax is more reliable - on the occassions where I have had to send my passport as ID Ive used the Royal Mail for a tenner - some courier firms are wel known for crime...

A few years ago I ordered a 17" monitor and a tower case (back when towers were real towers... and a K7 was regarded as a fast processor.... everything was in big boxes then that you couldnt really lose....

The shipment apparently went from Simply Computers onto a truck from the courier at 6.15pm or thereabouts... by the time it reached the depot it had dissapeared. I went up the chain of command to their European Head of Sales and eventually got compensation. Normally its the local franchises that do the stealing - a friend and his dad owned a franchise and he said it was quite common for drivers to try to fiddle the delivery notes when they spotted something 'worth avin'....

unfortunately I can't use photocopies... that's why I've had to get copies certified by a lawyer so faxing is out of teh question.

thanks for the suggestion tho!

[mcquiggd]

Do you have photocopies..? Often ive found that a fax is more reliable - on the occassions where I have had to send my passport as ID Ive used the Royal Mail for a tenner - some courier firms are wel known for crime...

A few years ago I ordered a 17" monitor and a tower case (back when towers were real towers... and a K7 was regarded as a fast processor.... everything was in big boxes then that you couldnt really lose....

The shipment apparently went from Simply Computers onto a truck from the courier at 6.15pm or thereabouts... by the time it reached the depot it had dissapeared. I went up the chain of command to their European Head of Sales and eventually got compensation. Normally its the local franchises that do the stealing - a friend and his dad owned a franchise and he said it was quite common for drivers to try to fiddle the delivery notes when they spotted something 'worth avin'....

[privateeye]

I complained to the Royal Mail a couple of years ago about the Post Man - he kept dropping off the whole streets mail through my letter box and going home early. The response from the RM was that it was my legal responsibility to make sure that the mail got delivered regardless My response was that to prosecute me they would first have to admit deliberately putting the mail through my letter box enabling me to not deliver it. The problem stopped the next day when they got a postman that could read numbers.

[janey]

If you want any serious compensation money, you will need to lie about the contents in any case as you can only be compensated for tangible, proveable financial loss (i.e. you can't claim for inconvenience, loss of earnings or anything like that). Fortunately with international signed for that is upto £500.

£500? thought it was only £50 actually but admittedly I haven't looked into it, I just want my parcel to have been delivered, not really interested in compensation.

can't imagine what I'm going to claim for to get money... I had to get copies of documents certified by a lawyer and some charge about £5 per copy (fortunately I found someone to do the whole lot for a fiver! janey in sweet & innocent, fluttering eyelashes mode), but I'll probably still have to prove that I paid that amount.... which I can't.
But aside from that I didn't pay out for anything.

hmmm, who's up for writing me some receipts?!