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Original poster

Is Royal Mail disrupted?

49 replies

Catch2222 · 23/09/2023 10:34

This is weird. I work from home and rely on post coming daily. I have had no post at all this week despite knowing I'm due some deliveries. (Not tracked unfortunately) I saw a post van in the street earlier who delivered a parcel to my neighbour but he's gone again.

No letters. Is this a thing? Do Royal Mail not deliver daily any more?

Thanks xx

OP posts:
Whinge · 23/09/2023 10:39

Do Royal Mail not deliver daily any more?

Where I live they haven't delivered daily since Covid. I'm lucky to get post more than once a week.

It's got to the point where I dread Royal Mail delivering parcels as they take weeks to arrive compared to any other company. A neighbour had a letter for a hospital appointment that was delivered after the date, and from what i've seen on MN this isn't an isolated incident.

1stworldissues · 23/09/2023 10:40

RM priorities have changed
They earn more doing parcels so they deliver those
We get post about once a week now

ArseInTheCoOpWindow · 23/09/2023 10:42

Weekly round here. No warning, no notification. Why bother having first or second class stamps. It makes zero difference.

heldinadream · 23/09/2023 10:43

I live out in the sticks but I think we have an incredible local service. Daily post (we get post most days), nothing is ever late as far as I can tell, and the local postie is on the local FB group and responds to queries re things missing etc. Honestly couldn't be better.
Maybe we're lucky?

INeedNewShoes · 23/09/2023 10:50

'Disruption' to me is a temporary state and my experience lately makes me think that Royal Mail as we knew it is a thing of the past.

Things I've posted first class recently have taken 3-4 working days to arrive. If you want something to arrive in less than that you need to pay through the nose and post it as a tracked parcel, then it'll stand a chance.

A couple of items ordered online in the last month have arrived 1-2 days after they should have.

It's really sad that you can't put an important letter or a birthday card in a postbox with a first class stamp on it and rely on Royal Mail to deliver it the next day or even two days after any more.

(Feel the need to say that I really like our postman.. He's a brilliant chap and delivers letters and parcels carefully and promptly once they're in his care so I'm not bashing the employees!)

YourNameGoesHere · 23/09/2023 10:55

ArseInTheCoOpWindow · 23/09/2023 10:42

Weekly round here. No warning, no notification. Why bother having first or second class stamps. It makes zero difference.

Likewise here sometimes we get mail twice a week but it's rare.

Letters seem to be delivered in bundles here often with an elastic band around them as if they're being collected and they are waiting until we get a big enough amount to actually make the effort to deliver them.

For parcel deliveries I'd honestly rather use literally any other company than royal mail.

It's been going on for ages now and I've seen a few other posts on MN saying the same.

BoohooWoohoo · 23/09/2023 10:59

I see RM vans daily on our street but the postie seem to only deliver 2 or 3 times a week. I'm waiting for a letter from the hospital so it's very worrying. I know that they make a loss with each letter delivered but can't help but wonder if this is the precursor to privatisation and opening up competition for mail delivery.

slavetothekittens · 23/09/2023 10:59

Parcels seem okay round here, but letters only seem to be delivered once or twice a week now.

Original poster
Catch2222 · 23/09/2023 11:01

Ah for flip sake! It would be nice if they had notified us!

I live in outskirts of Belfast maybe I'm naive to think they should have notified us of the change.

This has really irritated me today. Although maybe that's a menopausal thing lol.

Thanks everyone.

OP posts:
HeathrowQuestion · 23/09/2023 11:04

I posted something from a usually reliable location on 8 September and both items arrived yesterday, so exactly two weeks later. I would never rely on royal mail any more, they are a total joke.

YourNameGoesHere · 23/09/2023 11:06

Catch2222 · 23/09/2023 11:01

Ah for flip sake! It would be nice if they had notified us!

I live in outskirts of Belfast maybe I'm naive to think they should have notified us of the change.

This has really irritated me today. Although maybe that's a menopausal thing lol.

Thanks everyone.

The trouble is they don't want to notify people because honestly who the fuck would pay for first class letters if they actively told you it made no difference. They want to keep it quiet because they want people to still think of them like they used to be in days gone by where they delivered twice a day.

unsync · 23/09/2023 11:08

They are focusing on parcel delivery 🙄 RM is a shit show. It is best to avoid using them wherever possible and yes, that includes for parcel delivery.

MermaidEyes · 23/09/2023 11:13

HeathrowQuestion · 23/09/2023 11:04

I posted something from a usually reliable location on 8 September and both items arrived yesterday, so exactly two weeks later. I would never rely on royal mail any more, they are a total joke.

I was at my parents house yesterday and three bills came through, all dated 8th September 🙄 However, we still seem to have daily post in our area. I stopped buying first class stamps years ago and send everything second now because it makes no difference.

Blueeyedmale · 23/09/2023 11:20

Here in Gosport, Hampshire they put out a notice last week saying they are struggling due to shortage of staff,they are trying to recruit across the country seems not many want to be a postman/woman.they did say deliveries would be affected think its also in certain other areas across the country too

JustKen · 23/09/2023 11:21

It's been disrupted for years. The postal workers have crazy workloads now and despite denying it to the Business select committee this year, prioritise parcels over letters.

Eventually they want to get rid of Saturday deliveries.

Stbxh is a postie but is leaving soon because the whole outfit is a joke

fettuccini · 23/09/2023 12:05

My husband is a post man. He works 6 days a week delivering letters and parcels. He could work 7 days a week if he wanted to, there is such a high workload. He delivers letters every single day, just not to the same places. They are short staffed and trying to cover much larger areas than before. They have their own routes and then other routes to pick up, often having to alternate the routes daily or weekly. They have been pushed into delivering more parcels than letters in the last few years and there has been massive, well reported, problems about the Royal Mail issues, including a government business committee having to step in and question the corrupt ex CEO. I'm surprised you've not heard about any of it. But the posties are still out there every single day, so please be kind to them. It's not their fault the company is a shit show.

To the poster complaining about getting bundles of letters 'saved up' with elastic bands round it. This has been the way mail is sorted for years. Mail is sorted into slots and then banded up to put in their mail bags. They don't just go through the bag at every address the find the right letters for you. They used to take your little elastic bands off but often now don't have the time due to the high workload and being tracked and disciplined if shown as 'idle' if they stop moving.

fettuccini · 23/09/2023 12:07

BoohooWoohoo · 23/09/2023 10:59

I see RM vans daily on our street but the postie seem to only deliver 2 or 3 times a week. I'm waiting for a letter from the hospital so it's very worrying. I know that they make a loss with each letter delivered but can't help but wonder if this is the precursor to privatisation and opening up competition for mail delivery.

Royal Mail is already a private entity. It has been since 2011.

BoohooWoohoo · 23/09/2023 12:15

fettuccini · 23/09/2023 12:07

Royal Mail is already a private entity. It has been since 2011.

Show quote history

Oops I missed that memo.
I think it's probably time that they don't have the monopoly over mail delivery- especially with Christmas approaching and people needing things delivered on time.

Bluevelvetsofa · 23/09/2023 12:41

It’s not disruption, it’s their level of (non) service these days.

I have notification of parcels, with a time scale. They don’t arrive. Then there’s another notification. Tracking is useless, the letter post is worse than u reliable too. I posted a birthday card on 1st September. It arrived on 21st September. I posted another, to the same house on 19th September. It drives on the same day as the first.

WildCherryBlossom · 23/09/2023 12:59

Our deliveries are "sporadic". I waited a month for a replacement bank card.

The RM tracked services are excellent but standard first and second class envelopes are super unreliable. We keep getting told they are short staffed at our local depot but it's been like this for ages 🤷‍♀️

ChocHotolate · 23/09/2023 15:21

My mum recieved a Christmas card in her post today. Postmarked 4th Dec 2022, over 9 months ago. 2nd class stamp...Wink

KeyWorker · 23/09/2023 15:34

Officially things haven’t changed. There is a USO for post 6 days a week. Unofficially however, management pressure the posties to prioritise items that are special delivery, tracked ect. They also don’t recruit enough to fill the gaps and that means often a round may only go out 2-3 times a week instead of 6 times a week. They best tho g to do it complain and also take the issue to your MP (if they’re any good). Dont be pissed off with your postie, they usually want to do a good job.

skyeisthelimit · 23/09/2023 15:50

I live in a small rural town and we get post every day, but the outlying villages and farms etc are lucky to get post once a week.

There is talk of starting some sort of campaign, but I don't know what.

Original poster
Catch2222 · 23/09/2023 16:24

fettuccini · 23/09/2023 12:05

My husband is a post man. He works 6 days a week delivering letters and parcels. He could work 7 days a week if he wanted to, there is such a high workload. He delivers letters every single day, just not to the same places. They are short staffed and trying to cover much larger areas than before. They have their own routes and then other routes to pick up, often having to alternate the routes daily or weekly. They have been pushed into delivering more parcels than letters in the last few years and there has been massive, well reported, problems about the Royal Mail issues, including a government business committee having to step in and question the corrupt ex CEO. I'm surprised you've not heard about any of it. But the posties are still out there every single day, so please be kind to them. It's not their fault the company is a shit show.

To the poster complaining about getting bundles of letters 'saved up' with elastic bands round it. This has been the way mail is sorted for years. Mail is sorted into slots and then banded up to put in their mail bags. They don't just go through the bag at every address the find the right letters for you. They used to take your little elastic bands off but often now don't have the time due to the high workload and being tracked and disciplined if shown as 'idle' if they stop moving.

Thank you for this. I think I understand now. We had a lovely post lady for yrs but I think she has left and since she left we have various different lads but defo not every day.

So would I be right in assuming the man who brings the letters isn't the man
Who brings the parcels?

Sounds like a nightmare for the staff too.

OP posts:
SilverGlitterBaubles · 23/09/2023 16:59

Our deliveries are sporadic, if the regular postie is on holiday or off sick more often than not we do not have any deliveries. When I asked he said the workforce has almost halved and they are reliant on agency or temporary staff to provide cover but it is never enough. I have also noticed that the delivery office opening hours for collections have been massively reduced. First class post is no longer next day.