to not want Royal Mail to leave my post with neighbours

[wiggofan]

Got a leaflet this morning saying that from late Sept mail too big for the letter box will be left with a neighbour rather than returned to delivery office, unless I opt out of the scheme. I went to the website to opt out and will be sent a sticker to put by the letter box, couldn't find what it'll say - "miserable antisocial git lives here" maybe??
If I'm at home on a week day I'm either off sick or have escaped from noisy office to get on with work in peace, either way I don't want to be disturbed. If I'm expecting a parcel I put a note on the door asking postman to leave in garage. If I get an unexpected parcel would much prefer to collect it from the delivery office which is close by rather than trying to catch neighbour in. The person next door often works nights so I'd hate him to be woken up to take a parcel for me.
I can understand nominating a designated neighbour, with their agreement, but this seems a bit random, not sure what Royal Mail class as a neighbour.

It will work great in my Mum's street, her neighbours are great.

Our street however... I think I'll put 'my neighbour gets attested too often so may not be there to give me my parcel' as my reason.

The postmen already do this in my area and have for years.

I was surprised to learn that this is not normal practice for Royal Mail.

Scrounginscum - love it! I really would love to see royal mail print a list of reasons given for opting out as someone else suggested!

Scrounginscum- lol ( and like your name !)

Imean, I like your name

firawla - I've had someone open a parcel they took in for me. There are lots of people living in the house so postie wouldn't know who it'd been given to. They said it was opened by mistake but can't help thinking it was to check if it was something worth keeping

Personally I HATE HATE HATE (sorry for being snouty but that's how I feel) the idea of our parcels being left with neighbours. I am a bit of a recluse due to high anxiety disorder and also have had problems with our neighbours in the past. If I'm home alone I don't EVER answer the door unless I'm expecting someone or something and certainly wouldn't want parcels for neighbours dropped off at mine or vice versa. However I also dont want a bloody great sticker outside advertising that fact cos what if the neighbours saw it?! They already think we're anti-social enough cos we 'don't go to community events etc.' and cos of DH's Aspergers (in the process of being officially diagnosed since my previous post on the subject) so don't want a stupid sticker 'confirming the fact' as it will just cause more aggro - if not in real life then in my head which in the state I'm on at the moment is bad enough!!

So it's loose loose for me.... If I stay in the scheme I get neighbours having to come round to the house which I hate and have to rely on them to be in when I am to get my parcels from them rather than popping 5 mins down the road to the delivery office at my convenience. I
If I opt out I have to display a sticker on my door that just confirms what they all think about us (mean self centred freaks apparently) and suffer worse anxiety about them talking about us behind our backs!!
Thanks a bundle Royal Sodding Mail for making my sodding shit life just that bit worse!
(sorry for rant just got the leaflet through my door today and needed to vent as really don't know what to do for the best!)

Well put, ProPerformer, that's how I feel as well. Although I don't have an anxiety disorder I resent being put in this position.
Our delivery office is very convenient, I pass it every day on way to work and would much rather collect from there than have to worry about which neighbour the parcel will go to, when I can collect it and then have to be grateful to them. I'm not usually at home in the day and try to get stuff delivered to work address but there's always unexpected packages.
I really hate the idea of having a sticker on the door

Reading between the lines on that leaflet it pretty much says: stay in, opt out or pay to arrange for all you deliveries to go to the post office for you to collect. Another way of getting many out of the vulnerable?

I've been thinking about this a lot today and I'm fairly sure I remember seeing details of a parcel safe you can put outside for the postie to leave parcels in. Can't remember who it was who made it though. Anyone know?

Duchess I have no idea but it sounds great, I'd certainly get one if they're avaliable!

www.hippo-box.co.uk

What about the people who live in a block of flats?
I live in a block of 6.
Postie has to ring doorbell to get access to communal hallway. Where exactly would I put such a sticker?
To be honest, my lovely neighbour often takes parcels for me so I don't particularly mind, but I had a while you were out card and a flyer telling about leaving with a neighbour yesterday. ( I still have to collect from the delivery office) So it will be piloting here, where there are many flats, so should be interesting.
I mean, if no one answers in my block of flats, (reasonable since most of us work) is he going to work his way down the street until he finds someone who is in?

There are several parcel safes on my round, they make my job much easier.

The scheme is not finalised yet, and you can still have your say if you don't agree with it.

They'd need a positive decision from Ofcom first, so it's worth responding to Ofcom's consultation if you want to let them know your views.

You can send your views to Ofcom here

Ofcom's general page on the scheme is here

Royal Mail's info here

It doesn't seem to apply to Special Delivery or International Signed for - they'll go back to the LDO as normal. (No mention of RD though.)

Thanks for the of com link

[[http://www.royalmailgroup.com/sites/default/files/Delivery%20to%20Neighbour%20Trial%20ResultsvFINAL-%20Public%20Version.pdf This is the actual Royal Mail Survey.]

748,000 households trialed.
They had customer satisfaction surverys from 360. In total.
And they didnt do London.
I wonder did they do areas with lots of appartment blocks?

This is not 1950. In built up areas, people don't really know their neighbours any more.
I know most of my neighbours in my block to say hello to. I do not know anyone else in my street, and I would say that is fairly typical for London.

Only special delivery or international mail that needs to be signed for is excluded.

I filled in the ofcom consultation this evening, and then realised that the consultation closed on Friday at 5pm. And the first I heard of the consultation was reading MN.

Sorry :Actual link

Royal Mail Public version of trial

I don't mind my neighbours are nice, but if you got neighbours from hell then I would rather put a sticker on my door

I work from home but go to a lot of meetings so am sometimes in for the postie and sometimes not. I am happy to take any parcels but also my neighbour takes mine in return (I don't know him except to nod hello and swap parcels).
I understand other peoples' concerns, but what I DO NOT want is parcels going back to the delivery office. In our city they closed them all and now everything is delivered from somewhere out by the bypass a 30min drive away (and not accessible by bus at all!!!).
I get my parcels re-delivered to the local post office if i miss them even though this costs 50p. I think this should be the 'default'.