Post Office assistant charges me incorrectly and insists I don't make complaint

[PurpleStarrySocks]

I took a large letter into a branch of the Post Office to post to make sure I had the right postage on it before posting it.

The Post Office assistant said how much it'll be, then I promptly paid. As he handed me the receipt, I remembered that when I looked up how much the postage would be, it wasn't as much as he'd just charged me. So, I asked the Post Office assistant whether I'd been charged the large letter rate or the small parcel rate. He said large letter, then took my large letter again, put it through the plastic gauge thing the Post Office have and confirmed it was the size of a large letter.

I showed him the receipt, which showed that I'd been charged for a small parcel. The Post Office assistant said the computer automatically chose small parcel and not a large letter and that there wasn't anything he could have done and that he didn't do anything wrong. He then repeatedly said "I told you it was x amount before you paid." I agreed that he had, but that it shouldn't matter, as it's now come to light that I'd been charged the incorrect amount. He made it seem like it was my responsibility to know I'd been charged correctly before paying. I think I should be able to trust that a Post Office assistant charges me the correct amount.

The Post Office assistant kept saying he couldn't choose 'large letter' or 'small parcel' and that the computer chooses automatically. I said I'll take it up with the Post Office. He then kept telling me he'll lose his job if I made a complaint and that a colleague of his had lost his job for this reason. He offered to pay me the difference out of his own pocket, which I declined initially. However, he kept going on about how he'd lose his job if I made a complaint, so I felt I had no choice but to take his money just so that I could leave. The Post Office assistant looked in his wallet, didn't have the right money, so gave me the money from the takings. I felt so uncomfortable having this played out while other customers were waiting.

This Post Office is local to me and has recently come under new management. I'd never had any issues with them, or any other Post Office, in the past.

My questions are:

1. Is it true that the Post Office assistant couldn't choose between a large letter and a small parcel? It seems unlikely to me, as how can the computer tell what size the parcel is based on the weight?
2. Shouldn't I be able to trust that a Post Office assistant charges me the correct amount for postage and not rely on me to know whether I've been charged the correct amount before paying?

@CalmDownFreda Thank you for your very helpful input. It's good to know that if this were to happen again in the future, that it's actually meant to be easy to get a refund and for the correct postage to be put on.

I must say that all of the nasty comments about my character by a good number of posters on here have taken me by surprise.

Because I queried being overcharged at the Post Office, I am supposedly someone who needs to get out more, is unconcerned about the Post Office assistant's possible struggle with the cost of living crisis, I must have been rude, my "narration" of the situation has been called into question, I'm after this man's job, I can't possibly have any other problems in life, etc, etc, etc...

I'm sure all of those who decided to come on here to say unhelpful and unkind things are a better person than me, go out lots and have lots of money to feed the Post Office's profits. Yet, it is the same posters who have decided I am x, Y or z, who have been, in my opinion, pretty rude.

Right, I'll just go and open up a savings account to save for all the extra money I'll be charged every time I use my local Post Office to post a large letter.

MiniHector · Yesterday 11:13
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@MrsSkylerWhite , it wasn't rectified. The assistant laughed at me when I complained. It wasn't a fuss about nothing. You are mixing me up with the OP.”

No. I was referring to OP. No idea of what happened with your mix-up.

There has always in my experience been a difference between a Post Office which is technically a sub-Post Office (corner of a shop) and one run by the Post Office themselves (Crown Post Office). You get good service at most sub Post Offices, hardly ever at a Crown Post Office.

I'd be interested which type the OP went to.

“Accountable for their errors”?

Have you never made a mistake, OP? He held himself accountable when he offered to refund you. What else do you want, his job?

Exactly this. It’s ‘only £2’ but £2 is £2- if you need it to get the bus home , for your electric meter or your kids dinner money then it isn’t nothing.

Lots of things have a standard charge that people might not bring to mind in the moment, it doesn’t mean they shouldn’t question it later. An mot for example is £50 odd- if you were told it was £80 odd then realised you had been charged for a different class of vehicle- would that be fine?!

Removes

Much Ado About Nothing

I, nor any other poster on this thread, have said what you've quoted:
“Accountable for their errors"

As soon as the op has left the post office, but the transaction is reversed and put through again at the correct amount. Assistant then pockets the difference.
I worked in retail management for many years. it's a common scam.

But you wouldn't know if the assistant cancelled the transaction put it through for the correct amount and pocketed the difference

you said literally that, @PurpleStarrySocks

“PurpleStarrySocks · 09/10/2023 21:44
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I have every sympathy with the Post Office workers who suffered badly under the hands of the Post Office. It was truly awful.
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However, I don't think it's right that no Post Office worker can ever be held accountable for their errors thereafter”

You’re definitely not BU. As someone who has had been shortchanged, misled, treated appallingly and duped out of money at Post Office counters on more occasions than I care to remember, it’s simply not acceptable to brush this off. It could be a racket, likely it’s not but his reaction tells you all you need to know.

FWIW complaining to the PO does nothing anyway, they are simply not interested. Not one bit.

Exactly.

I don’t know how the PO system works but I once walked into work to find the vast majority of the staff missing. They’d all been sacked. It turned out they had been overcharging customers and pocketing the change. Your PO experience could be something similar.

Get a life. I actually cringed reading that, how embarrassing 😳 How could you have accepted money from him? It was probably only a few pence!!

You actually took the poor guys personal money?! Is this a joke? YABVVVVVVVVVVU

Actually this is really common. I sell on Etsy and 99% of my orders go large letter, I used to take them into the post office so I could get proof of postage, and about 50% of the time they tried to charge me for small parcel. At the time it was about £2.50 different.

That might not be much money to people, but it all adds up. I send hundreds of parcels.

You're better off buying postage online, and not bothering with the post office at all.

Im sorry about all the horrible replies you’ve had. If you have up do it again, say upfront you’d like it to go first class, large letter or whatever.

You misunderstood what this means:

"However, I don't think it's right that no Post Office worker can ever be held accountable for their errors thereafter”

Just because the words the words" accountable for their errors" are used in this sentence does not imply I want the Post Office assistant to be held accountable for what I experienced alone.

So, to make it clearer for you:

Do I want this one Post Office assistant to be held accountable? No, otherwise I would have made a complaint.

Do I think that the Post Office can never ever be held accountable for anything whatsoever? No, I don't.

Do not use my words to twist my meaning.

Thank you for your helpful input. It was interesting to learn that this is actually very common. The Post Office assistant I dealt with was adamant that he couldn't select the large letter rate, so it's going to be uncomfortable conversation to have next time this happens.

I had worked out I was charged almost 50% more than I should have been. Still, most people seem to think I should just feed the Post Office's profits.

This is a sub Post Office. The service was amazing before the previous owners retired and sold the business.

Oh my goodness! I guess, it turns out, as @Flopsythebunny said, it is possible for the Post Office assistant to pocket the difference if they overcharge you.

Oh my god what have I just read? So you got your money back, your post will get to where it needs to go.

People make mistakes. Post Office staff included.

How have you got so much time on your hands to sit there and write such a long post about this? In the grand scheme of things does. it. matter?