First Class post - a joke that should be ended

[Mervyn and Trish]

We posted a birthday card to a friend this week, with a first class stamp. It took three days to get there - a distance of 119 miles.

And a number of post boxes around the outskirts of our town now have last collections as early as 7am! So unless you get up before dawn to post your letter, by the time it should be delivered it hasn't even left the post box! And the notice they put on the boxes notifying the change, from a last collection mid-afternoon, explained that this was to improve the efficiency of the service!

Isn't it time we ended the farce of first class post and admitted we now have second class and third class? Wouldn't it be more honest to go back to a single standard of service for ordinaryletters, and admit delivery will take 2-3 days, with the only other options being registered post, guaranteed next day delivery etc. as currently sold at post office counters? If nothing else, that would improve efficiency by removing a task from the sorting process, that of separating the two streams of mail.

[oldbluefox]

The same has happened to our post box.
And we were told that apparently Saturday and Sunday are no longer considered working days even though staff do work at weekends. It is little surprise that people are turning more and more towards couriers.
I agree with the idea of having one class of letters. Surely by eliminating the sorting of first class away from second class it would speed up the sorting process.

[towny44]

I think the last time I used first class post John Major was PM, so it's not an issue for me.

[gfwgfw]

Hey Ho

Times they are a changing

My regular NIR results from the Warfarin clinic has changed the results service

A first class post notification has been very unreliable

Now my important results are sent by e-mail, and received a few hours after the morning procedure at my local surgery

[Stephen]

First class post is a con and a complete waste of money.

Give it time and the post office will hang itself and price itself out of the market.

[Silver_Shiney]

I ordered something a few years ago to be sent by 1st class post. It took five days to arrive. When I complained, I was told that they guarantee to deliver 98% of first class post the day after posting. I pointed out that it would be reasonable to expect the remaining 2% to be delivered the day after that. I was told that they guarantee to deliver 98% of first class post the day after posting.

In other words, "we don't read your complaints, screw you".

Many, many times at work, we receive mail from someone else. Quite often, even though we clearly mark it as having been sent to the wrong address, it comes back to us (two this week).

Again, on many occasions, mail sent by the "Signed For" service, for which a hefty premium is paid, is dropped through the letterbox, without a signature being requested.

Once our contract on the franking machine expires, we will be looking at Royal Mail's competitors. As has been said by my illustrious shipmates, their "service" is a joke.

[Frank Manning]

We have no problems with it, and considering the capital involved, and the creaming off of the profitable bits by other postal services, and the rise of social media and e mail, we think they do a good job. Its like all the whingeing about the cost of the TV license. It is chicken feed compared to the cost of Sky, and lets face it most of the best programmes come from the BBC.

Royal Mail (another political football)

[Not so ancient mariner]

My father once had an air mail letter sent to the UK from Malta, which took over a month to arrive. Mind you it had gained an Adelaide S.A. postmark during its travels.

[david63]

Again, on many occasions, mail sent by the "Signed For" service, for which a hefty premium is paid, is dropped through the letterbox, without a signature being requested.

If it is something you are expecting and has a value then complain that you have not received it - you get another item, the sender is re-reimbursed and the Post Office looses out - yet again.

This is nothing more than laziness on the part of the Postie

[Silver_Shiney]

Again, on many occasions, mail sent by the "Signed For" service, for which a hefty premium is paid, is dropped through the letterbox, without a signature being requested.

If it is something you are expecting and has a value then complain that you have not received it - you get another item, the sender is re-reimbursed and the Post Office looses out - yet again.

This is nothing more than laziness on the part of the Postie

One such item wasn't even for us! Had he tried to get a signature, we could have told the postman of his error. I now have an email address to advise RM of any future occurrences.

[Peter D]

In March we have two birthdays. Son living in New York and Grand daughter living in London. Two cards posted the same day and the son received his 3 days before the Grand daughter.

[barney]

I reckon that you ain't seen nothing yet guys,

I regularly chat to a few Postmen at football and they say that huge changes are on the way.
Gone will be the next day delivery.
Gone will be delivering every day.
Gone will be delivering to all address.
Gone will be the universal price to anywhere in the Uk.

This is what happens when a long standing institution is privatised.
For 300 years, Royal Mail existed to deliver mail.
Now it exists to make money for it's shareholders

Everyone can recall anecdotes of occasional bad service but the bottom line is Royal Mail was a bedrock of good service when compared to Foreign postal services.
Now it is owned by them.

My guess is that the Royal Charter will be withdrawn some time in the near future and it will be re-branded Brit-Post or something like that.
They will then offer a service level similar to their competitors.

Folk will have something to grumble about when that happens.
Ask TNT how much to send a small parcel to the Scottish Islands
You won't get much change out of £40

[Stephen]

I reckon that you ain't seen nothing yet guys,

I regularly chat to a few Postmen at football and they say that huge changes are on the way.
Gone will be the next day delivery.
Gone will be delivering every day.
Gone will be delivering to all address.
Gone will be the universal price to anywhere in the Uk.

This is what happens when a long standing institution is privatised.
For 300 years, Royal Mail existed to deliver mail.
Now it exists to make money for it's shareholders

Everyone can recall anecdotes of occasional bad service but the bottom line is Royal Mail was a bedrock of good service when compared to Foreign postal services.
Now it is owned by them.

My guess is that the Royal Charter will be withdrawn some time in the near future and it will be re-branded Brit-Post or something like that.
They will then offer a service level similar to their competitors.

Folk will have something to grumble about when that happens.
Ask TNT how much to send a small parcel to the Scottish Islands
You won't get much change out of £40

Then you just don't send a parcel to the Scottish Highlands...simple.

Out of interest I have just been on the courier postage supermarket site that covers a variety of couriers including TNT that deliver to the Scottish Highlands. I put in 10KG weight x 50cm length, width and height which I would say is a fair average and most prices to the Scottish Highlands came back well under £20. They were drop of at depot prices though, not collect and deliver. But I wouldn't have thought the price wouldn't be that much more for both.

http://www.postagesupermarket.com/cheap ... otland.php

[Frank Manning]

I agree with you Barney. We will only know how well off we were, when we have lost it. It will be another nail in the coffin of Britishness! The fast buck rules OK in the City; Hence P&O and Cunard are owned by the Yanks, and EDF is running away with our electricity generating system. etc.etc.

[barney]

They were drop of at depot prices though, not collect and deliver. But I wouldn't have thought the price wouldn't be that much more for both.

That is exactly where you're missing the point Stephen

A very high proportion of the cost is in the delivery.

Why do you think that TNT and most of the other private postal companies hand their goods over to Roayl Mail to be delivered.?

I know what I know. The myth that Privately owned is good, is rubbish.
As Frank says, we won't know 'till it's gone.

[Silver_Shiney]

Collect+ deliver parcels to your door, for much less than Royal Mail. The service is also "tracked", for which RM charge extra.

About 40 years ago, I posted a letter in a pillarbox, from my mum to her solicitor, on my way to school. An hour later, he phoned her in response to that letter. If RM could provide a good service then, why won't they now?

[oldbluefox]

Well I only know what I know from my own experience and RM is expensive for the service they deliver. I have sent my parcels (with a company which sounds like it is a fashion designer) for less than RM and the price includes tracking and signed for, for which, as Shiney says, RM charge even more and they are delivered within the three day plan. RM need to up their game as they are no longer competitive.

I have even received parcels from another company which not only give an approximate time when they will deliver but give you the name of the driver, whereabouts you are on his delivery list and a map showing where he is at the moment. He even rings you when he is within 10 minutes of you. This is the kind of service RM need to aim towards but instead they appear to be going in the opposite direction. It's a sad tale for posties around the country who are left to pick up the pieces from corporate decisions.

[Manoverboard]

" I know what I know. The myth that Privately owned is good, is rubbish.
As Frank says, we won't know 'till it's gone. "

Not exactly my thoughts

Let's face it the good old Post Office simply had to go ... we were subsidising umpteen ' Spanish Customs ' at their work place. Privatisation, at long last, will ensure that they streamline their operation as failure to do so will price them out of the market.

Perhaps we should have a tiered system ranging from a daily delivery 6 days per week to a DIY pick it up yourself at the Sorting Office once a week ... the latter would suit us but if there was something vital then a defined surcharge would be entirely acceptable.

[towny44]

It was interesting to read that Amazon will soon start offering free collection from your local RM sorting office. If my expereience of queuing to collect undelivered RM parcels is anything to go by, this will be a monumental failure.

[Stephen]

They were drop of at depot prices though, not collect and deliver. But I wouldn't have thought the price wouldn't be that much more for both.

That is exactly where you're missing the point Stephen

A very high proportion of the cost is in the delivery.

Why do you think that TNT and most of the other private postal companies hand their goods over to Roayl Mail to be delivered.?

I know what I know. The myth that Privately owned is good, is rubbish.
As Frank says, we won't know 'till it's gone.

We shall see.

As I said earlier, if the price is too high then you don't send it unless you have more money than sense. We don't post parcels anymore at Christmas because it can cost more than the items in the box. As for general mail, who sends letters any more apart from your dear old grannie, the junk mail and utility companies.

[Gill W]

I send most items second class these days.

In many cases, the second class post has arrived the following day.

[JoanneB]

According to a piece in the Times, there is no obligation on RM to deliver First class Next day during December

http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/new ... 2014_12_06

[Frank Manning]

Break Royal Mail if you like, but dont complain at what you get when its gone.

[towny44]

Break Royal Mail if you like, but dont complain at what you get when its gone.

Will the replacement only deliver about 3 times a week, and then not till mid afternoon, if so they will at least equal what we currently get from RM.

[Silver_Shiney]

Based on their performance in delivering to my office, any replacement cannot be any worse.

I received a letter from them last week stating that I had put franked mail into a pillar box. I hadn't, so complained. Their email to me today said t

I am sorry to hear that you have received this letter.

The letters are the result of an internal improvement project aimed at increasing the efficiency of the Franked Mail service provided to all our customers with the specific aim to minimise costs involved within the process to ensure that the most competitive price can be maintained for highly valued customers such as yourself.

This letter is aimed at customers who are not using the service correctly.

Unfortunately, many customers details have been added on to the list of customers to be notified in error and this is what has happened here.

Please ignore this letter and any future letters of this nature as I am unsure whether the issue will be resolved in the short term.

You couldn't make it up