Trust me - it's not just at Christmas... I try to avoid using Royal Mail if at all possible. I only ever send presents by recorded delivery now if I have to use them... The most ironic thing is that they sent us a junk mail letter just before Christmas saying "we love your parcels" - yes, we know you do, you thieving gits !
Ive never had any issues with them. Ive sent money, jewels and have even imported herb from Canada. No problems. (any coppers can get stuffed :tongue: It was for percy and small amounts. I aint no Mr Nice) I have had issues with Citylink, DHL, UPS.... Its luck I guess. But you have my sympathies coz thats a shitty experience you've had.
Dude, that is seriously shit, but as has been mentioned its normally the part time Christmas workers and it's sadly a well known problem. Personally I don't see why Royal Mail don't run the place like the royal mint ie you are not allowed on the floor with anything and I mean anything except your work clothes, which have no pockets. You are then searched when you leave the work area, before returning to the changing area. It's a tad extreme, but it will stop the pikey theiving bastards in their tracks
Our postman left a parcel on top of the bags of garden waste waiting for collection by the binmen a couple of weeks ago. Fortunately we got to the parcel before the binmen. Have previously had chocolate advent calendars posted by my mum disappear in the mail. But the downside of requesting non Royal Mail posting is that they will invariably attempt to deliver while we're out, and the depots for most courier companies are miles away, or they'll simply leave parcels with neighbours. Fortunately we get on with next door, and next door but 1 have been ok about parcels being left with them (although we don't really know them).
Mr R that Dave Gorman example is a bit of a dud. Anyone wirth even a bit of brain would not take a note from clear fronted envelope. It smells of stitchup for miles. Would you take money out of a bank vault that is wide open with note, please come in take what you want and no one around to confirm it?
The DVLA and Royal Mail have got 'doing a half arsed job' and 'losing everything' down to a real art. They must be in cahoots to be such experts at losing everything. Particularly when it comes to things sent between the two. Except demands for unpaid road tax on vehicles you no longer own. They always arrive.
Thats not my experience, we have had the same experience of birthday cards being opened and the contents removed or the card just not arriving, earlier this year we posted some UGG boots my daughter sold on eBay and they never arrived, that's the last thing of any value we will send that's not signed for, sadly you just can't trust Royal Mail. They have an uphill battle to win the trust of most customers.
Steve it is very easy they mostly nick small valuable items. Walking out with a bit of cash in pocket is easy to explain if you get stopped. Walking out with full set of leathers might not be. Private business learned long ago about that rule. Many bars, hotels, restaurants do not allow their bar tenders, well any staff carry any cash in pocket. If they are found with some they either nicked it or broke the rule of not having cash so one way or another employer has grounds to search, investigate and so on.
Unfortunately, from my experience, it is definitely NOT the part-time Christmas staff... Anything that looks remotely like a birthday card around here tends to arrive having been opened...
And don't even start me on the number of times we get things in our mail box that aren't actually for us - two or three times a week we get letters addressed to our neighbours and sometimes things that have no relation to our address at all. Really makes me wonder where our mail ends up... Mr R - your experience may be that Royal Mail actually do the job that they get paid to do - mine is that they quite regularly cock it up...
my postie once got no answer at mine and also stupidly left no out card. he then proceeded to leave my special delivery parcel at a neighbours. I only found out because online it was shown as delivered so i complained to the company it hadnt been received and they thought i was trying to pull a fast one. to my amazement a neighbour came knocking 2 days later with my parcel. I complained and I think he got pedalled as I never saw him again. the postmaster at the local sorting office where i complained later gave me an update after my complaint that special deliverys are to the addressee only or back to depot. it seems it was a gross misconduct thing
2 Playstation controllers vanished in the post 2 separate parcels . Claiming back takes ages and as I no longer have a receipt it means il be lucky to get a book of stamps back. Two separate parcels 2 items the same vanished . Chandelier massive thing with fragile all over it was thrown over my back gate by parcel force I picked it up and was greeted by a box of broken glass ... My postman now is pretty good but I know him from years ago. I don't like my stuff being left either side if me as I don't trust the snouty gits !!!
You can put a sticker on your letterbox telling the postie not to leave any items with neighbours, but to take them back to the depot. Royal Mail will even supply the stickers free of charge, if you ask them.
cheers pete. the thing is this was special delivery and to leave it anywhere is a breach of their terms of service
More times than I would care to remember we have had the "you were out" card stuffed in our mail box when we were actually in... I have actually seen the postie arrive at the end of the street in his van, walk down the street posting the mail and the "you were out" cards as he went, whilst making no attempt whatsoever to deliver the parcels... Lazy twat !
This assumes the postie will actually read the sticker - he continually ignores the "no junk mail" one on our mail box...
If they don't deliver here, I have to pick it up from the nearest post office, in the next village. No big deal. We used to have a post office in this village when I first came, but they closed it when the part-time posties retired. Well, there are only 200 inhabitants in the village, so you can't really complain. In fact, my house used to be the even older post office, complete with counter when I bought it. It may sound a bit smug, but if it's any consolation, things are going downhill here too, just not as fast. Not so long ago, you could send a letter or package Express delivery and it would be delivered in the same day, anywhere in Switzerland. You may say that Switzerland is not a big place, but it's 2.5 times the size of Wales and lot of it is Alp. First class post would always arrive the next day. I think Express delivery still exists, but now that just guarantees delivery the next day. First class may be next day delivery and it may not.
