I'm pretty certain that they are available:
Though you do have to take them to a RM CSP, not a Post Office or post box.
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The future of Royal Mail
- Thread starter Bletchleyite
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Though you do have to take them to a RM CSP, not a Post Office or post box.
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cactustwirly
Established Member
I've sent tracked 48 parcels through a post office without any issues.
Have you? I've never tried. I'm just going by what is on their website. Though you can send Tracked Returns from a Post Office according to their website. Who knows what the truth is? Websites are often inaccurate anyway.
Bletchleyite
Veteran Member
That's new, must have been introduced when they changed the online purchase. Good to see it though I'm not quite sure why a PO can't handle it when they can handle business items!
I've posted with tracked 24 and 48 by buying online and dropping off at both post offices and the new-ish parcel boxes with no issues.
If the item has been sent on a Tracked service, then it is still being tracked regardless of whether contact details were provided or not. The latest status and tracking history can be viewed on the website using the tracking number, which again the retailer may or may not have provided to the recipient.
If the sender provides contact details then this allows automated tracking notifications by e-mail and/or SMS which let the recipient know when the item is planned for delivery (although not specific GPS tracking as provided by some couriers).
PupCuff
Member
I mean, it's all well and good that Royal Mail know where the item is at any one time (I mean it's 2020, it shouldn't be too much to expect a company we have paid and trusted to send an item to actually know where it is) but whether it's tracked for them or not makes little difference to the recipient. The wording could be different but the big red sticker informing the recipient that they haven't been told about their impending delivery due to RM not being supplied with their contact details by the sender would seem to be the most logical way of deflecting the blame from RM. Have it read "Sorry, we couldn't update you on your delivery as the sender did not provide contact details" if that is a more accurate wording.
People might be interested to see the excellent opening hours of our local Royal Mail customer service centre, which is where you have to go to collect any large parcels or tracked/signed for letters whilst you are out, as well as where you need to go to post items under certain Royal Mail products that are not available at the Post Office.
Photo shows a poster detailing opening hours as 7am-9am Mon,Tue,Thr,Fri and 7am-11am Sat. Closed Wed and Sun
Have these been adjusted in response to COVID-19 or adjusted for a while?
They are pretty crap, but I can sort of see some logic behind the times, they would allow 9-5’ers to pick something up on their way to work if they’ve missed a delivery, and the Saturday times are about as generous as they’ve ever been in my experience.
Peter Mugridge
Veteran Member
The exact same temporary hours as here. They tell me they're increasing the hours next month, but it still won't be a full service.
Ordered something from Currys last week. On Monday they appeared at Yorkshire Distribution Centre, and their online tracking said it would arrive “later today.” Still hasn’t left there all week and it has kept saying will arrive today.
Called Royal Mail and despite being very polite and keen he said they have a backlog, didn’t know when it would leave the centre, but hoped it would be no later than next Thursday.
Called Royal Mail and despite being very polite and keen he said they have a backlog, didn’t know when it would leave the centre, but hoped it would be no later than next Thursday.
PupCuff
Member
Another parcel arrived by Royal Mail on Friday, completely unexpectedly, as, err, expected. Luckily, I was already in waiting for another parcel to arrive from DPD who had emailed me in advance they were delivering that day and on the morning of the delivery they emailed to tell me my courier's name and that he would be arriving between 12:40 and 13:40. (and he did, too).
I do hope that the 9am closing time Monday to Friday is a mis-print and they really mean 9pm?
headshot119
Established Member
I do hope that the 9am closing time Monday to Friday is a mis-print and they really mean 9pm?
No it's the same up here at the moment, only open till 9am.
Peter Sarf
Established Member
I can imagine that Saturdays are therefore going to be very busy !.
Xenophon PCDGS
Veteran Member
Would those stated opening times be set to allow people to collect such items before starting work on Mondays to Fridays?
I should imagine most people that start work at 9am, are in fact, working from home right now, therefore also do not appreciate having to get up at the crack of dawn to collect an item. Similarly, such people are also unlikely to have missed their mail delivery operative when they first attempted to make the delivery at home.
An update on the case of the missing parcel... Royal Mail have told me that they don’t know where the parcel is and because it hasn’t been scanned since Monday 13th they can only assume it is lost.
When I asked them why they told me it would arrive by Thursday, I was told that, they only deem a parcel to be lost if it has not appeared anywhere a week after it was supposed to have been delivered.
I then asked them if they could update the online tracking to reflect its “lost” status, because the customer service department of the retailer were getting confused, and was told that they can’t do that.
The problem I have, is that when you call the retailer, they just keep going to Royal Mail, see the website says it will arrive today, and then tell you to call back tomorrow. Without applying any common sense that the parcel hasn’t been scanned in nearly two weeks.
Similarly those that start work some time before 9am had better be in the queue at 7am, if they are going to collect the parcel and still get to work on time.
(Actually some people who start work at 9am would usually be packing the trains out at 7am in a valiant effort to get a seat.)
It might sound trivial but I'm disappointed with DPD at the moment. Parcel came a day late even though the driver was down my road and supposedly "attempted delivery but we weren't in, and left a calling card". We were in all day...
I used to work at the Post Office. Royal Mail was good and all the staff were great, but we came across a lot of problems with Parcelforce. One of the drivers did the same thing as I mentioned above - used to just drop calling cards in everyone's doors and bring us all the parcels instead, forcing everyone to come to the Post Office and collect, and getting his round done in a fraction of the time so he could have a hugely extended break. Fortunately I caught him out and he was subsequently removed from this round (and hopefully the company but I wouldn't really be surprised if not).
The tracking options for RM are a bit limited I agree and it doesn't really compare to the likes of Amazon, who will literally tell me that my driver is 5 stops away and shows me their location on the map.
I see DPD's issues are not limited to my local area then... I have sent a few complaints to them in the past and also the company that used them to draw their attention to their incompetence in their most recent delivery. Maybe it's just my driver.
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Out of interest did you ask why? I don't see why that isn't possible.
Retailer wise, they need to gain some common sense and look at the screen for more than two seconds before making a judgement.
cactustwirly
Established Member
I'm having something delivered by Parcel force soon. Already the tracking number that was given to me doesn't work!
There, corrected it for you.
Bletchleyite
Veteran Member
Parcelfarce have long been an expensive version of Yodel or Hermes. To be fair you can at least phone them when they lose stuff, and they are very pleasant about it, but they really are absolute dross, nowhere near as good as "mainline" Royal Mail.
Got a flyer through the door from Royal Mail a few weeks ago. It seems they are piloting a new service locally whereby you can place an order online and print your labels at home, but rather than dropping off at a customer service centre or Post Office, you can have your mail delivery officer collect the parcel. It seems to be a flat rate 72p, or 60p for returns.
Many parcel companies already offer a collection service.
Many parcel companies already offer a collection service.
Bletchleyite
Veteran Member
The world has truly gone mad.
cactustwirly
Established Member
Filling me with a lot of confidence then.
They're delivering a very bulky and expensive item!
eoff
Member
I get the impression that Parcelforce tracking can be at the point of delivery only.
3rd rail land
Member
In the last few weeks I have had 2 online orders delivered by Royal Mail using the Special Delivery service. MY understanding is this guarantees delivery the next day (Mon-Sat) by 1pm.
In both cases the delivery has taken 2 days despite the order having been dispatched in time for it to be delivered the next day.
If special delivery takes 2 working days then I might as well go for regular 1st class as Special Delivery is quite expensive.
When, if indeed ever, did Special Delivery take 2 working days or have I just been unfortunate?
In both cases the delivery has taken 2 days despite the order having been dispatched in time for it to be delivered the next day.
If special delivery takes 2 working days then I might as well go for regular 1st class as Special Delivery is quite expensive.
When, if indeed ever, did Special Delivery take 2 working days or have I just been unfortunate?
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