Royal Mail didn’t deliver my Father’s Day card – so I went to get it myself and they tried to charge me

Royal Mail didn’t deliver my Father’s Day card – so I went to get it myself and they tried to charge me Mike Chappell was then told at the Royal Mail sorting office he had to pay for postage for the undelivered card - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments Become an Independent member to bookmark this article Already a member? Log in A father got so fed up waiting on his son’s undelivered Father’s Day card that he went to his local Royal Mail sorting office – only to be told he needed to pay £2.60 for them to hand it over. Mike Chappell complained and had the charge was waived, as he picked up another 15 overdue letters, including important correspondence from the NHS and HMRC. “I couldn’t believe it,” he told The Independent. “Not only were they late but I was being asked to pay to pick up my own post from the sorting office.” Mr Chappell’s experience comes as Royal Mail is being investigated by watchdog Ofcom after only delivering 76 per cent of first class mail the next working day last year, missing the target of 93 per cent. In March, claims emerged from postal workers that they were being asked to hide post from senior bosses to give the appearance that delivery targets were being met. But in Cam and Dursley in Gloucestershire, where Mr Chappell lives, postage delays appear particularly bad with local MP Simon Opher calling the local situation “untenable”. Mr Opher wrote on social media this week that he had secured a commitment by Royal Mail to launch a “proper local investigation”. At the same time, local residents commonly vent their frustration over the issue on a community Facebook page. Have you faced severe delays on postage - email [email protected] Among them, Mr Chappell complained over his Father’s Day card not being delivered. Mr Chappell said his son living in Northamptonshire sent the card by first class post two weeks before the celebration on 21 June. But when it hadn’t arrived five days after the day, Mr Chappell decided to go to the local sorting office in Cam. “I arrived and was surprised to see a queue of around 15 people all doing the same as me,” he said. “When I was seen, the kind lady at the office handed me the post but said the card had a old first class stamp on and I needed to pay the £2.60. “I said ‘I’m not going to pay to collect my post, the contract is we pay for it to be delivered’. She spoke to her manager and I was told on this occasion I would not be charged.” Mr Chappell said he was also handed letters including one for a hospital appointment and another from HMRC regarding his wife’s business. When he later spoke to the manager, he was told the branch was facing issues with understaffing. He said: “It’s disappointing. Royal Mail has an obligation to meet certain standards we put trust in them to fulfil, but it appears right now, especially in my local area, they aren’t meeting them.” The problem has been picked up by Mr Opher, who said it was the “single biggest issue” raised by constituents over the summer. He wrote on Facebook this month: ”The situation across the constituency seems to be worsening. I have dozens of examples of undelivered mail, missed appointments, and endless important communications received late. “I understand that the Royal Mail service faces significant challenges... but there has to come a time, as it has for the privatised rail and water industries, when we say that enough is enough.” A Royal Mail spokesperson said the local delivery office had experienced resourcing pressures, which have affected deliveries but the position has “improved significantly in recent weeks”. They added: “First class performance across the GL postcode area has improved significantly over the past year, with 84.4 per cent of mail now delivered the next working day, up from 69.2 per cent at the same point last year. “We know there is more to do and, following discussions with Simon Opher MP, we will be reviewing the delivery offices serving the constituency as part of our ongoing work to improve local performance.” In June, Ofcom said service levels at Royal Mail were “unacceptable” after data showed it had missed both its first and second class delivery targets for 2025/26. Last year, Royal Mail was fined £21m for failing to meet delivery targets in 2024/25. Ofcom said Royal Mail was rolling out a new delivery model by Christmas this year, with a plan to improve delivery service, including the investment of £500m over the next five years. Last week, Royal Mail said it planned to recruit around 22,000 temporary workers ahead of Christmas. Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments