More Post Office fun and games

A few weeks ago I sent this letter to the Post Office. This was attempt number two. I’ve just received their second effort at placation and it’s, frankly, just about as crap although at least not a form letter.

Note that my main original complaints were:

a) the later delivery time when I wasn’t at home due to being employed from 9-5:30 each day (not exactly an unusual time frame in the UK)

b) the sorting office all my packages are returned to being 3 miles away, in the middle of town and the opposite direction of my travel to work; only open until midday; annoying as there is another sorting office less than five minutes’ walk from my front door.

OK, so who reckons the reply I just got was helpful? Hand down at the back, Jones. No, you can’t go to the toilet. I don’t care if you are about to wet yourself. You should have gone at playtime.

I’ll sumamrise it. The chap apologises for his reply taking so long his “enquiries have taken longer than expected”. He apparently contacted the Bradford North delivery office and the manager there states “that a specific time of day cannot be guaranteed for delivery of your mail, however most mail will now be delivered before 12am”.

Erm. Yes. Well. I did point out on the original mail that to some extent one guarantee about delivery time can be made – it’ll be after 9am as, since about 8 months ago, their staff have been told they can’t start deliveries until then. Why this is, I don’t know – I used to get my post up to 90 minutes before they now start delivering. Also, the fact that the post arrives before 12am (I thought that was midnight?) is neither here nor there – I’m not in to get it and therein lies the problem I’m trying to force into their thick ******* heads.

It goes on… “Office opening hours are dictated by central policy”. This one I appreciate. With staff starting early in the morning it’s probably not economical to keep sorting offices opening in the evening when people get home from work. Still, it’s a slog all the way into town for me regardless.

And the kicker: “… the Bradford North Delivery Office … will re0-deliver any mail to you”. Great. They’ll either re-deliver it at the weekend which adds 5 days to receipt of a package I was meant to get on a Monday, or they’ll deliver it around 10:30am when I’m at ******* work… which is the problem I’m trying to address! Can’t they deliver it to the delivery office I can walk to and I’ll get it from there at my convenience?

Or how about this one… how about (oh, man, this is soooo radical)… they knock on a neighbour’s door and leave it with them? Oh, wait. They used to do that and now they don’t. ParcelForce still do that and they’re part of the PO but apparently the standard post staff aren’t allowed to for reasons I’ve yet to have reasonably explained.

Post codes are such a flipping pain. They’re a completely stupid boundary and cause issue with more than the post. I’ve been told I had to change doctor because the “catchment area” for the one I used to go to ends down the middle of Thornton Road. Which also happens to be the boundary between BD8 and BD13, and the road on the opposite side of which resides the delivery office I can walk to!

I fear another letter is in the offing…