'The least Royal Mail should do is apologise' – Frustration as late Christmas cards still fall through letterboxes through January

The frosty weather isn't the only thing lasting from Christmas into the new year – holiday cards are still dropping through letterboxes in West Berkshire.

And residents from Thatcham and surrounding areas have expressed their disappointment with postal company Royal Mail for the delayed service.

The problems come after disruption from national strike action, when postal workers stopped working on select days in a dispute over pay.

However, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) protest efforts have left some disgruntled customers reconsidering using the postal service in the future at all.

One resident Jane Staunton said the service she now receives is not worth the money.

The Thatcham-based woman had a wedding invitation, which was posted on December 6, arrive just days before the RSVP date.

“The date was getting closer and closer and my son said you have to RSVP,” she said.

“It arrived so late, like on January 12th.

“My other son who lives in Thatcham had a Christmas card arrive on Monday [January 16] that was posted on the 18th December in London.”

She added: “A simple birthday card with nothing in it is £2.45 and you think how can that be?

“I just can’t keep paying that. Signed for still doesn’t get there the next day, it takes about five days.”

One Curridge resident claimed his village has been left with no postal worker meaning many residents have received no post all in January.

The small business owner said that there are many documents that he needs for work which must be received as hard copies.

“I should be getting mail every single day of the week,” said the resident who wanted to remain anonymous. “I have to collect it from the Thatcham sorting office which is a ten mile round trip.

“It is only open between 8am and 10am which makes it more difficult.”

Royal Mail has apologised to Curridge residents saying a colleague is in the process of taking over the regular delivery of mail in this area.

A spokesperson said: “We are confident of providing our customers in Curridge with the consistently good service that they can expect from Royal Mail.”

It apologised for the delays that have been experienced for the past few months for the whole district which it says followed a period of higher than normal sick absence and national strike action.

The spokesperson told the Newbury Weekly News: “We are very sorry for any inconvenience caused, and are taking steps to prevent any recurrence of these problems.

“On occasions when any particular delivery route has experienced delays, we have rotated deliveries to prioritise that route the next day, so that no customers should experience delays for more than one day.

“Anyone who has concerns over the delivery of their mail should contact the Royal Mail customer service team on 03457 740 740 or via the Royal Mail website www.royalmail.com.”

The Newbury Weekly News asked Royal Mail to confirm whether it was prioritising leaflet drops over letters, as it has been previously claimed.

It responded: “Every item of mail is important to us. Royal Mail does not operate a policy of prioritising parcels.

“We regularly remind colleagues that the delivery, collection and processing of letters and parcels should be treated with equal importance.

“Due to the amount of space they take up, parcels can restrict the movement of both people and mail in our offices, leading to health and safety issues and delays to other mail.

“At particularly busy times, such as in the recovery days after a strike, we may occasionally, at a local level, clear parcels to free up space and address health and safety concerns so that we can keep all mail – including letters – moving efficiently through our network."

In a bid to support disappointed residents, Thatcham Town Council will be drafting and sending a letter to Royal Mail.

Councillor Owen Jeffery told the Newbury Weekly News: “Pretty well the whole of Thatcham appears to have become a ‘letter free zone’ for Royal Mail.

“Once weekly deliveries is becoming the norm. Many people have told me of their experiences of appointments missed and vital documents delivered late.

“Time sensitive medical instructions on life saving drug dosages is arriving days late.

“I am told that some people are still getting Christmas cards at the end of January that were posted before Christmas.

“A postal service that is unreliable is of little use to anyone.

“That Royal Mail appear to be straightforwardly ignoring their obligation to provide a reliable letter post service for Thatcham is wholly unacceptable.

“That is why the town council voted unanimously and cross-political party to take the matter further with the postal authorities.”

The CWU has formally notified Royal Mail of its plans for another 24-hour strike from 12.30pm on February 16 – 12.30pm on February 17.

It said it has developed contingency plans to deal with this.