Sorry, we missed you

We've just had a letter returned in a Royal Mail returns envelope, which they apparently could not deliver, and the postman has written on the outside "not known at this address". Royal Mail opened it to find our address to return it to us.

There is just one small problem; the person it was sent to is someone we know well, both her name and CORRECT address are printed clearly on the original envelope and she never saw the letter.

Fortunately the cheque inside was returned intact, I had stopped it when we realised it hadn't arrived. Maybe I stopped it just in time!

I will be contacting Royal Mail and asking for an explanation.

I have a small online business in the US that frequently ships to the UK. Packages shipped to Australia, Spain, South Africa all manage to get there in a week or 2 at the most That USED to be the case in the UK. The last 3 packages sent to the uk over 3 weeks ago still have not arrived, and I am getting the run around as to where they are. I can track it up until it entered the UK, where they magically vanish without a trace. Unfortunately, I will no longer be able ship to the UK, as the UK seems unable to deliver them.

I can see where you're coming from about the postie being lazy, but then not everyone goes to pick their parcel up, so in this sense, surely the postie would be making more work for themselves. Yours does sound a nightmare though if he's in the pub with the post. I'd make an official complaint to your local office.

Anyway. since I haven't got a car any more, I always arrange a redelivery and make sure I'm in. I can't believe the fee for it to be redelivered to a Post Office has risen from 50p to £1.50 though!

Parcel Force once left a parcel on my doorstep while I was out and had the cheek to sign my name on the widget!

Asked for two redeliveries from Royal Mail and ofc still waiting. Parcels go missing or are bashed even though they are clearly marked 'fragile' and 'this way up'. They just don't seem to care about providing a service.

Same thing here....had two "sorry, you were out" cards on the same week! when I havent been out:(

I once chased the postman after he posted a "Sorry we missed you" card through my door, only to discover that he didn't have the parcel with him! They just can't be bothered lugging around all the packages so make you go and pick them up!

Our postman does it all of the time! The majority of the time we get all of our post, letters and everything not just parcels, days later and he just writes 'dogs loose' on them even though we keep the dogs inside on a morning just for him.
He doesnt even come some days, like today when I am waiting of a parcel yet again.

It is not just Royal Mail, I have jsut had exactly the same problem with DHL.
I had to watch the lazy c**t drive away!

Standards have slipped at the Royal Mail. They've got a culture there that encourages such laziness and ineptitude. The Royal Mail needs reform from top to bottom in order to make it a more efficient company. It needs reform, and here's me hoping that the sooner that happens the better.

@Rebekkah

I have had a smilar experience with Parcel Force I ordered some new components for my PC from novatech for next day pre-12 delivery. I was up at 7am and checked the tracking status at 8 finding the van was out on it's round. It was 4 hours later, just before 12, and I had heard nothing and received no card so I checked the tracking status again to find the van had retuned to the depot and failed to deliver the package. Later that evening I checked the tracking again and found it was awaiting collection at the post office around the corner. I can tell you I had a lot of fun trying to get them to give me my package without a failed delivery card to show them.

A horrible trend that has sprung up during the last few years involves ParcelForce employees "taking the easy way out" by not doing their job.
This is particularly true, I find, if the package they would be toting weighs in excess of 2 or 3 pounds and have to walk up a flight of stairs. They will pull up to the house, sit long enough to fill out a note, and stick the note on a door WITHOUT making an attempt to try the doorbell or knock on the door. They are, however, being PAID to attempt a delivery. Then, they will drive to the nearest post office and deposit said item. When the Parcelforce tracking says an item is out for delivery, sometimes people stay home all day waiting. They do this not only to receive their item, but to assist the driver in making a first-time successful delivery. And when the driver lazily fails to do his job, it frustrates everyone. Who is going to call these work-allergic drivers to account and when?

These should be called frisbee cards as they are written out and thrown in the letterbox so speedily...ha