Newhaven residents share their experiences with Royal Mail delays

Many residents have commented that the staff at the Royal Mail are fantastic and that the delays are not their fault, but a management problem that needs urgent action.

Newhaven Resident Rob Tapp said: “I ordered medication on 24th October which went missing, a replacement batch of medication was sent out on 2nd November. Both lots arrived on 16th November but in the meantime I'd had to get another prescription from the Doctor and collected that locally.

“We also ordered a few bits from QVC on 10th November which arrived on 30th... so nearly 3 weeks later. It's absolutely ridiculous, how are they going to cope with the Christmas post?”

Newhaven resident Alison Orlowska said: “For the last couple of months I have been receiving mail only once a fortnight. This is of course totally unacceptable - and is it even legal for Royal Mail to act in this way?

"It's a worry for people like me who rely on the post to receive letters with crucial hospital appointments. Also, items I have ordered, and paid for, have been very late in arriving. I subscribe to a weekly publication which comes so late, it's no longer useful. It's not good enough that parcels should be prioritised over letters. For many lonely old people, a letter is the only contact they have with friends. If Royal Mail have problems with staff retention and sickness, maybe they should review their working conditions and pay scale.”

Newhaven District Councillor Sean Macleod said: “I am being contacted regularly by residents especially in Newhaven who are missing medication or missing hospital appointments due to post not arriving. People’s health is being put at risk and people are growing increasingly concerned as the festive season begins.”

Ofcom recently fined Royal Mail £5.6m for failing to meet its First and Second Class delivery targets in the 2022/23 financial year.

Lewes MP Maria Caulfield says that she has received hundreds of messages from local residents who have expressed their frustration. The MP has raised the issue with Royal Mail managers and challenged them on their lack of staff recruitment and the pressures on existing staff.

Caulfield said: “I welcome the action taken by Ofcom to fine Royal Mail over £5 million, they are clearly not meeting the standards that residents deserve for timely deliveries. I hope that Royal Mail will now take action to improve the service.”

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “Our local teams are working extremely hard to ensure a consistent and reliable service to households this Christmas. Our employees are committed to serving their communities and we are proud of the work they are doing to sort, deliver and collect mail this festive period.

“To support them, we have increased our vehicle numbers and operational capacity, and we are in the process of recruiting 16,000 seasonal workers to help manage the increased demand. We can confirm we have mail being delivered to homes daily in Newhaven with the vast majority arriving on time. If a delay occurs, we have dedicated teams in place to take immediate action.”