General Chat

Popped into Sainsbury's this afternoon, spot of shopping and some letters to post. Collection was 5:00 pm and it was just on 5 when I entered the store. I met the postman coming out with a few letters in his hand so I went to hand him my five letters. Did he take them? No he didn't. Can't take them he said, not allowed. Why ever not I asked - health and safety? No, he replied, security!!!

Now bear in mind he had just collected a pile of post which had been posted by people he had never seen!! Did I look like some kind of terrorist threat? I don't think so.

Sainsbury's security man was close by and I said "Can you believe that?" He looked bemused and then the postman, unbeknown to me had come back into the store with a shopping trolley - heard me taking about what had happened and launched into a tirade "I don't wish to risk losing my job and putting my children's lives in jeopardy"!!!

I shall be writing to the Post Office to complain about this jobsworth attitude!!!

Happened to me once Ann - I rushed over to the postbox near our house to post a card and the postie was there just locking the postbox after collecting the post. He refused to take my card, saying that it was 'against the rules'.

bonkers - and they call it the Post Office service - service my XXXXXX!!!!

Don't forget to tell them you limped all the way there ;-)

Beggars belief Ann,
so many people are afraid of losing their jobs,
but that takes the biscuit.
:-| :-| :-| ;-)

Hi Ann

You say you "met the postman coming out with a few letters in his hand"

How do you actually know he was the real postman?

Anyone can dress as a postman and carry a few letters in his hand............but, only a real postman has the keys to open a post box.

A Jobsworth? No........he was just going by the sensible rules in my opinion of Royal Mail.

"I met the postman coming out with a few letters in his hand so I went to hand him my five letters. Did he take them? No he didn't. Can't take them he said, not allowed."

It has not been allowed for some years now.

I thought it was never allowed - something to do with handling Her Majestys' post ? Maybe because the postman is employed to handle Her Majestys mail it has to go into Her postbox first? I know what I mean LOL

I've had posties accept my mail without it going in the box in recent times, I think it depends on the postman.

Actually by Post Office ruling the letters the postman had shouldn't have been in his hands,,they are supposed to put all the mail taken out of the post box straight into a post sack at the post box not a few minutes later.

Dear Mr Betts

I am writing in response to your enquiry dated 21 May 2009 regarding
postmen and women accepting mail directly from customers. You explained
that a member of our staff collecting mail from a Postbox informed you that
she was unable to take a letter from you directly. You asked when this
policy was introduced.

Royal Mail has not introduced a specific policy that covers this situation.
Customers in rural areas can hand mail carrying appropriate postage
directly to postmen and women as long as it is not to bulky or heavy.
However, we generally ask customers to post mail items in a Postbox or at a
Post Office branch. This ensures that an item of mail enters the system at
a proper ‘access point’ and is handled in line with the correct procedures.
This is important for example, in cases where an item could subsequently
become delayed or go missing. Similarly, customers should not stop our
collections vans to hand over their mail for both safety and security
reasons.

I hope this suitably answers your enquiry. If you have any concerns about
the service you receive from us or wish to comment about a member of Royal
Mail staff you can contact Royal Mail Customer Services on 08457 740 740 or
online:

http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/custo...

If you are dissatisfied with this response for any reason, you do have the
right to request an internal review. In which case please write to the
Head of Information Compliance, Royal Mail Group, Company Secretary's
Office, 100 Victoria Embankment, LONDON, EC4Y 0HQ.

Seems it is only an Elf&Safety issue should you throw yourself in front of his mail van Ann

:-D :-D :-D

I've had posties accept my mail without it going in the box in times gone by too Island.

"I don't wish to risk losing my job and putting my children's lives in jeopardy"!!!

At the end of the day....Rules are rules............and i feel very sorry for that particular postman.
:-(

well I can only think it is a ridiculous ruling

The moral of this story Ann............

Get to Sainsburys 5 minutes earlier next week!! :-D

and make sure it's a real Sainsburys and not one with a postie in fancy dress :-D

I had this in the 80,s,

I met the postman emptying the post box,
He told me when i tried to give him the letter that it's not allowed, but he would keep the box open and if i posted it in the normal way before he locked it then he could take the letter out with the rest of the mail.

That was big of him :-P

Now over the last 10 years they are wondering why they are loosing business and we are using email :-P

Roy

har har

Years ago I posted a letter, as it dropped I realised I'd forgotten to put the cheque with the bill! Arrrrrrgh. So I went into the post office and explained. They wouldn't get my letter, against the rules! So I had to telephone the company and let them know what I had done, and sent them the cheque with a covering note.

Couple of years ago brother-in-law phoned us to say he'd sent a parcel. A week later he phoned again, said the parcel was returned to him (with a sticker saying there was no such address), and we confirmed that he'd sent it to the correct address. So he sent it again (argument with person in post office, he wasn't paying postage again)......... and we never got it.

PO is right.

if its policy not to handle the post direct frm a customer then, hes right it would be his job at stake, and he is only following rules,


id be cross if someone expected me to do something against the job rules n risked me being sacked if im honest,

silly as it is, he was only doing what he has been told to, and you shouting him down to the securtiy gaurd may have made him feel belittled, :-(

its not his fault, if hes bene told he is not allowed,

just a thought - should he have been shopping whilst at work ? :-)

Good point Choccy, not to mention leaving Her Majestys' mail van unattended :-0
This sort of thing should be stamped out!

Imagine the devastation you could cause with a letter bomb in Sainsbury's.