Royal Mail, the Post Office and the Worst Customer Service System

I have never been so angry as I am right now. Yes, I am stressed and yes, tomorrow it may seem better but right now, I am livid.

Today is my mum's birthday. Thanks to having no money and a stupidly stressful busy schedule, I haven't seen her for over a month. Knowing that I wouldn't see her for another couple of weeks, I planned her present in advance. I pre-ordered a book by her favourite author from Amazon and wrote a note on the inside of the jacket, just as her mum used to do for her when she was younger. A month or so ago I also heard about a promotion Benefit had with Grazia, whereby you buy Grazia and give a token in return for a mini gift set. Yes, this is only a couple of pounds but my mum loves beauty; she lives for it. Every time I go home I take her some random beauty lotions and potions and we swap some, share some and compare them. Trust me, if she could work a computer she could write more beauty blogs than any of us. So, knowing she would love it, I got the gift set with her in mind. So far, so good.

Yesterday (last minute I know) I took this wrapped and addressed parcel to work with me so that I could send it from the nearby Plaza Post Office on Oxford Street at lunch time. I bought a card, and a voucher for one of her favourite shops, which I put inside the card. I addressed the card but realised there was no point in sending them separately, and since the card and the parcel were going to the same place I asked the cashier for some tape to sellotape the card to the parcel. Therefore the card's address acted as the address for both since it sat neatly on top (though the parcel was addressed too, as stated). I asked her if this would be ok, she said it would be fine, didn't question it, seemed very uninterested. I handed over £7 for next day signed for delivery.

Today, I get a text from mum saying thank you for the voucher. I ask about the parcel. 'What parcel?' is the response. They'd lost it. 

Now this is bad luck, bad service, whatever; but just over a month ago, they lost another present that I was sending a friend back home. Same branch. Recorded delivery, which apparently means ABSOLUTELY NOTHING in terms of tracking (so why have it??) but still you would expect it to get there. But when I check the code online, they simply say it is still being processed. 

So this is pretty bad so far. But then, add the worst customer service I've ever received and you can see why I am so, so angry. When I went into the branch last time, I was practically laughed out of the store, with the quite rude cashier (and I really was polite - despite my anger today I can never bring myself to be rude in public) telling me that even though the Royal Mail website said the package was still there, there was no way it could be.  Helpful. So, I tried calling them using the phone number on the receipt. I got a computer. Computer Lady asked for my reference number, so I started "A, I, 2..." etc. What does she say back? "Did you say: K,I,2...?" I have to say no. To a machine. I repeat myself. Again, she thinks I have said a K. I genuinely cannot say the letter 'A' any clearer or louder, but after about six times of repeating myself I give up.

Look on the Royal Mail website; if you can find a phone number for a destination where actual human beings answer phones, I will kiss your feet. In fact, maybe if you can find a phone number at all. The 'contact us' page sends you to Twitter (don't worry, I've done that already). When I then looked up my particular problem (since of course they think the package is delivered, as the card arrived), I get this: 

My item arrived but the contents were missing

Sometimes items which aren’t wrapped or packed properly can lose their contents. See our wrapping and packing advice.

If the damage was caused during transit, we’re very sorry. Please report this to us using our Customer Service pages. 

Are they joking? Really? Are they kidding? If content is missing, it's the customer's fault? We can't pack our things properly, therefore they 'lose' it? The link goes to this oh-so-not-handy list of tips:

Some general tips for safe and secure packaging are:

• Use padded envelopes for sharp edges or odd shapes.
• Make sure any outer containers are strong enough for their contents.
• Fragile items shouldn't touch either each other, or the side of the container.
• Fill out containers with cushioning material like bubble-wrap or polystyrene chips (available from most Post Office® branches).
• Write a return address on the item.
• Put a contact name, address and telephone number inside.
• Seal securely with nylon or vinyl tape along all edges and openings.
• Flatten any sharp edge from staples or metal fastenings, and cover with tape.
• Use a ‘FRAGILE’ sticker, if necessary.

I have worked in customer service myself, and now work in a company that has a small but efficient team of people who will ALWAYS make sure there is some sort of resolution to a problem. Whether or not the customer is wrong or right, no matter who has done something wrong - SOMETHING is sorted out in some way that means all parties are at least slightly satisfied, hopefully more than slightly. You can contact us by email, Twitter, Facebook, letter, or - shock horror - phone. Where you will get a real person who has a brain and a voice answering your questions and helping you out. For such a huge company like Royal Mail to rely on a basic FAQ section on their site and a Twitter account which is manned by someone who is very polite and probably doesn't deserve any of the complaints he/she gets, is frankly ridiculous. 

Yes, I can now make a claim via snail mail (ha! If it gets there) and so I will hopefully get something back for the first gift that went missing at least, but this is so not the point. We rely on the postal service, and that's what it is - a service. A service we pay for, and not particularly cheap prices either. This is not how to run a business, it is not the right way to treat your customers and it just isn't good enough. 'Losing' my stuff is bad enough - but Royal Mail, you need to sort out your communication process pronto.

I'm going straight to the Post Office in the Plaza tomorrow to speak to the manager. I'll update this post if they do anything that shows they understand the meaning of 'customer service'; but I won't hold my breath. Let's hope I'm wrong...

**UPDATE**

As promised, an update. Thankfully, by talking to the people on Royal Mail's Twitter, we managed to work out that the parcel would eventually make its way to my mum's house as an 'unpaid' item and that she would have to pay for it and collect it herself. They also offered to pay this fee since I had already paid £7.00 for delivery. I am very happy that my mum text me today to say she received it and loves her present!

While I will never use the Plaza Post Office again since it has let me down too many times, I am very grateful to the Royal Mail tweeps. That said, they didn't do anything other than explain what would happen - it was the fact that I had put the address on the parcel that meant it arrived safely. I am about to fill in my claim for the previous birthday present that dropped off the face of the earth... let's hope I get my £20 back!