Just wondering if anyone knows about the above.
Someone posted something to me on Monday
using Special Delivery "Guaranteed by 1pm".
It arrived Tuesday, after 1pm.
But it seems RM considers it delayed/suitable for compensation only
if it is "1 or more working day after due date".
royalmail.com/ret…lay
(so maybe Wednesday after 1pm or even Thursday).
-is that correct? What kind of usage of the term "Guaranteed by 1pm" is this?
Is it because things are affected by Covid, or is this case in normal times also?
To be honest, the usage of the word Guaranteed is annoying me more than getting £5 back now. Or have I misunderstood something?
Many thanks
Someone posted something to me on Monday
using Special Delivery "Guaranteed by 1pm".
It arrived Tuesday, after 1pm.
But it seems RM considers it delayed/suitable for compensation only
if it is "1 or more working day after due date".
royalmail.com/ret…lay
(so maybe Wednesday after 1pm or even Thursday).
-is that correct? What kind of usage of the term "Guaranteed by 1pm" is this?
Is it because things are affected by Covid, or is this case in normal times also?
To be honest, the usage of the word Guaranteed is annoying me more than getting £5 back now. Or have I misunderstood something?
Many thanks
41 Comments
sorted byIt hasn't gone away you know
Need I remind of the "pingdemic" going on right now? Lorry driver shortage ring any bells?
So you won’t get anything back. But it would be the sender who has the contract with them anyway.
Considering the year the posties and even people working in the post offices have had, working stupid hours, I can’t believe that changing the timings slightly bothers you that much. (edited)
Royal Mail clearly state on their website that the service may not be fulfilled before the time they intend it to be due to the current situation we are in. If the sender doesn't read it or does read it but doesn't pass the information on to the recipient, that's not RM's fault.
No, it doesn't, but there is a big yellow banner that informs you of the situation at the top of every page, with a link to the Service Update page which clearly states the change to 4pm.
By the way, it's the sender who would get the compensation in normal circumstances, not you. (edited)
If the service was scrapped, they would receive complaints.
If they rebranded it, then they would receive complaints about wasting money printing all the new stickers/books that would be needed for Post Room's in different companies (like the one I work in) and perhaps for the increase in postage prices that the reprinting might cost them.
No matter what they would do, they would still receive complaints.
Yes, they are not fulfilling the pre-9am and pre-1pm services as intended but, as I mentioned above, they have it on their website for people to see. They fulfil the service as best they can, getting as many of the SD's delivered before the designated times but at the moment it simply can't be possible for every envelope/package sent that way. Royal Mail would love to have them all delivered before the guanranteed times to keep the customers happy but due to shortages of drivers/staff in sorting offices, they can't.
Royal Mail clearly state that their Guaranteed 1pm service has had to be changed to 4pm temporarily.
So why would you use that service if you require it before 1pm at the moment?
Use another service. (edited)
It's currently guaranteed by 4pm. I sent something by the same service about 6-8 months ago and was told by the Post Office worker it would arrive by 9pm at the latest the next day, so they're getting better.
Hopefully OP (or the person who sent the package were aware that 1pm is, at the moment anyway, not guaranteed.
What I asked in the title is "What is Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm?"
I wanted to know what it actually meant, as about monthly I send or receive things which I need to be there the next day before 1pm.
It seems the answer is it should be there by 4pm, but you only get compensation after the day after next.
The packet I received clearly shows "SD by 1pm" with a home printed RM label. They should just update the label producing system to offer/show 4pm.
I would have thought (because of the use of the word guaranteed) you should get the cost of postage back (or cost of postage minus normal first class if you prefer).
Yes, I was left out of pocket by it.
No, it's not the end of the world when covid is still around and many people have been asked to isolate. I didn't say it was. That's why I asked the friendly people of hotukdeals and didn't call WhereTheresBlameTheresAClaim
I'll have to use a courier. in future.
Thanks to everyone for the info and links. I did try looking at the RM website, but their link I posted doesn't mention the change from 1pm to 4pm, for instance. (edited)
It is all about expectations and if you order a service that promises a certain service level then you are entitled to expect to receive that service. And if the service level is not provided then there should be some compensation due.
Yes, it'll cost more but should be delivered (location and situations out of RM's control permitting) the next day by 11 thus meeting your needs.
Really?
royalmail.com/sen…1pm
I'd only bother compensating if not next day personally
Just to add to what I said above, when I posted something previously using Special Delivery, it was posted at 5:30pm and was with the guy by 10:30 the next morning. I was super impressed.
If only it was as simple as updating the label
I do see your reasoning and it makes good sense...I suppose my problem with it would be that they call it "guaranteed". How can something be both guaranteed and have 0 guarantees?
This is basically what anyone with Virgin Media BB agrees too. Your guarantee is half of whatever package you're on. So if your on a 100 (actually 108Mbps) then you're guaranteed 54!
Also Royal Mail are quite good with compensation compared to the couriers too.
Damn it, took me a little too long to type up my response lol
It certainly covers RM's responsibility, but they could have very well just scrapped the service all together or renamed it accordingly. There is no point in pretending it is something when actually it is something else.
While it is a marketing trick for some broadband companies, imagine that you are applying for a 100mbps connection and end up getting a 30mbps. Would you forgive them hiding in the t&cs that they only guarantee 30mbps when they advertise 100mbps? What's the point in paying for a 100mbps service when you will never get it? (edited)
They are still guaranteeing next day delivery (depending on your location but that's always been the case for special deliveries, especially if you're in a more remote location) but they just can't guarantee the delivery time (the connecting trucks that would drive from one sorting office to another might not be running to their usual schedules, thus possibly causing delays).
A large percentage of the country is working from home at the moment so this extended delivery time is OK for them but yes, for those who don't WFH and won't be in, this can be a problem. But there's no simple solution that would work for both sides.
Easy use-case scenario:
Someone who never posts packages themselves (so hasn't been on RM website), bids on eBay and wins the item. The seller has listed this service as the delivery method. You pay for delivery, expect it by 1PM (as per the name of the service) and you make plans based on that expectation.
Well said.They should give you stamps or some sort of voucher.
Yep they should change it to be guaranteed by the next day.Rather than 1 o clock.