Royal Mail Chaos in Yeovil

In response to the worrying situation with Royal Mail and postal services in Yeovil, Adam Dance says:

"One of my team visited the queue at Yeovil sorting office yesterday morning at 9.45. 45 people were waiting for between 30 and 40 minutes.  The sorting office is only open from 8 to 10 and those who have not reached the counter by 10 would, we were told, be sent away.  Those in the queue said that they had had no post for 3 weeks and that this was an ongoing problem since the summer. Most were there to receive letters they were waiting for, in particular notices of hospital appointments.  We could see the limited number of staff were doing the best they could but this is not good enough for the people of Yeovil.

"I am writing today to the Chief Executive of Royal Mail, Martin Seindenberg, as well as to the Chairman and the Group CEO.   At the same time I am asking for a meeting with the Manager of Yeovil Royal Mail to see what can be done in the short term.  Immediate action should be prioritising getting post into the hands of local residents by increasing the opening hours of the sorting office, and then ensuring that letters are given priority for delivery across Yeovil as a whole on at least a twice weekly delivery, with the expectation that a full delivery service will be up and running as soon as possible

"In the run up to Christmas it is appalling that despite the cost of postage Royal Mail is unable to fulfill its Universal Service Obligation, agreed earlier this year, which requires Royal Mail to deliver letters six days a week to 32 million UK addresses, including in Yeovil."