An Post now leaving parcels outside

gezley

Rural area. Freestanding letterbox at the gate. House about 25 metres from road.

Over the years we've had various An Post drivers and they've always come to the front door to hand in oversized parcels which can't be squeezed into that box. Recently they have started dropping them outside the gate, in full view of passers-by, and also exposed to the weather. Has this become standard practice elsewhere? Are An Post trying to get us to buy one of these new delivery boxes?

I'm quite annoyed about this because I often order books, and occasionally order electronic items. Needless to say the rain is no friend of books and electronics, and I don't particularly like the idea of my parcels left near the roadside where somebody could lift them. Most books will fit through the letterbox at the gate, which is fine, but some don't. It's not as though the driver is coming to my door 5 times a week. 5 times every 6 months would be more like it.

Has anyone else had this problem recently?

davo10

gezley wrote: »

Rural area. Freestanding letterbox at the gate. House about 25 metres from road.

Over the years we've had various An Post drivers and they've always come to the front door to hand in oversized parcels which can't be squeezed into that box. Recently they have started dropping them outside the gate, in full view of passers-by, and also exposed to the weather. Has this become standard practice elsewhere? Are An Post trying to get us to buy one of these new delivery boxes?

I'm quite annoyed about this because I often order books, and occasionally order electronic items. Needless to say the rain is no friend of books and electronics, and I don't particularly like the idea of my parcels left near the roadside where somebody could lift them. Most books will fit through the letterbox at the gate, which is fine, but some don't. It's not as though the driver is coming to my door 5 times a week. 5 times every 6 months would be more like it.

Has anyone else had this problem recently?

I thought the point of having your letterbox at your gate was to allow you to keep your gate closed and stop people from entering your property? If your mail box is at your gate, and the post being delivered won't fit in it, I think it's fair to leave the item as close as possible to your mailbox. You could just remove the box at the gate so that mail comes to your door instead. It's difficult to see this as a consumer issue.

WHIP IT!

davo10 wrote:

I thought the point of having your letterbox at your gate was to allow you to keep your gate closed and stop people from entering your property? If your mail box is at your gate, and the post being delivered won't fit in it, I think it's fair to leave the item as close as possible to your mailbox. You could just remove the box at the gate so that mail comes to your door instead. It's difficult to see this as a consumer issue.

Good god....

Advbrd

WHIP IT! wrote: »

Good god....

I had similar thoughts but couldn't be bothered.

_Brian

No problems here, he just leaves a slip and we pick oversized stuff up in the post office.
Was chatting to the postie recently and he said that people keep asking him to drop parcels that can't be delivered but he says he refuses as he'd be responsible for any problems that come up as a result.

I'd say ring your local post office and mention that stuff is being left out.

donegaldude

davo10 wrote: »

I thought the point of having your letterbox at your gate was to allow you to keep your gate closed and stop people from entering your property? If your mail box is at your gate, and the post being delivered won't fit in it, I think it's fair to leave the item as close as possible to your mailbox. You could just remove the box at the gate so that mail comes to your door instead. It's difficult to see this as a consumer issue.

Or alternatively move the house closer to the mailbox by that reasoning.

Teyla Emmagan

Have you got into your local post office to complain? Don't write them off because of one lazy driver

Though one of the reasons I use parcel motel is that the post man used to leave parcels in with my neighbours. He possibly thought he was doing me a favour but it wasn't much use when they then headed off for a week with my parcel inside! Or some of my neighbours are mad/old. I didn't want the interaction with them/to see them bothered. There were times I would gave rathered get up before dawn to go to the delivery office.

Darth Melkor

davo10 wrote: »

I thought the point of having your letterbox at your gate was to allow you to keep your gate closed and stop people from entering your property? If your mail box is at your gate, and the post being delivered won't fit in it, I think it's fair to leave the item as close as possible to your mailbox. You could just remove the box at the gate so that mail comes to your door instead. It's difficult to see this as a consumer issue.

Our mailbox is by our front door around 15 metres in from gate. When the gate is open the postman can drive in but when the gate is closed they have to walk in. Two separate post men have given out about this. One has said that we need to move our box outside the gate and constantly drives over part of the lawn. Another "accidentally" broke off part of the gate. I don't know how he managed it with his barehands. He apologised but pointed out that we should have a box outside the gate or leave it open at all times.

Just noting that moving the mailbox might not necessarily resolve the problem.

davo10

I posted based on the op's "consumer issue" as this is a consumer issue thread. The op put his/her mailbox outside the gate, that is the point of delivary for on post, designated by the op, why? Because that's where the letterbox is. Why should a postman take the time to walk 25m in the rain to try and put it through the front door? These sense of entitled by some makes me go "good god" as well.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

We are rural and the house is 30metres from the gate. The postman always calls to the door with parcels. If we are not here he would leave it at the back door and put a note in the letterbox.

OP, just say it to him politely and I'm sure he'll do whatever is best for you. There is no incentive to the postman to encourage you to get the parcelbox.

davo10

Hendrix Wonderful Ratchet wrote: »

We are rural and the house is 30metres from the gate. The postman always calls to the door with parcels. If we are not here he would leave it at the back door and put a note in the letterbox.

OP, just say it to him politely and I'm sure he'll do whatever is best for you. There is no incentive to the postman to encourage you to get the parcelbox.

This is the common sense approach rather than looking at it as a consumer issue.

ED E

davo10 wrote: »

I posted based on the op's "consumer issue" as this is a consumer issue thread. The op put his/her mailbox outside the gate, that is the point of delivary for on post, designated by the op, why? Because that's where the letterbox is. Why should a postman take the time to walk 25m in the rain to try and put it through the front door? These sense of entitled by some makes me go "good god" as well.

Ehhhh, because that's his job? He's a mailcarrier. In the name.

Parcels go through a different channel which can be outsourced unlike the regular mail. Sometimes leads to chancers. Get onto the local DU and let them know.

Advbrd

davo10 wrote: »

I posted based on the op's "consumer issue" as this is a consumer issue thread. The op put his/her mailbox outside the gate, that is the point of delivary for on post, designated by the op, why? Because that's where the letterbox is. Why should a postman take the time to walk 25m in the rain to try and put it through the front door? These sense of entitled by some makes me go "good god" as well.

I think this particular "consumer" has every right to complain about the "issue" of parcels being left outside the gate in which I presume is a public area. I presume the OP is away on occasion for a number of days/weeks. I presume it rains in that particular area. I presume there are chancers in the area who may take an interest in the contents of said parcels.
The code of practice in my area is that a slip is inserted in the post box informing the recipient that there is a parcel to be collected in the local P.O. Quite simple.

Edups

davo10 wrote: »

I thought the point of having your letterbox at your gate was to allow you to keep your gate closed and stop people from entering your property? If your mail box is at your gate, and the post being delivered won't fit in it, I think it's fair to leave the item as close as possible to your mailbox. You could just remove the box at the gate so that mail comes to your door instead. It's difficult to see this as a consumer issue.

Are you joking?

davo10 wrote: »

I posted based on the op's "consumer issue" as this is a consumer issue thread. The op put his/her mailbox outside the gate, that is the point of delivary for on post, designated by the op, why? Because that's where the letterbox is. Why should a postman take the time to walk 25m in the rain to try and put it through the front door? These sense of entitled by some makes me go "good god" as well.

Oh good you're serious.
Good.
That's very... good

It's not as though the driver is coming to my door 5 times a week. 5 times every 6 months would be more like it.

That doesn't even absolve him/her. The post person is being paid for 5 days of work and their job is to deliver the mail to the recipient, the recipients post box and failing the above return to depot for collection. It's all very well for the guy above to say "what's the problem" but if he was throwing his post letters and all outside the post box there'd be a big issue. OP, I had a post man who was acting the prick a while back with my mail and a call to an post in Dublin and my local depot fixed his wagon. I suggest the same to you

yop

davo10 wrote: »

I posted based on the op's "consumer issue" as this is a consumer issue thread. The op put his/her mailbox outside the gate, that is the point of delivary for on post, designated by the op, why? Because that's where the letterbox is. Why should a postman take the time to walk 25m in the rain to try and put it through the front door? These sense of entitled by some makes me go "good god" as well.

fro9etb8j5qsl2

davo10 wrote: »

Why should a postman take the time to walk 25m in the rain to try and put it through the front door? These sense of entitled by some makes me go "good god" as well.

Eh, because it's his or her job?? If every postal worker took this attitude there would be no mail delivered on a daily basis.

Op you probably have a new postman who is either lazy or unaware. If you ring your local delivery office they will knock it on the head for you.

Edups

2016 - when having an expectation that involves a person doing their job is entitlement.


**** me

Advbrd

Brysen Ashy Harpsichord wrote: »

Eh, because it's his or her job?? If every postal worker took this attitude there would be no mail delivered on a daily basis.

Op you probably have a new postman who is either lazy or unaware. If you ring your local delivery office they will knock it on the head for you.

So says mrs postman. End of story.

L1011

Advbrd wrote: »

So says mrs postman. End of story.

I wouldn't make assumptions based on usernames. I'm not an obsolete three-engined Lockheed passenger aircraft.

The issue as I see it here is the parcels being left outside - after installing a postbox I wouldn't expect a postal delivery worker to bypass it if something doesn't fit when they have the delivery office option. I would expect the leaving them in the open to be stopped immediately if a complaint is made, but you're not guaranteed they'll come up the drive.

mooeire

We have the issue at home were the postman drops letters inside the porch and not in the letterbox in the door. We live in a small housing estate, it would take an extra second or two to put into letterbox in the front door. Is it the local sorting office i ring to get the matter addressed? My mother has a disability and cant get out to pick the post up so can be sitting there all day.

my3cents

OP just have a word with the postman and tell him exactly what you want done with the parcels. If we are not in ours will open a 16ft farm gate drive down 100 yards of track and leave leave any parcels inside the porch even though we have massive dogs that appear aggressive. He does get a decent tip at Christmas time but he did a good job before he even knew he was getting a tip. Normally he just beeps as he drives past the house and he waits at the gate while we go up and collect parcels from him.

You shouldn't have to but if the postman doesn't bother to be helpful just keep reporting them, he'll probably get moved or sacked if he does the same to other customers.

I'm expecting two parcels today and its raining. One is coming with AnPost and I've no worries about that and the other a HDD is coming with Fastway and I'm expecting it will be left balanced on the top of our sloping roofed letter box in the rain and the driver will sign for it.

gezley

davo10 wrote: »

I thought the point of having your letterbox at your gate was to allow you to keep your gate closed and stop people from entering your property? If your mail box is at your gate, and the post being delivered won't fit in it, I think it's fair to leave the item as close as possible to your mailbox. You could just remove the box at the gate so that mail comes to your door instead. It's difficult to see this as a consumer issue.

The last time we had post delivered directly to the door the postwoman drove over our dog without stopping. After some legal wrangling over vet costs and whatnot the postbox was then installed at the gate by, you guessed it, the post office. But thanks for your suggestion anyway.

gezley

_Brian wrote: »

No problems here, he just leaves a slip and we pick oversized stuff up in the post office.
Was chatting to the postie recently and he said that people keep asking him to drop parcels that can't be delivered but he says he refuses as he'd be responsible for any problems that come up as a result.

I'd say ring your local post office and mention that stuff is being left out.

Done some time ago. Still no reply. As with most complaints about so-called "public services" provided in Ireland, a complete waste of time. Same experience with electricity supply, which has become very unreliable lately. On one occasion I lost a hard disk over it. Complained to ESB over a year ago. Still no reply.

gezley

davo10 wrote: »

I posted based on the op's "consumer issue" as this is a consumer issue thread. The op put his/her mailbox outside the gate, that is the point of delivary for on post, designated by the op, why? Because that's where the letterbox is. Why should a postman take the time to walk 25m in the rain to try and put it through the front door? These sense of entitled by some makes me go "good god" as well.

See my reply to that post. Good God indeed. Some people are truly burdened by their superior intellects.

gezley

davo10 wrote: »

This is the common sense approach rather than looking at it as a consumer issue.

Why is it not a consumer issue? Am I not a customer of An Post, entitled to a courteous service from them? Have you read their customer charter, promising a "high-quality", "secure" and "reliable" service (p.4 of their 8-page charter)? Do you consider leaving parcels outside, at the gate and near the road, to be a "secure" and "high-quality" service?

gezley

Edups wrote: »

Are you joking?



Oh good you're serious.
Good.
That's very... good



That doesn't even absolve him/her. The post person is being paid for 5 days of work and their job is to deliver the mail to the recipient, the recipients post box and failing the above return to depot for collection. It's all very well for the guy above to say "what's the problem" but if he was throwing his post letters and all outside the post box there'd be a big issue. OP, I had a post man who was acting the prick a while back with my mail and a call to an post in Dublin and my local depot fixed his wagon. I suggest the same to you

Thank you. And it's not as though the driver even has to leave a note. These parcels are not signed delivery, so they can easily leave them in the porch. The porch door is open and all the drivers so far know this. Only recently have they stopped leaving them there.

Shelflife

If a polite word with the Postie doesnt work you need to write to the area office/depot and keep a copy.

Phone call can be denied a letter cant, once it lands on someones desk they will have to deal with it. Paper trail all the way.

gezley

Shelflife wrote: »

If a polite word with the Postie doesnt work you need to write to the area office/depot and keep a copy.

Phone call can be denied a letter cant, once it lands on someones desk they will have to deal with it. Paper trail all the way.

I will do this. Problem with waiting for post is that delivery can be any time between 1100 and 1430, so a letter it is then.

former total

gezley wrote: »

The last time we had post delivered directly to the door the postwoman drove over our dog without stopping. After some legal wrangling over vet costs and whatnot the postbox was then installed at the gate by, you guessed it, the post office. But thanks for your suggestion anyway.

Ahhhh here.

Perhaps you should have mentioned in your initial post that you'd been in legal dispute with An Post! Might have put things in a bit of context.

gezley

former total wrote: »

Ahhhh here.

Perhaps you should have mentioned in your initial post that you'd been in legal dispute with An Post! Might have put things in a bit of context.

Really? You think they're no longer obliged to provide a service to you because they ran over your dog on your property? The only relevance that case has to this thread is that An Post supplied a box to be installed outside gate so problem would not occur again. Said box does not allow for moderately oversized parcels.

What do you propose we should do now?

L1011

If its a Deliverybox, getting it installed FOC is unlikely to change the T&Cs which provide for them leaving delivery cards. This is what they should be doing.

I would entirely expect them to stop leaving the parcels out in the open, but that's it.

gezley

Hendrix Wonderful Ratchet wrote: »

We are rural and the house is 30metres from the gate. The postman always calls to the door with parcels. If we are not here he would leave it at the back door and put a note in the letterbox.

OP, just say it to him politely and I'm sure he'll do whatever is best for you. There is no incentive to the postman to encourage you to get the parcelbox.

There is of course an incentive. If just 30 households along his route got the box he could shave 60 minutes off his day, assuming he saves 2 minutes per household walking up to the door, ringing the bell, having someone sign for the parcel and walking back to the van.

my3cents

gezley wrote: »

There is of course an incentive. If just 30 households along his route got the box he could shave 60 minutes off his day, assuming he saves 2 minutes per household walking up to the door, ringing the bell, having someone sign for the parcel and walking back to the van.

You are not thinking this out. Routes change and time and motion type studies are used to see how many deliveries a postman can do each day. If the postman can get more work done because of the increased use of Delivery Boxes then the postmans run will be increased and less postmen will be employed.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

gezley wrote: »

There is of course an incentive. If just 30 households along his route got the box he could shave 60 minutes off his day, assuming he saves 2 minutes per household walking up to the door, ringing the bell, having someone sign for the parcel and walking back to the van.

I'm sorry but I just don't believe our postman thinks like that at all. He is extremely obliging and never hurried.

And in a rural area you think he'd have 30 oversized parcels every day? You are stretching credibility somewhat.

L1011

Writing out the not in card is not instant.

marklazarcovic

postie is required to deliver to your post box,and no further, if post box is inside a gate thats locked he or she does not have to jump or climb anything to attempt delivery to the postbox ..

your postie is doing you a favour and saving himself the hassle of writing a not at home notice by leaving it at the back door or with a neighbour for you, if you dont want them doing it say it to them,tell them to leave the notice so you can go and collect it .

i suspect the postie in the op was either lazy or trying to help,but leaving a package exposed to the elements is stupid by any postie.

also,the new postboxes wont make a posties route quicker at all,he needs to unlock the box,and then scan it ,pop the mail in,remove any mail left for posting,close box.

a letterbox is simply pop them in and walk away.

it will save writing slips for small packages for sure.

they are not supposed to be installed further away than your original letterbox,as believe it or not every route is measured and timed to fit the distance covered. but they have been installed behind locked side gates by some right idiots.

gezley

Hendrix Wonderful Ratchet wrote: »

I'm sorry but I just don't believe our postman thinks like that at all. He is extremely obliging and never hurried.

And in a rural area you think he'd have 30 oversized parcels every day? You are stretching credibility somewhat.

Delivery boxes are for signed deliveries as well. 30 deliveries of oversized parcels and parcels or mail requiring a signature on a route covering 100s of households is not stretching anything at all in this era of internet ordering. In my OP I was just inquiring whether others had similar experiences recently, to see if this was a new policy at An Post designed to force more people to take up the new DeliveryBox. The conversation, like so many here, went off on a tangent, and this original point was lost. Reminds me of RTE radio. So many voices, interruptions and tangents nobody ever comes away enlightened.

former total

Your original post gave the clear impression that they just randomly stopped delivering to your door.

Now we know there's a lot more to it. And we know that we're only getting your side of the story. And that, at the very least, you have a loose dog on your property. So it's not a straightforward case of a lazy postman. At all.

Ring your local delivery office and try to come to an amicable arrangement. Collection from the delivery office seems like the best idea.

my3cents

gezley wrote: »

Delivery boxes are for signed deliveries as well. 30 deliveries of oversized parcels and parcels or mail requiring a signature on a route covering 100s of households is not stretching anything at all in this era of internet ordering. In my OP I was just inquiring whether others had similar experiences recently, to see if this was a new policy at An Post designed to force more people to take up the new DeliveryBox. The conversation, like so many here, went off on a tangent, and this original point was lost. reminds me of RTE radio. So many voices, interruptions and tangents nobody ever comes away enlightened.

So NO its not a new AnPost policy. It seems you have lost the good will of your postman so until that changes you are stuck. I suspect your postman thinks dammed if I do dammed if I don't so takes the easiest option.

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

my3cents

former total wrote: »

Your original post gave the clear impression that they just randomly stopped delivering to your door.

Now we know there's a lot more to it. And we know that we're only getting your side of the story. And that, at the very least, you have a loose dog on your property. So it's not a straightforward case of a lazy postman. At all.

Ring your local delivery office and try to come to an amicable arrangement. Collection from the delivery office seems like the best idea.

Postmen are usually quite safe when there is a post delivery van around. You'd think ours would kill the postman as soon as they hear his van but let them out at him and all they are interested in is sniffing all the van tyres and pissing on them

05eaftqbrs9jlh

They did something with our parcel recently that I thought was to incentivise us to buy the box, but I can't remember what it was. Damn.

blade1

Fred Swanson wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

Nope,only if the postman has post for you,will he check for letters you want posted.

L1011

Fred Swanson wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

You can, but they are quite specific in stating it'll only be taken if you have incoming post.

I've only used it once - Gone Away on a debt collector letter for someone who is gone at least half a decade.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

gezley wrote: »

Delivery boxes are for signed deliveries as well. 30 deliveries of oversized parcels and parcels or mail requiring a signature on a route covering 100s of households is not stretching anything at all in this era of internet ordering. In my OP I was just inquiring whether others had similar experiences recently, to see if this was a new policy at An Post designed to force more people to take up the new DeliveryBox. The conversation, like so many here, went off on a tangent, and this original point was lost. Reminds me of RTE radio. So many voices, interruptions and tangents nobody ever comes away enlightened.

On a point of order, you raised the conspiracy theory around the parcel box.

gezley

former total wrote: »

Your original post gave the clear impression that they just randomly stopped delivering to your door.

Now we know there's a lot more to it. And we know that we're only getting your side of the story. And that, at the very least, you have a loose dog on your property. So it's not a straightforward case of a lazy postman. At all.

Ring your local delivery office and try to come to an amicable arrangement. Collection from the delivery office seems like the best idea.

I didn't give any such impression. What can be dropped into the box at the gate is dropped into the box at the gate.

No change there.

What needs a signature is brought to the front door for a signature.

No change there.

What cannot be dropped into the box at the gate, and doesn't need a signature, had until recently been brought to the door. If nobody was in to accept it they would leave it in the porch. Fair enough - no complaints there.

The change is not random at all. They have simply stopped taking oversized parcels to the front door and started dropping them BESIDE the letterbox at the gate, in full view of passing motorists and completely exposed to the weather. This started a number of weeks ago. Why so many of you see ME as the problem here is beyond me. The legal case involving a dog the postwoman ran over was 8 years ago. This new practice of dropping parcels at the roadside is only weeks old.

For the love of God can you stop making an issue out of this that is simply not there? I am not to blame; I don't have an ongoing quarrel with An Post over a dog that died in 2009. Please grow up and deal with the OP as it is expressed, not as you imagine it to be.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Have you actually spoken to the postman about it???

marklazarcovic

Fred Swanson wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

no,only on days the box is getting mail is it checked,its for non essential postings

gezley

Hendrix Wonderful Ratchet wrote: »

Have you actually spoken to the postman about it???

If I knew what time she was coming I would wait at the gate for her. Trouble is can be any time between 1100 and 1430. It can also be any one of 3 delivery persons as well, though usually it's been a postwoman.

It doesn't seem right that we should have to bring this up. I spent 3 years as a courier so I know how frustrating it is for these drivers but not once did I leave somebody's parcel at the gate in full view of everybody.

intheclouds

Why don't you leave a large note on the postbox saying "Mr Postman, please call to the house I need to speak with you"?, and then ask him to stop leaving parcels out on the road?

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

intheclouds wrote: »

Why don't you leave a large note on the postbox saying "Mr Postman, please call to the house I need to speak with you"?, and then ask him to stop leaving parcels out on the road?

That would be too easy.