23 June 2009 - Sarah Sharpe - © Hellmail Postal News

With the discovery that tens of thousands of undelivered letters were found inside a lorry trailer at the Royal Mail Edinburgh Mail Centre in Sighthill, questions are being asked about the validity of delivery target figures presented to Postcomm.

With delivery offices under immence pressure to meet targets and and operational savings, there are fears that some office managers could be cutting corners in order to comply with tougher budget constraints just to keep their jobs.

The Daily Mail has reported today that some Royal Mail managers may have discovered the names and addresses of an independent panel of people that send and recieve test letters to calculate delivery efficiency, ensuring that any mail sent to those addresses received top priority and in so doing, compromised the integrity of any data gleaned.

Postcomm is said to be investigating claims that at least three managers, over a period of four years, passed on information concerning the identity of panelists and in the process received bonuses for meeting performance targets that they may not have been entitled to as well as meeting targets that they may well have failed.

Steve Lawson, editor for Hellmail postal news said:

"If this turns out to be true, there needs to be an urgent review of security as well as a thorough investigation of the way in which target figures are monitored.

"There are ofcouse inherent dangers in any target-based system. Whilst the principle behind the scheme is to maintain or improve standards, fear and peer pressure can actually create a culture of subdefuge and manipulation. Similar cases have happened in the NHS where monitoring is based heavily around targets. Too often, panic sets in and that can be dangerous, both in terms of the validity of figures and indeed the service to customers." he said.

Concerns over the manipulation of figures could, if proved, give rise to fines by Postcomm, the industry regulator, running into millions of pounds and throw into question bonuses paid further up the management chain.

"We have over the last year seen a definate drop in standards in terms of delivery times. Now mail arrives 'at some point' during the day but even in my own area, I've not had the same postman or postwoman for more than a week. They change so regularly now I've lost track and mail can sometimes turn up well into the late afternoon. It is very unpredictable.

"Much of this change has been the result of extending existing postal walks by taking others out to save money. You can definately feel it at the consumer end now. I fully appreciate that staff work extremely hard to maintain a good service but an overhaul of the monitoring process is probably overdue." said Lawson.

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