Merry Christmas – and a happy February
‘The sender has posted it second-class before Christmas and now it’s three months late’
CHRISTMAS has come early for some this year as seasonal greetings cards sent three months ago have now arrived in the post.
A number of people have spoken out after receiving Christmas cards out of season, joking that the odd timing of their arrival is either down to Royal Mail delays or cards being sent early on in the year.
It follows accusations of Royal Mail prioritising parcels over letters, with industry sources predicting in the run-up to Christmas that cards would not arrive until the spring.
Lizzy Campbell, from Eye in Suffolk, said she was surprised to receive a Christmas card in February, and that the same thing happened to a friend who lives in her area.
“I received a very late Christmas card – or a very early Christmas card – it depends how you look at it I suppose, ” she told the BBC’S Today programme. “I’ve certainly never had a Christmas card this late – never.”
“A local friend has got the same card, received it on the same day as I did, and I have heard a number of others have the same thing happening to them.
“The sender has posted it second-class before Christmas and now it’s three months late. I’d love to know the true story, what happened to it.
“And I wonder how many there were in the end, not just from this sender but from others whose cards have just arrived. It’s rather a lovely card to receive on a very murky day in February,” she added.
The BBC said some staff on Today had also sent Christmas cards in December, which had not yet arrived, with one journalist saying 12 people had been in touch saying that they had not received her cards.
Royal Mail was fined last year for consistently failing to meet delivery targets, with a Telegraph poll finding that 49 per cent of respondents had experienced delays this year and 48 per cent said service had deteriorated.
A Royal Mail spokesman said: “This festive period was our best performance in four years, with more than 99 per cent of first and second-class items posted by the last recommended posting dates delivered in time for Christmas.”