Three-year-old missed crucial surgery after Royal Mail delays
ROYAL MAIL delays caused a threeyear-old boy to miss essential chest surgery, it has emerged.
The beleaguered company has been forced to apologise and launch an investigation into its Winsford delivery office in Cheshire after several NHS letters went undelivered.
In what is the latest case of delays to postal services, Jasmine Moulton was informed by hospital staff in January that her son Joshua, three, had missed scheduled surgery to help his breathing and swallowing problems.
She had also missed medical appointments for her five-year-old daughter Harper, whose limbs have to be wrapped in bandages because of severe skin allergies.
She was informed by phone call of the missed surgery at the start of the year, after Royal Mail had failed to deliver letters from NHS trusts about both appointments. This was despite the Winsford depot being just four miles from her house.
“I was like, ‘pardon?’ And I was in a bit of shock. I explained that we hadn’t had any post come through. She sounded shocked,” Ms Moulton told BBC Panorama of her call with the hospital, while her son Joshua coughed and wheezed.
In a tearful interview with the programme, she added: “It’s so frustrating. It stresses me out every day because I just think, how many other appointments have we missed? And just not knowing when we’re going to be able to move on. And seeing him suffering.”
Royal Mail has apologised to the family for the failings and is investigating the Winsford office as “a priority”.
Jenny Hall, director of corporate affairs at Royal Mail, told Ms Moulton: “I have young children myself and I know that must be hugely stressful for you.”
The courier is facing mounting criticism for delays to its service in recent months. It was fined £5.6 million by the regulator Ofcom in November for failing to meet its Universal Service Obligation to deliver 93 per cent of first-class post within one day of collection, and 98.5 per cent of second-class post within three working days.
In December, a Telegraph survey revealed that almost half of Royal Mail customers experienced delays in 2023.
In an investigation that aired on BBC One last night titled Royal Mail: Where’s My Post?, the Panorama team found several people, including cancer patients, turning up at the Winsford delivery office inquiring about missing post.
Current and former Royal Mail staff across the country told the programme that parcels were being prioritised over letters in sorting offices.
One ex-royal Mail area manager said he and managers “knew you were letting customers down” as he instructed postal staff to leave letters behind for weeks on end because of staff shortages.”