Royal Mail's poor performance over Christmas leads to delayed post and missed appointments
A survey by Citizens Advice found that 60% of UK adults experienced delayed post over Christmas, with some still receiving festive cards well into the new year. Almost a quarter of people turned to more expensive ways of sending mail, such as Special Delivery Guaranteed, during Christmas 2022. An estimated 31 million people were hit by letter delays over Christmas as Royal Mail let consumers down for a third year running. Some 11% missed an important document, such as an insurance letter or legal document, and 8% missed a health appointment. The dispute with the Communication Workers Union (CWU) has been going on since the summer, and seven days of strikes in December led Royal Mail to bring forward its last-suggested posting dates for Christmas mail. The recent wave of strikes at the postal firm have cost it £200m so far. Royal Mail also said the number of voluntary redundancies it needed to hit job cut targets would be much lower than first expected.