Royal Mail fined £10.5million for missing its post delivery targets again
ROYAL MAIL has been fined £10.5million for missing its post delivery targets again.
Regulator Ofcom said just 74.7 per cent of first class post was delivered on time in the past year — well short of the 93 per cent target.
Second class post was delivered 92.7 per cent on time — but still adrift of its 98.5 per cent objective.
Ian Strawhorne, from Ofcom, said: “With millions of letters arriving late, far too many people aren’t getting what they pay for when they buy a stamp. Royal Mail’s poor service is now eroding public trust in one of the UK’s oldest institutions.
“This is the second time we’ve fined the company since the pandemic.”
Last year Royal Mail was fined £5.6million for missing targets.
Tom MacInnes, from Citizens Advice, said: “Failing to hit a single delivery target for nearly five years is simply unacceptable by Royal Mail, and it’s consumers left facing the consequences.”
The underperformance comes despite Royal Mail increasing the price of first class stamps by 30p to £1.65 while second class stamps are still 85p.
Royal Mail is pushing the Government to reform its universal service obligations and drop second class deliveries to every other day.
Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky is nearing government approval for his £3.6billion purchase of Royal Mail.
He has committed to keeping the universal service obligation and no job cuts — but only until 2025.
Bank hub aid
CHANCELLOR Rachel Reeves has said towns are at risk of becoming “banking deserts” due to the spate of high street branch closures.
She yesterday opened the UK’s 100th banking hub in Darwen, Lancs, which offers counter services to customers of different banks.
It comes after 1,596 bank branch closures in the space of a year.
Boo Ash veto
FASHION firm Boohoo has told Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group it can have a board seat — but ruled out Mr Ashley himself having it.
Frasers, the online retailer’s largest shareholder, wants two seats.
But Boohoo rejected its two nominees, one being Mr Ashley, saying that they would have “irreconcilable conflicts of interest”.