UNFAIR COMMENT
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• At the height of the recent postal dispute you wrote a lengthy "Comment" headed "The Devil You Know" (CM 1-7 September).
There can be little doubt the Post Office customer was fed up with yet more industrial action in the Letters Division, but what your "Comment" steered clear of was the distinction between the Letters Division with the monopoly, and the Parcels Division which has no monopoly and takes its market share by its ability to meet customer expectation on price and quality. Royal Mail Parcels suffered as did its customers because it fell victim of the dispute within the fully allocated cost agency delivery service provided by Royal Mail (Letters).
Quite contrary to your comment: "A system whereby the parcels companies and the Post Office tendered on equal terms for provision of a nationwide parcels delivery service would be a step forward," omits to recognise the Post Office Royal Mail Parcels Division does have to tender on equal terms with all competitive carriers.
It was also unfair to refer to the Post office's ability to "invent" new "Premium" services which offer, at a price, standards of service which the public should be able to expect at no extra cost.
Strange that recently Commercial Motor's own survey on next-day premium service should have declared TNT the winner of the survey when the Post Office Datapost service (not to mention Interlink) achieved the same objectives as TNT at half the price!
You may also recall the Sunday Times survey recently when they attempted to test 12 carriers, including Datapost, from Sussex to Sutherland in the Highlands. Only three accepted, and Datapost was the only carrier to achieve next-day delivery.
Finally, all carriers at sometime, some quite frequently, use the Royal Mail Parcels network to achieve a clear delivery of their customers' products when they get into difficulty or find it not costeffective to deliver themselves outside the major conurbations. Far from being inefficient and deteriorating, Royal Mail Parcels has always been in a nowin situation with its carrier competitors. Royal Mail Parcels has a statutory obligation to accept parcels for every delivery point, all 22 million. Other carrier competitors do not have to do so, they can be selective by route or region in order to maximise profit margin. If it costs too much let the good old Royal Mail Parcels carry it.
A Lynch, District Manager, Royal Mail Parcels, Peterborough.