Nairnshire residents raise concerns after major postal delays
A number of Nairnshire residents have reported not receiving their post for more than two weeks.
People living in rural areas such as Glenferness and near Cawdor have raised concerns about a lack of deliveries, with people reporting missing hospital appointments as a result.
The matter was raised at last week’s meeting of Cawdor and West Nairnshire Community Council.
Glenferness farmer Moyra Sang said: “We first realised that something was wrong when we stopped getting The Scottish Farmer delivered, which we usually get delivered every Friday and which has always been delivered on the dot - or we were notified if there had been any issues.
“A couple of months ago we weren’t getting the mail as normal, but we were still getting it. And then it just stopped apart from tracked deliveries.”
She said she was told by one postie that they were holding back mail and added: “With the average farmer's age being over 60, there's a lot of big suppliers who still put invoices out by mail. And we praise ourselves for being quick payers, and in doing so we get discounts in the priority service. And we don’t want that blemished because we don’t get the mail!”
She said mail received last week included a jury summons dated May 26, which she could not reply to on time.
And she said some of her neighbours were also having issues impacting prescriptions, medical appointments and blue badges.
Tanera Astley, who lives south of Cawdor, and whose mum lives in the Lethen area have also been impacted.
Ms Astley said: “My mother has had no post for two weeks. She is in her 80s and heavily relies on postal deliveries for almost everything and she was told to go and collect her mail from the post office — but even then not every day and only between 8 and 10am.
“Working from home, I also rely on mail deliveries for a variety of aspects relating to the organisation of the Nairn Book and Arts Festival, applying for funding and other time-sensitive communication.”
Nairn and Cawdor councillor Paul Oldham said residents have been raising the issue with him and urged anyone experiencing issues to get in touch with local MP Graham Leadbitter — who is supposed to meet with Royal Mail this week.
Mr Leadbitter said: "The universal service, which Royal Mail is legally obligated to provide, is vital for rural Scotland and any disruptions to that are very concerning.
“Communities like this one must not be cast aside or expected to put up with inadequate service from Royal Mail.”
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We are aware of concerns raised about delayed mail. While the delivery office in Nairn is currently experiencing some resourcing challenges, these are being actively managed with support from neighbouring units.
“When a delivery route cannot be completed on a given day, it is prioritised and covered the following day. Even on days when a round is not fully completed, the majority of letters and parcels are still delivered – there are no incidences where a delay will last two weeks.
“It is also worth noting that the volume of letters we deliver has significantly declined in recent years. As a result, many households no longer receive post every day, which can understandably cause concern for customers expecting regular deliveries.”
