I sold a frame on the classifieds here last Monday and posted off to the buyer first class recorded delivery from work a week ago today and the frame still hasn’t arrived with him. Have been in regular contact with the buyer and he’s been really cool about it but he is still sitting there waiting for the frame I sold him.

Item was packaged in a frame box, addressed, correct postage etc but never shown up on tracking number etc. RM website gives no obvious help and not really sure what to do…Anyone had any similar experiences/advice?

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Recorded delivery won’t track it unfortunately. All you can do is wait 28(?) days and claiming insurance 🙁

You can ring them up and quote the Number you got on your receipt…
They can tell you where the parcel is…

Recorded delivery only shows up on tracking when it’s delivered! Pretty useless really for tracking, but you do know when it’s been delivered.

Pop into the post office you sent it from, they may be able to offer advice on what to do next

1st class? I doubt it, I sent some forks today and they were too big for 1st class.

Get a claim form and claim – you have to wait 15 days IIRC.

Sent frame 2 weeks ago would only sent by parcel force 24 couldn’t be sent by 1st class recorded ?????

A frame’s going to be too big for 1st recorded – if they’ve taken it as that then that’s probably why it’s not got anywhere. If you’ve posted as a parcel and not taken out any extra insurance you’ll get the basic insurance back maximum which I think is £42 at the moment whether its recorded or a parcel.

Give them 28 days, if nothing is head put in a claim, you’ll need proof of the frame’s value and you’ll probably spend the £42 on numerous calls to the 0845 number…..

The frame wasnt too big for first class recorded, the package is measured by weight, not size and it fell well within the maximum allowance. As I mentioned, it was picked up from work, scanned and carried away by the usual postie, I think he would have commented if it were a impossible mission for him/RM…I also added my “senders address” to the box so surely it would have been returned to sender rather than being marooned at a depot somewhere?

Fair enough, stuff does get lost/hidden sometimes.

The frame wasnt too big for first class recorded, the package is measured by weight, not size and it fell well within the maximum allowance.

Fair play for managing to pull that one off though. I’ve posted several sets of handlebars recently and had to use Standard Parcels or Parcelforce as according to Royal Mail the maximum size allowed for a First Class Recorded packet is 610mm x 460mm x 460mm. I have found that different Post Offices have different standards of rules though, ie, not all are so quick with the tape measure 😕

1st class recorded for a frame? no chance, 1st class recorded is for packages or pacels, its not for huge frame boxes…..regardless of what you think, im sure this is why your frame has not reached its destination…

go onto postoffice/royal mail and do a quote, at no point does a frame get offered the recorded delivery option, any frame unless its a tiny kids bike is not suitable for 1st class recorded, im not sure who has told you this info? but ive tried to send things like forks and things of that size to be told recorded 1st class isnt an option due to the size of a fork box, jeez how much bigger is a frame box than a fork box?

plus you know the max you can claim is 42quid right? so either its a crap frame, or you are going to be seriously out of pocket…

i imagine it is stuck somewhere in the network, due to the wrong pricing/delivery option, probably not to be seen again and chucked to one side 🙁

scrimping on the postage could well have screwed you here

There are maximum dimensions for First Class Post. From the Royal Mail website:

“How large can it be?
The maximum dimensions for rectangular items are 610mm x 460mm x 460mm
The maximum length for rolled items is 900mm and the length plus twice the item diameter must not exceed 1040mm
Items over these dimensions should be sent by Standard Parcels or using Parcelforce Worldwide”

Your parcel is in effect underpaid but I doubt it will be a case of the recipient getting a card through the door asking to pay the extra and collect at the Sorting Office. It may get returned to you but I wouldn’t hold out much hope. The maximum payout for First Class is £49.

My point about the size was that the parcel may have been taken, but if it is too large for recorded (mamadirt has posted the correct size allowance) then it may get held up further down the line, the postie who collects normally isn’t fussed what he picks up from a work collection.

They may then return to sender or write to you or just delay it (or stick it in a corner somewhere) – so give it a few weeks, or chase it up after the 15 day window with a tracking number which might shimmy them up.

I have a collection service and have had similar happen before, underpaid post usually gets delivered and they just send you a bill for the extra but for a large item or significant underpay it might find it’s way back to you or they might send you a bill before delivery.

they just recently changed it from price being done on weight to price by size… so I would say it’d definitely be a parcel jobbie. #

Thanks for the replies everyone, much appreciated!

Appears thar my never having shipped a frame before vs work telling me “we can get that shipped for you” vs Postie scanning and taking away 😕 has turned a simpe transaction into a potential out of pocket situation. 😥

So, next steps??

Is he the usual postie? You could ask him as a starter what happened.

I know there are lots of good people out there but I think royal mail are totally shite. Their business model is broken and they are being prepared for privatisation in 2yrs time so I’m not sure their management give a shit about investing in improvements.

2p

Good luck though sir, I’ve been in a similar situation but the parcel turned up in the end as a std parcel

Thanks Rob, I’ll be doing all I can to find out whats happened including making sure I talk to the numpty that took the package away tomorrow! You would think that if the parcel didnt fit the guidelines it would be pointed out!?! 🙄

Did you use the office ‘freepost’ franking machine to put the label on? I’m just wondering how you knew how much postage to put on the thing?

! You would think that if the parcel didnt fit the guidelines it would be pointed out!?!

Or worked out by whoever franked it?

Maybe it got jammed in the franking machine and they’re still waiting for an engineer to call to un-jam it?

Just a thought

I’m just wondering how you knew how much postage to put on the thing?

Royal mail website and scales?

I use that method quite a lot, works quite well.

The first class price you’ve paid should more than cover the cost of sending the frame by standard parcels.
There’ll be a price on the label you’ve put on the frame showing the money that’s been paid- RM should deliver the frame using the correct service for the parcel if the postage has been paid, irrespective of the service specified on the label- it will take a few days longer I’m sure, but it should still get there.

It’s no different to sticking 1st class stamps on a parcel- they’re still valid to pay, and the parcel will still get there by the appropriate service.

Doesn’t he get the compensation back in stamps anyway?

£42 worth of stamps could soon be heading your way as recompense! 😮

Yes, it was an official label, weighed, franked with the correct postage. We send out tons of stuff from work like this, many heavier than the frame and box it was sitting in…Will get things chased up today and report back later…Guess it’ll be useful for future reference.

How much was the frame worth?
I think the compensation for forst and second class is £46

First things first.

You have RM recorded signed for tracking number ? Should be something like AJ5617234563GB.

Go to RM website and enter it on track and trace page.

Now if alls well and its on its way it will say something like “Item posted on 23rd currently progressing through network for delivery”.

If it says this its usually just a matter of waiting, but its always an idea to give the buyer the tracking number so he can go down to or call his local sorting/delivery office and ask if they have the item there – sometimes it’ll get left in sorting office until they decide to deliver it, or put on that they’ve left a card but haven’t etc.

If on the tracking system it comes up as not recognised you have problems at your end as it hasn’t even been registered on RM system, talk to your post room to see where mail goes from them.

Royal mail website and scales?

but then it would have said it was too heavy for 1st class recorded?

1st Class Recorded isn’t a tracked service but would normally show the first scan location. I send lots of stuff on this service with work and it always shows the place where it was posted and when on the Royal Mail website. The fact it’s not showing the initial scan from the postie doesn’t look good.

Sometimes items can take ages. Someone recently returned something to me 1st class recorded and it did eventually arrive 14 days later. I’d given up on it and was about to make a claim when it arrived.

i once sent a parcel. it got shipped to the international depot by accident. they took it abroad in error, then it disappeared off the tracking website.

I put in a claim for it. they paid out.

a month later it turned up at work addressed to me. weird.

but then it would have said it was too heavy for 1st class recorded?

Most probably, but seeing as it wasn’t me who sent the parcel/frame I couldn’t comment.

If some pratt did do it 1st class which they do!there is everychance you might be getting it back?!1st class/2nd or standard parcel are covered for £46 thats all.It might also be surcharged to the person getting it.
Royal Mail do often send things back that are way oversized for the way they are sent.I get it alot from a firm i go to,get fed up of telling them its wrong.
As said above best to ask how it was sent.Should of been standard parcel then you can have extra cover up to £500.

A frame I bought off eBay took about 3 weeks to arrive with me. It was packaged up in the proper box and we reckoned it was simply because it was such a big unwieldy parcel, it had sat in our delivery office until someone could be bothered to pop it in a van and bring it out to us. There was no apparent reason for why it had taken so long.

I posted a pair of wheels 1st class (I asked for parcel force but the blithering man behind the counter stuck the first class stamp on anyway).

They arrived next day.

Just had an Orange 5 frame go “missing” with a Parcel Force 48 delivery to an ebay buyer. No sign of it 2 weeks later. Putting a claim in now.
Bummer.