Royal Mail miss delivery targets

Royal Mail narrowly missed its delivery targets in the spring, but more than nine out of 10 first and second-class letters were delivered on time in recent weeks, the postal group reported today.

The company missed its first-class next-day delivery target of 93% by 1.6% in the three months to June, and its second-class three-day delivery target of 98.5% by just 0.1%.

But both targets were hit in the five weeks to mid-July, showing that the overwhelming majority of all mail was delivered on time in the latest period, said Royal Mail.

Mark Higson, Royal Mail's managing director of modernisation and operations, said: "The most recent above-target results are encouraging and reflect the determination of our postmen and women to deliver the best possible service.

"The operational changes we are making in Royal Mail are the biggest the company has undertaken in living memory. We constantly review the way we modernise to minimise any impact on customers.

"The scale of the changes sometimes leads to some teething problems which can have a temporary impact on quality of service.

"We apologise to any customers for any service which falls below our targets, which are among the highest standards in Europe. Customers can be assured we are doing everything possible to deliver the best possible service at all times."

Standard parcels and European international mail both beat their targets during the spring quarter.

PA