A man reports that he and his ailing mother have experienced nearly two months without receiving essential NHS appointment notifications, attributing this to persistent postal issues in south London.
Amit Marwaha, residing with his mother in a Hackbridge apartment, stated that since April they have not received any letters in the mail, which has resulted in missed appointments.
“I suffer from diabetes and high blood pressure, and I recently dealt with a severe infection. My mother also has diabetes. She relies on those appointments, yet they fail to arrive,” he explained.
Royal Mail informed the Local Democracy Reporting Service that deliveries to Mr. Marwaha’s residence have been occurring as usual and emphasized their commitment to the timely distribution of mail.
Having lived at his current address for two decades, Mr. Marwaha noted that he has frequently received mail intended for other individuals, including neighbors and residents of completely different streets.
Consequently, he mentioned that his mother is feeling “anxious” about the possible misdelivery of her private health information.
In addition to the NHS correspondence, they are also missing important financial documents, such as bank statements and utility bills, raising concerns over the potential mishandling of sensitive data, he stated.
Mr. Marwaha indicated that his mother is “significantly behind on her bills” as a result of not receiving them.
“My neighbor has come over to return letters that were mistakenly delivered to their address,” he shared.
He reported that he has voiced his concerns to local postal workers multiple times, only to be told that there was no mail for him.
Despite lodging several complaints with Royal Mail, he has only been met with assurances that his mail would arrive shortly, but those promises have not materialized.
“They assured me I would receive all my mail within 72 hours of my complaint, but nothing has shown up,” he remarked.
“They have never followed up or offered any apologies.”
Last week, it was reported that Royal Mail’s performance data revealed that only 71% of first-class post in Sutton, where Hackbridge is situated, was delivered on time between January and March 2024, significantly below the 93% legal target.
To verify his suspicions, he mailed a letter to himself nearly four weeks ago.
“It still hasn’t arrived,” he stated. “That confirmed something was wrong.
“I just want to receive my mail, and so do my neighbors. It has caused me a lot of stress.”
Royal Mail claimed that, according to their records, mail was delivered to Mr. Marwaha’s address on five different occasions between June 12 and June 23.
A spokesperson added that “additional safeguards” have been implemented to ensure mail reaches his flat.
“Two experienced postmen, who know the residents and their situations well, regularly communicate with customers to inform them whether mail has arrived that day,” they said.