Musings from the Merse
Saturday, August 02, 2008
TD ious
As Huttonian, in my former narrow sense, I applaud our MP's efforts to get Royal Mail to see sense over post codes. The article taken from the latest Berwickshire outlines a running sore which Royal Mail could out right with a flick of a mouse
BERWICKSHIRE MP Michael Moore has condemned Royal Mail's refusal to engage in the process of finding a solution to the problem of postal addresses for some residents of Berwickshire, which puts them in Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Mr Moore has been working on behalf of residents of Foulden, Hutton, Paxton, Lamberton and Mordington, who are concerned that their postal addresses effectively place them in England.
One villager contacted Mr Moore to raise concerns about the impact this was having when he was travelling abroad and completing immigration paperwork*. Problems are also being caused by confusion among prospective house buyers.
Mr Moore has criticised the postal address database used by Royal Mail and has requested that they investigate the issue fully. However, in a recent letter to Mr Moore, Royal Mail refused to conduct an investigation and stated that, "there is little to be gained from further dialogue".
Mr Moore has condemned Royal Mail's approach to the problem.
He said: "In my ten years of work as a Member of Parliament, I have to say that it is extremely rare to come across a company or organisation that adopts such a dogmatic stance to an issue that I have raised on behalf of my constituents.
"In correspondence with me, Royal Mail effectively admitted that there is a serious problem with their database, but rejected any sense of responsibility for sorting it out. I am frankly shocked at their attitude and at their refusal to engage in any sort of meaningful dialogue in the pursuit of a satisfactory solution.
"They are in danger of showing contempt for their own customers."
The problem is that the post code TS15 covers 5 settlements in Berwickshire, chunks of Nothumberland and Ber Wick itself. As reported in previous posts this can cause difficulty . Not only for white van men thinking they are delivering stuff in England and are not permitted under their franchise to do so but also for humble householders or car owners in the Five Settlements seeking insurance and having to pay premiums appropriate for swinging rumbustious Berwick rather than peaceful Berwickshire. I was once accosted in the comfort of my own downstairs loo by 6 tweedy ladies soliciting votes (by banging on the window) for the Tory candidate for North Nortumberland. They withdrew discomfited when they heard that they had crossed the border: 'OH My goodness!' 'Isn't Scotland so like England?' 'What ever next?' The click of a mouse making the Scottish portions of TD15 into an unallocated TD16 is all that is required.
But the Royal Mail just can't be bothered to even discuss the matter. Further dialogue is out not that there was much of one in the first place.
* I wonder which forrin Immigration official gives a half eaten fig as to whether the intending visitor comes from Mordington (Scotland) or Morpeth (Northumberland)unless it is an Australian of Scottish Convict descent intent on keeping out all Pommies.
As Huttonian, in my former narrow sense, I applaud our MP's efforts to get Royal Mail to see sense over post codes. The article taken from the latest Berwickshire outlines a running sore which Royal Mail could out right with a flick of a mouse
BERWICKSHIRE MP Michael Moore has condemned Royal Mail's refusal to engage in the process of finding a solution to the problem of postal addresses for some residents of Berwickshire, which puts them in Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Mr Moore has been working on behalf of residents of Foulden, Hutton, Paxton, Lamberton and Mordington, who are concerned that their postal addresses effectively place them in England.
One villager contacted Mr Moore to raise concerns about the impact this was having when he was travelling abroad and completing immigration paperwork*. Problems are also being caused by confusion among prospective house buyers.
Mr Moore has criticised the postal address database used by Royal Mail and has requested that they investigate the issue fully. However, in a recent letter to Mr Moore, Royal Mail refused to conduct an investigation and stated that, "there is little to be gained from further dialogue".
Mr Moore has condemned Royal Mail's approach to the problem.
He said: "In my ten years of work as a Member of Parliament, I have to say that it is extremely rare to come across a company or organisation that adopts such a dogmatic stance to an issue that I have raised on behalf of my constituents.
"In correspondence with me, Royal Mail effectively admitted that there is a serious problem with their database, but rejected any sense of responsibility for sorting it out. I am frankly shocked at their attitude and at their refusal to engage in any sort of meaningful dialogue in the pursuit of a satisfactory solution.
"They are in danger of showing contempt for their own customers."
The problem is that the post code TS15 covers 5 settlements in Berwickshire, chunks of Nothumberland and Ber Wick itself. As reported in previous posts this can cause difficulty . Not only for white van men thinking they are delivering stuff in England and are not permitted under their franchise to do so but also for humble householders or car owners in the Five Settlements seeking insurance and having to pay premiums appropriate for swinging rumbustious Berwick rather than peaceful Berwickshire. I was once accosted in the comfort of my own downstairs loo by 6 tweedy ladies soliciting votes (by banging on the window) for the Tory candidate for North Nortumberland. They withdrew discomfited when they heard that they had crossed the border: 'OH My goodness!' 'Isn't Scotland so like England?' 'What ever next?' The click of a mouse making the Scottish portions of TD15 into an unallocated TD16 is all that is required.
But the Royal Mail just can't be bothered to even discuss the matter. Further dialogue is out not that there was much of one in the first place.
* I wonder which forrin Immigration official gives a half eaten fig as to whether the intending visitor comes from Mordington (Scotland) or Morpeth (Northumberland)unless it is an Australian of Scottish Convict descent intent on keeping out all Pommies.
Labels: Post codes, TD15, TD16, White Van Drivers
Comments:
For w long while if you put a Scottish TD post code into the BBC web site you got Radio Newcastle as your local radio station - it recently got sorted.
The same TDium applies to TD12 - half of it's in Coldstream and district, the other half is in Cornhill...
So we regularly get postal spam from Northumberland County Council and I assume the good burghers of Cornhill get the same from SBC.
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So we regularly get postal spam from Northumberland County Council and I assume the good burghers of Cornhill get the same from SBC.
