Keeping tabs on pillar boxes

Royal Mail's Chief Executive has given new assurances to Postwatch on the restoration of collection tabs - the small metal plates on pillar boxes that tell customers whether the last collection of the day has been made from that box.

Royal Mail removed tabs in 2002, prompting Postwatch, Postcomm, and other organisations such as Age Concern, to campaign for their reinstatement. Royal Mail promised to put them back on most of the 116,000 post boxes in the UK (about 23,000 cannot display tabs), but three surveys by Postwatch have found slow progress. The last survey - conducted in September - revealed that one in every four post boxes failed to display the correct collection tab, despite Royal Mail’s commitment to fully reintroduce the tabs by June.

Following this latest survey, Postwatch Chairman Millie Banerjee wrote to Royal Mail Chief Executive Adam Crozier calling on the business to honour its commitment and Mr Cozier has now responded as follows:

"It is helpful that your team have provided us with the details about the individual boxes that were surveyed where the tab was missing or incorrect. We have now made arrangements with your team to investigate every single case.

Operational colleagues will also be considering any generic causes that can be remedied and they will be targeting improvements through communications, briefings and associated coaching to ensure the deployment situation improves.

Arrangements have already been established via our Customer Service team to rectify any future cases where customers identify problems with tabs. This will link with the comment in your letter where you state that you will urge customers to report absent or wrong tabs to our helpline.

Additionally, if any Postwatch staff or Council member identify any further individual cases, please ask them to feed them through to our Customer Service team."

Customers who notice a tab is missing or incorrect should complain to Royal Mail by calling its 08457 740 740 helpline.