UK Passport renewal

[glazedallover]

Nice one Nomoss....

[Nomoss]

Another email update:

Your new passport has been printed.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
We’ve sent your new passport by secure delivery.
Your old passport will arrive separately and could take up to 3 weeks to arrive. It won’t be in the same envelope as your new passport.

[Mangetout]

I found it a brilliant service, up to the point of delivery. I forget which service provider they use, but they kept emailing saying they couldn't find me. Rubbish, I live on a D road just outside the village. Eventually they put it in my post box without asking for a signature. So much for secure delivery.

[exile]

It is DHL and they are neither supposed to subcontract nor do what they did with you @Mangetout

[Mangetout]

I know. I reported it to the authorities but never got a reply. Passports are pretty valuable documents so I couldn't believe it when they just left it in the box. The strangest thing was that my late husband's passport, which was ordered on the same day, was delivered properly, ie a signature required.

[Nomoss]

A text message from DHL today. The PP is expected to be delivered on Friday 26 May - to the DHL depot in Narbonne, just over 40 km away.

There is a link for me to click on to see delivery options, but as my phone is not a smart one I had to copy it into the browser on my laptop.

It seems I shall have to go to Narbonne to collect it. All other options for delivery are greyed out.

I don't have the energy or the willpower to argue the toss, so will probably go on Monday.

I'm almost sure that DHL will say their instructions are that it must be collected from their depot, and, based on comments about deliveries I have seen on this and other forums, the Passport Office will say there have been too many lost PP's when handed over to a man with a white van for local delivery. We see a selection of these delivering many items we order, never the same one twice.

I hope to receive a questionnare re. their service from the PPO so that I can provide some feedback.

[Nomoss]

I just discovered that DHL have a depot in Carcassonne, which is much closer, and where we regularly do much of our shopping.

This depot was not offered as an option for our postcode, only Narbonne, so now I am really p**sed off.

The link no longer works, so I am trying to find a way of changing the delivery point.

[michael86]

When DHL were delivering my passport in UK, I had a text from them on the morning of the delivery day telling me it would be delivered between 12.30 and 20.00 hrs. It said if I was not in, they would post it through the letterbox. There was also a link where I could track or divert the delivery. It may be different for deliveries in France.

[Nomoss]

It may be different for deliveries in France.

It certainly seems to be.
I just checked DHL's list of agencies https://www.dhlexpress.fr/agences-dhl , from a link on their French website, and found only two listed for our Region, still called Languedoc Roussillon, although it became part of Occitanie in 2016.
Neither Narbonne, which I was given as my only choice, nor Carcassonne appear on this list.

I couldn't find any way online to divert my package to another depot, so phoned their Service Clients.
After listening to some spiel in very rapid French, over a background of pop music, which I could barely understand, telling me I would be recorded, and inviting me to stop bothering them and go to their website, for no apparent reason a voice said I could speak to them in English if I pressed "9", so I did this,

After a short wait someone asked in French what I wanted, but I replied in English.
Some muttering and shuffling ensued before a lady with a fairly rudimentary knowledge of English was produced, and I explained that I want to re-route my parcel to Carcassonne.
After a more involved explanation, including my telling her that London is in England, she eventually understood what I wanted, but said she couldn't do anything about it as the parcel was not yet in France and I will have to call again tomorrow.
Presumably she hopes by then someone else will have to deal with it.

I'll ask in French when I call tomorrow, but half expect to be told it's on its way to Narbonne and they can't do anything about it.

[Nomoss]

Today the tracking informs that my PP is in Toulouse airport, after brief visits to Leipzig and Lyon. I intended talking to DHL in French, but gave up. The number is 0809 400 213 if you want know why - it's free.
I again bypassed the AI voice mixed with muzak by pressing "9", which goes straight to a person.
I spoke to a lady with passable English who said she will send a message to make the delivery to my address, which she already has.
She said the message I received re. delivery to Narbonne is normally sent when a residential delivery has failed.