My experience with Singpost

[johnny333]

Many of us don't use mail anymore, however it's still the only method when receving small parcels. I wasn't at home when the postman tried to make a delivery. This wasn't the 1st time I missed a delivery. In the past I would just make a phone call to their tel number 1605 to arrange a re-delivery. The call was directed to a human & problem solved.

However this time I encountered the dreaded message system It kept asking for a number which I didn't have & disconnected me telling me that I had exceeded the alotted time The system did not direct me to a live person & there was no option to talk to a live person.

I had to visit their web site to look for options. Their site lists some tel numbers, the Hotline, both the local & international numbers, unfortunately it directs you to the same message system.

So I finally called the general number & finally reached a live person. I spoke to a filipino The important thing is that I managed to arrange a re-delivery. I had to jump through hoops just to arrange a simple thing as a re-delivery. If I didn't have access to the internet I would have to physically go to the post office & pick up the parcel. Sigh, it's really getting harder to get things done in Spore :(

 

[laksaboy]

I spoke to a filipino

More outsourcing to FTs, nothing new.

If I didn't have access to the internet I would have to physically go to the post office & pick up the parcel.

That would be the norm, even for snail mail. You don't live near a post office?

 

[geylangchickenloyangduck]

nah beh...reminds me to buy Singpost shares...with such automation, little wonder they can offer such good cash dividends to investors.

 

[Scrooball (clone)]

Nowadays those hotlines are very smart. They make u go through many automated choices and options to confuse you. In this way, they do not need to hire so many call centre staff.

The worst is probably Sinktel.

 

[erection2015]

then you have to be patient because their price movement is very slow.

nah beh...reminds me to buy Singpost shares...with such automation, little wonder they can offer such good cash dividends to investors.

 

[johnny333]

More outsourcing to FTs, nothing new.

That would be the norm, even for snail mail. You don't live near a post office?

The post office that covers my area is quite far & not easy to get to even by bus.
Just a few months ago, it was easy to get in touch with Singpost to do a re-direct as the process was straigh forward.

I doubt they save much by outsourcing, this is Sinpost we are talking about a dying service
I would give them feedback of the problems I encountered, but I didn't find an email or telephone to give feedback to. Which is typical.

 

[halsey02]

Many of us don't use mail anymore, however it's still the only method when receving small parcels. I wasn't at home when the postman tried to make a delivery. This wasn't the 1st time I missed a delivery. In the past I would just make a phone call to their tel number 1605 to arrange a re-delivery. The call was directed to a human & problem solved.

However this time I encountered the dreaded message system It kept asking for a number which I didn't have & disconnected me telling me that I had exceeded the alotted time The system did not direct me to a live person & there was no option to talk to a live person.

I had to visit their web site to look for options. Their site lists some tel numbers, the Hotline, both the local & international numbers, unfortunately it directs you to the same message system.

So I finally called the general number & finally reached a live person. I spoke to a filipino The important thing is that I managed to arrange a re-delivery. I had to jump through hoops just to arrange a simple thing as a re-delivery. If I didn't have access to the internet I would have to physically go to the post office & pick up the parcel. Sigh, it's really getting harder to get things done in Spore :(

The 'fun' doesn't stop here. My experience was, wasn't in when the parcel arrived, a delivery note was placed at the door. Normally, the instruction given was to go to the nearest Post Office near you, to collect the parcel, which for years I had been doing. Now, you are directed to SingPost HQ Paya Lebar, the note have a number to call, as you had mentioned, after listening to the menu, you get confused & still don't get to speak to a human nor know how & when to collect the parcel. So, I went down to SingPost HQ to collect the parcel.

Now, the 'fun' part, you queue at the parcel collection counter, when it reaches your turn, the person serving you ask you, did you call to arrange for a collection, "arrange for collection" ( you are at the PO HQ)!?. But the number you call gets you nowhere, the person then tell you, the parcel is with logistic ( wherever that is?), you have to wait for two hours for them to retrive the parcel. wt!?.

The number they give make you go through the hoops & you don't get ay answers, you go personally to the PO HQ, not the same day, they next working day, you can't make that call to that number, you have to wait 2 hrs for your parcel & it crosses lunch, add another hour.

In the past, it was , the parcel will go to the nearest PO near you, the next working day you go there & collect the parcel, during workig hours or call 1605 to arrange for a delivery. If you do not collect the parcel by a certai number of days, it goes to Singpost HQ, and one will have to make a trip there.

The post office is now like a convenience shop, it sells everything from candies to cookies, to insurance to phone cards, do remittances services, sell electronic goods, mobile phones, but no condoms yet; anything & everything but do postal service. That service they are not interested, they must change the name POST OFFICE to PO Convenience Store Pte Ltd.

Don't believe about the parcel, the 'fun' part would be, you are not at home to receive it; have fun, the Post Office sells you cookies, "Buy Two, you get One free"!!:p

 

[IreneYeoh]

I encountered this problem too. There was once I ordered a nice hamper featured in a Singpost brochure. I can understand post offices don't stock it and just ask for the date of collection. They said no, it must be delivered and the delivery charge is $5. The date of delivery couldn't be confirmed too, just said within 7 days.

How can they expect every home to have somebody at home all the time to recieve delivery? Sure enough, one day I came home and found a card saying delivery attempted but nobody home, please call this number to arrange redelivery. I called and resuggested I collect at the post office, which was my original preference. This time, they said OK, gave me the date and time and I collected it. Question was, why didn't they allow me to collect it at post office when I first ordered it?

There's nothing to lose even if I didn't show up to collect. I've already prepaid by credit card. It could have just taken 3 to 4 days but ended up taking 2 weeks. On JAL and other airlines, we don't stock souvenirs on the planes too. You have to order by brochures too. But you can choose delivery or collection at airline offices.

 

[johnny333]

nah beh...reminds me to buy Singpost shares...with such automation, little wonder they can offer such good cash dividends to investors.

Have to disagree. Singposts prospects is not so good. If I have something important to deliver I'd use one of the courier companies.

Who would trust a company like Singpost My experience hasn't been so positive:( A few years ago I sent a registered letter to the US & when the mail wasn't delivered I found out that Singpost was aware of the problem & didn't bother to inform me

 

[halsey02]

Have to disagree. Singposts prospects is not so good. If I have something important to deliver I'd use one of the courier companies.

Who would trust a company like Singpost My experience hasn't been so positive:( A few years ago I sent a registered letter to the US & when the mail wasn't delivered I found out that Singpost was aware of the problem & didn't bother to inform me

They are not interested in Postal Service, if that is the case, they should hand it back to the goverment! (sic!). I am a stamp collector, & have a fellow stamp collector in the States, in which we regularly send stamps on cover to each other. Quite recent, went to the PO near me, I have a registered cover to send to USA, the person who served me was a 'what the pfish' guy', did the necessary & gave me a receipt with the Registration number. The cover arrived in the States without any date stamp, the bar code could be seen at the bottom; which means the letter went through the auto sorter & did not go through the auto stamper ( or they have removed that, to save money) & there wasn't even any US date stamp on the letter either. The person receiving the cover was disappointed, there were the stamps, the registration label, but no date stamp.

The normal postal procedure was, the clerk after registering your letter, & giving you the receipt, will date stamp the stamps & the back of the envelope. But, the 'what the pfish guy' I remember didnot do that, I assume the auto machine will. Thereafter, I make sure the person attending to me date stamp the registered cover.

The PO is not a place they provide Postal Services anymore, it is a convenince shop, except they have not started selling condoms or softdrinks, snacks etc.

 

[johnny333]

The PO is not a place they provide Postal Services anymore, it is a convenince shop, except they have not started selling condoms or softdrinks, snacks etc.

Looks like there are many fans of the post office out there with their have their own stories of woe

What to do Spore is run like a (poorly run) corporation. They like every one else has to multitask.

 

[halsey02]

Looks like there are many fans of the post office out there with their have their own stories of woe

What to do Spore is run like a (poorly run) corporation. They like every one else has to multitask.

I got to know the post office, when I was not higher than the counter, bought stamps & posted a Christmas card to myself ( just like Mr.Bean). When older, lived in a place, where we all not only know the postmaster, but all the postmen who lived at the PO. The Postmaster know almost everyone livig in a 5km radius from the P.O.

Back then, they rode bicyles, then later the scooter with the bin at the back. You send me a letter without an address, just a name & post code; the p code was xxxx; I will receive that letter. It was a post office providing postal services, sufficient & sometime efficient; but it was postal services.

Now, you hardly know the person serving you or delivering your mails. You go to the Post office, they will try to sell you insurance, phone cards, mobile phones, DVD player (Akira, Sansui!), Induction cooker etc, even candies, latest cookies, no condoms yet (ha ha); but when you ask for basic postal servics, they look puzzle.

I asked for a set of a recent issued stamps ( a set mean, they issue 4 stamps in a set, from 1st local to say $2), the person attending to me, don't know what a set of was, but offered me the entire sheet of 1st local stamps. In the past, the counter clerk, can even the values in a set of stamps issued last year.

What I am saying is, despite trying hard to be less of a Post Office & more of a store, the standard of service is poor & poorly staffed, never bothered to do a customer survey on how to serve the customers better. Despite the fact, you have automated machines at the PO that can pay bills etc., there are people queuing to do the same thing the automated machines does. They queue can be very long on a certain day of the month and frequently all the counters are closed except for one or two. Instead of clearing the queue, the counter personnel, enagages the customer in the sale of candies to Insurance, but all the customer wanted is, pay a bill(bills) or something else.

Their standard of service sucks, not only for postal, which now is non-extence.

 

[chonburifc]

Seems that Singpost is no longer interested in the Postal biz. There are more keen to sell handphone, camera, and bill payments. Was in a Singpost office and most of the people are queuing to pay their bills or summons. They don't even set up a counter to handle postal service.

 

[halsey02]

Seems that Singpost is no longer interested in the Postal biz. There are more keen to sell handphone, camera, and bill payments. Was in a Singpost office and most of the people are queuing to pay their bills or summons. They don't even set up a counter to handle postal service.

They did announce, some time back in the press that, they have a seperate counter for postal services, but it was like the Hokkien saying, "chu kong, kar chng song" ( rough translate, mouth talk, backside feels good). They had this service for awhile & soon that counter soon disappeared, reason, idea was good, but shortage of personnel. ("chu kong, kar chng song").:p

 

[Cerebral]

Nowadays those hotlines are very smart. They make u go through many automated choices and options to confuse you. In this way, they do not need to hire so many call centre staff.

The worst is probably Sinktel.

Starhub probably has the worst system....

 

[laksaboy]

The PO is not a place they provide Postal Services anymore, it is a convenince shop, except they have not started selling condoms or softdrinks, snacks etc.

They should sell condoms. SingPost(tm) condoms.

When I was a kid in the 1980s, I enjoyed my visits to the post office. I liked the smell, the aircon, the stamps, and I always rubbed my fingers on the round wet sponge that was used to moisten the rear side of stamps. I liked to peek into the three mailbox slots, and stick my arm inside them.

 

[halsey02]

They should sell condoms. SingPost(tm) condoms.

When I was a kid in the 1980s, I enjoyed my visits to the post office. I liked the smell, the aircon, the stamps, and I always rubbed my fingers on the round wet sponge that was used to moisten the rear side of stamps. I liked to peek into the three mailbox slots, and stick my arm inside them.

I enjoyed roaming GPO, now The Fullerton Hotel, like you had mentioned the aircon, the stamps, or just buying some or sending it out on covers. Fortunately your arm did not get stuck in the post box, they made of thick metal.

 

[methink]

Have to disagree. Singposts prospects is not so good. If I have something important to deliver I'd use one of the courier companies.

Yes use the courier companies like Fedex. Last year I sent some 50 bottles of health supplements to Zambia, Africa. Was told delivery would take 9 - 13 days.

After three weeks, other side still waiting. Two months later, after complaining to Speedpost thru emails and phone calls, finally Sickpost managed to find out where the parcel is!!! Upon checking the parcel, some five bottles were missing...?!!!

Next time, I used Fedex. Delivery promise: ten days. Delivered and cheaper too!

 

[johnny333]

Yes use the courier companies like Fedex. Last year I sent some 50 bottles of health supplements to Zambia, Africa. Was told delivery would take 9 - 13 days.

After three weeks, other side still waiting. Two months later, after complaining to Speedpost thru emails and phone calls, finally Sickpost managed to find out where the parcel is!!! Upon checking the parcel, some five bottles were missing...?!!!

Next time, I used Fedex. Delivery promise: ten days. Delivered and cheaper too!

One of the reasons I don't fly with SIA is that if something happens, as a Sporean I or my family have very little recourse because of SIA's is a PAP owned company :(

Same thing with Singpost, they can screw you & nothing will ever happen to them. It is in this kind of monopolistic environment that our GLCs are operating & probably why they are a failure everywhere except in Spore.

As a private business you can't afford to lose your companies' credibility & goodwill with your customers, on Singposts screw ups. I am really surprised that anyone is dealing with them

 

[chonburifc]

One of the reasons I don't fly with SIA is that if something happens, as a Sporean I or my family have very little recourse because of SIA's is a PAP owned company :(

Same thing with Singpost, they can screw you & nothing will ever happen to them. It is in this kind of monopolistic environment that our GLCs are operating & probably why they are a failure everywhere except in Spore.

As a private business you can't afford to lose your companies' credibility & goodwill with your customers, on Singposts screw ups. I am really surprised that anyone is dealing with them

Johnny!! Agree! In Sinkieland, they do the exact opposite of any other countries. That is to screw own people and protect FT!