Royal Mail Tubes

[elise2000]

Hi all

Wonder if anyone knows the answer to this…

I send a lot of tubes at the post office. All around 70cm long and 6cm diameter.

I’ve sent hundreds of these over the years and the two post offices I use send them as a small parcel. Ive never had any issues.

Yesterday I visited a different post office and they were insisting they went as a medium parcel and refused to send them as a small one.

I therefore then went to another post office who were also insisting medium, so I asked them to phone the Helpdesk and check. They did and the answer was they were too large for Royal Mail and would have to go as Parcelforce. I said this was nonsense. They phoned back and someone else then said medium parcel.

The Royal Mail size guide here isn’t clear- https://personal.help.royalmail.com/app/answers/de...

I have interpreted it that max length for tubes is 104 and then whether small or medium parcel would depend on weight. If this isn’t the case you’d have thought it would just say in the large parcel section the max length for tubes is 104 as it would only relate to large parcels not small or medium.

Thanks in advance!

[mmm-five]

I agree it should still be under the tube category, but I think you've misread the max length for a tube though...

RoyalMail said:

For rolled and cylinder-shaped parcels, the length of the item plus twice the diameter must not exceed 104cm, with the greatest dimension being no more than 90cm.

You're easily fits into both the max length and max width. So maybe they're doing away with the tube category and are trying to fit it into the closest one?

From April 2023 price guide (https://www.royalmail.com/sites/royalmail.com/files/2023-04/royal-mail-online-price-guide-april-2023-v1.pdf)

[zedx19]

If you send a lot, use Click and Drop online, if you're confident you are correct and Small Parcel is right, select that yourself then all you need to do is put in a mail sack and drop at the Sorting Office or Post Office.

[elise2000]

mmm-five said:

I agree it should still be under the tube category, but I think you've misread the max length for a tube though...

RoyalMail said:

For rolled and cylinder-shaped parcels, the length of the item plus twice the diameter must not exceed 104cm, with the greatest dimension being no more than 90cm.

You're easily fits into both the max length and max width. So maybe they're doing away with the tube category and are trying to fit it into the closest one?

From April 2023 price guide (https://www.royalmail.com/sites/royalmail.com/files/2023-04/royal-mail-online-price-guide-april-2023-v1.pdf)

Yes- I did know about the 104 but was typing in a hurry and not thinking!

It seems odd it’s not clear in the price guide as I can’t be the only person with this issue!

[elise2000]

zedx19 said:

If you send a lot, use Click and Drop online, if you're confident you are correct and Small Parcel is right, select that yourself then all you need to do is put in a mail sack and drop at the Sorting Office or Post Office.

It would save money, but it’s a right faff compared to just sticking an address label on. I’d rather spend a little more time in the post office than typing on the Royal Mail website! (And supports local business a bit!)

[A500leroy]

https://www.royalmail.com/collection

[zedx19]

elise2000 said:

It would save money, but it’s a right faff compared to just sticking an address label on. I’d rather spend a little more time in the post office than typing on the Royal Mail website! (And supports local business a bit!)

What do sell through? Ebay? Woocommerce? Etsy? Amazon? They can all be linked direct to Click and Drop and it'll pull all the data through, you need not type anything other than your login, you do need a thermal printer ideally though to print labels. I send 20 ish items a day, Letter and Large Letter size, couldn't be simplier, just put them in a local Post Box. Queues at our local office were painful!

[elise2000]

zedx19 said:

elise2000 said:

It would save money, but it’s a right faff compared to just sticking an address label on. I’d rather spend a little more time in the post office than typing on the Royal Mail website! (And supports local business a bit!)

What do sell through? Ebay? Woocommerce? Etsy? Amazon? They can all be linked direct to Click and Drop and it'll pull all the data through, you need not type anything other than your login, you do need a thermal printer ideally though to print labels. I send 20 ish items a day, Letter and Large Letter size, couldn't be simplier, just put them in a local Post Box. Queues at our local office were painful!

Mainly though my own website and also phone orders plus the odd bit of eBay.

[elise2000]

A500leroy said:

https://www.royalmail.com/collection

It’s a nice idea, but I’m not always home sadly

[bigandclever]

I think you're probably in the right, to be honest, given what it says on the website but if you look in this "Mails Compliance Training Workbook" it says your tube would be too big for a small parcel



https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/493327/resp...

[Simpo Two]

'the length of the item plus twice the diameter must not exceed 104cm...'

That sounds like part of a maths exam question. Who the hell thinks up stuff like that?

[elise2000]

bigandclever said:

I think you're probably in the right, to be honest, given what it says on the website but if you look in this "Mails Compliance Training Workbook" it says your tube would be too big for a small parcel



https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/493327/resp...

Well that explains it far better than their booklets or the website! Clearly it’s a medium parcel from that. Odd that I’ve sent hundreds as small parcels with no issues though!

Thanks

[Simpo Two]

elise2000 said:

the two post offices I use send them as a small parcel...

Yesterday I visited a different post office and they were insisting they went as a medium parcel and refused to send them as a small one.

I therefore then went to another post office who were also insisting medium...

Would not the most pragmatic solution be simply to use the first two post offices?

[bigandclever]

elise2000 said:

Well that explains it far better than their booklets or the website! Clearly it’s a medium parcel from that. Odd that I’ve sent hundreds as small parcels with no issues though!

Thanks

Don't get me wrong it was only a googly. No idea who's right .. I think you could argue the toss with them with the website & a ruler

[elise2000]

Simpo Two said:

elise2000 said:

the two post offices I use send them as a small parcel...

Yesterday I visited a different post office and they were insisting they went as a medium parcel and refused to send them as a small one.

I therefore then went to another post office who were also insisting medium...

Would not the most pragmatic solution be simply to use the first two post offices?

Haha yes, I will be.

Was out of town for a day though!

[elise2000]

bigandclever said:

elise2000 said:

Well that explains it far better than their booklets or the website! Clearly it’s a medium parcel from that. Odd that I’ve sent hundreds as small parcels with no issues though!

Thanks

Don't get me wrong it was only a googly. No idea who's right .. I think you could argue the toss with them with the website & a ruler

Well I sent an email to Royal Mail moaning/asking so we’ll see what they say!

[Neddy Sea Goon]

Sad that the page in the manual has to resort to coloured arrows in case the reader doesn't know what length and diameter mean

[Simpo Two]

Neddy Sea Goon said:

Sad that the page in the manual has to resort to coloured arrows in case the reader doesn't know what length and diameter mean

In a generation brought up on 'Olympic-size swimming pools' and 'elephants', it's not surprising...