Step 1: Make a complaint to your Postal Service Provider
You must first contact your postal service provider to lodge your complaint.
All authorised postal service providers must have complaint procedures available to postal service users.
ComReg has published “Complaints and Redress Procedures: Guidelines for Postal Service Providers” ComReg Document 14/06 (“the Guidelines”) to assist postal service providers in providing a code of practice for their handling of complaints from postal service users.
If you have a complaint please contact your service provider’s customer service team, outline the complaint and ask for it to be resolved.
ComReg does not have regulatory remit over the behaviour and competence of postal personnel.
ComReg has no regulatory role over post offices. Operational decisions regarding the post office network, including closures, are taken by An Post.
An Post
An Post’s complaints procedures are available on its website: Feedback & Complaints
An Post’s complaints procedures are available in a pdf of the An Post Code of Practice ‘Getting it sorted – Resolving your complaints’.
Step 1: Customer Services Contact Details:
All complaints should be formally lodged through any of the following methods:
- Online: By completing the Enquiry Form for missing, damaged or delayed items
- By Post: An Post Customer Services, General Post Office, O’Connell Street Lower, Freepost, Dublin 1, D01 F5P2
- Phone: +353 (1) 705 7600
An Post should acknowledge receipt of a complaint within 3 working days.
You should be provided with a unique reference number (usually starting with CS or WB) however if you are not provided with this ask the Customer Services Agent to confirm it.
An Post should resolve a complaint within the following time frames:
- 30 days for complaints relating to postal packets posted within the State for delivery within the State
- 40 days for international destinations where electronic communication can be used
- 60 days for all other international complaints
Redress is available to postal service users who have made a complaint if the response times and /or maximum handling times are not met – for example if An Post do not resolve the complaint within these time frames, the consumer may be entitled to a payment of €15.
On completion of the An Post Customer Services review and its subsequent decision on the complaint the customer will receive a final response letter from the Customer Services Department of An Post which will clearly explain An Posts reasons for its decision.
This letter should advise that this is the final decision of Customer Services with regard to the complaint and that this completes Step 1 of the complaint process.
The letter should also advise postal service users who may remain dissatisfied with this decision that they can escalate a complaint to An Post’s Customer Advocate [Step 2] who will independently assess the procedures applied and the original decision of An Post Customer Services.
Step 2: Complaint Resolution and Compensation
Postal service users whose feel their complaint remains unresolved, following completion of Step 1, have the option to send their complaint to a Customer Advocate (Step 2) to seek independent assessment of the complaint.
Postal Service Users should request this within 30 calendar days from the date of final decision communicated by Customer Service (Step 1), unless exceptional circumstances can be proven.
An Post Customer Advocate Contact Details:
An Post require postal service users who wish to request the Customer Advocate to assess their complaint, to submit it through either of the following methods:
- Online: By completing the Online Customer Advocate Contact Form
- By Post: Customer Advocate, An Post, General Post Office, O’Connell Street Lower, Freepost, Dublin 1, D01 F5P2
The Customer Advocate must issue it’s Final response within 30 calendar days following your first contact
Other Authorised postal service providers
Click here to be see the Contact Details for all other Authorised postal service providers.
Step 3: Dispute Resolution
If you are not satisfied with all the steps taken by An Post, or another authorised postal service provider, to resolve your complaint, or with the results of their independent assessment of your complaint, you can ask ComReg to help resolve your dispute. These are known as Section 43(3) dispute resolution powers.
ComReg can only resolve disputes about regulated postal services and that have exhausted all the steps of the postal service provider’s Complaints and Redress Procedures (or Code of Practice). Click here to see how to submit an application for Section 43(3) postal dispute resolution