Residents furious after Royal Mail stops deliveries to Lincoln street after dog allegedly attacks postman : Update

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Residents claim they are being unfairly penalised after Royal Mail halted deliveries to more than a dozen homes in Lincoln in the wake of an alleged dog attack on a postie.

People in parts of Marjorie Avenue have had to collect their post from the main sorting office in Firth Road since February 15.

Post can only be held at the sorting office for 18 days before it is returned to sender.

Royal Mail claims that one of its workers was attacked by a dog while doing their round and the risk of further incidents meant services have had to be stopped.

The dog owner insists there was no injury and other residents claim they are being unfairly penalised by Royal Mail for a situation they had nothing to do with.

Stewart Codling, 70, a retired engineer, said: "I think Royal Mail has gone right over the top.

"I agree that they should stop delivering to a property if there is a problem but why should everyone else be penalised when we haven't done anything wrong?

"From what I heard the postie was not bitten. It would be nice to have deliveries again. I can get up to Firth Road but there are some people around here who have difficulty getting out of the house."

One resident, 77, who has mobility issues, has had to rely on a neighbour to collect her post.

The woman, who did not wish to be named, said: "Whatever is supposed to have happened is not our fault so it's not fair that our post has been suspended."

Royal Mail delivery office manager Michael Scales has apologised in a letter to residents.

He writes: "You may already be aware that a Royal Mail post person was attacked recently by a dog whilst delivering near your property.

"As a result, a health and safety risk assessment was undertaken and confirmed that the level of risk associated with delivering to your property was unacceptably high due to the threat of further dog attacks.

"Royal Mail will carry out its own further investigation into the circumstances. surrounding this incident and we will be working with the dog owner, the dog warden and local police to ensure the dog is restrained.

"However, I'm very sorry to advise that until such time as we can guarantee this, we are unable to access your property and deliver mail safely.

"Due to the serious nature of the incident, deliveries to your address will therefore be suspended with immediate effect.

"I hope you understand that this exceptional step is being taken in order to safeguard the health and safety of Royal Mail employees."

The owner of the dog, who wished to remained anonymous, told Lincolnshire Live: "The dog is 16 months old - he is not a vicious dog.

"He's been seen by the police and the dog warden and they played with him.

"He did not bite the postman. What happened on the day in question is that I was out and my partner was at home with the dog who was let out to use the toilet.

"I walked up the road and the postman came up to me and said: 'Do you know your dog's out?

"If he'd been bitten he wouldn't have carried on his round and the police and the dog warden would have been here."

It understood that a complaint had previously been made about excessive barking from the premises.

The council has issued a warning to the person who was in control of the dog at the time of the alleged incident with the postie.

A condition imposed is that the garden is made secure.

The woman told Lincolnshire Live that she is in the process of having new fencing installed around the garden.

Boultham ward city councillor Gary Hewson said that dog attacks on delivery people were unacceptable but added that none of the residents he had spoken to actually witnessed the alleged incident in Marjorie Avenue.

He said: "Why are residents being punished for something out of their control? They are not owners of the dog in question yet deliveries have stopped to their houses.

"There are elderly people and people with serious health problems who are affected by this ban - indeed their lives could be threatened by the lack of medication reaching them by mail."

A Royal Mail spokesman said: "Unfortunately deliveries are suspended at Majorie Avenue, Lincoln, on February 15, because of a dog attack.

"We are very sorry for any inconvenience caused to our customers but the safety or our people is of paramount importance to Royal Mail.

"The dog was loose and this has meant that other addresses are included in the suspensions as well as the property the dog lives at.

"The local council has issued an order against the owner, to secure the premises and the dog.

"The dog warden is due to visit the address later this week to check if the order is adhered to and the premises and dog is secure.

"Once we have the report we will re-look at the re-instating deliveries to customers.

“Anyone with concerns about their mail can contact our customer services team on 03457 740740 and mail can be collected from the delivery office where alternative arrangements are in place for vulnerable customers affected by this suspension.”

In July last year a postwoman was left with 19 wounds after being savaged by a dangerous dog.

Sharon Singer, 47, was out on her round in Wrangle when she was left with huge wounds on her arms and legs as she was mauled by a Doberman.

Mrs Singer has since undergone a number of operations to repair muscles, tendons, nerves and ligament damage - but has been left with no feeling in her left arm.

The dog's owner, Julian Palfreyman, appeared in court on Wednesday, September 27, and was ordered to pay £1,000 compensation after admitting owning a dangerous dog at Boston Magistrates' Court.

But despite an appeal from the prosecution, the dog that attacked Sharon was not ordered to be destroyed.

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Royal Mail has reached a decision about suspended deliveries affecting more than a dozen addresses following an alleged dog attack.

Deliveries to several homes in Marjorie Avenue, Lincoln, were halted on February 15 during an incident.

Royal Mail said the postman had to jump on top of his large trolley to avoid the dog attacking him further.

Residents furious after Royal Mail stops deliveries to Lincoln street after dog allegedly attacks postman
But services are now back to normal after the owner of the property where the dog lives has fixed fencing in his yard.

A Royal Mail spokesman said: "Deliveries were reinstated to all addresses affected by this suspension on Friday, March 9.

"The owner has taken steps to ensure the property and dog are secure so that our postmen and women are able to deliver the mail safely."

Residents were unhappy about the suspension because those affected had to collect their post in person from the main sorting office.


Some people with mobility issues had to rely on neighbours to collect post on their behalf.