Problems with mail for Greece?

[Jennifer Wallace]

Katerina Nikoltsou was one of the people who said they'd like some of the old photos I was clearing out. On 22 April I posted some to her, but this morning this was returned to me. I've just been to my local post office to ask why. There is nothing on the envelope to explain where it's been and why it's come back to me 3 weeks after posting. The member of the post office counter staff could not explain - he looked carefully at all the details: what postage had been paid, what was on the customs form, etc. He thought it had been rejected by the Greek postal service, but was not sure, and could not understand why.

I'm now waiting, waiting, waiting for an answer to my phone call to the department in the UK's Royal Mail department that I was told to ring to get an explanation. I've been on hold for 26 minutes ... 32 minutes later, I have no explanation, because I do not have my tracker number from the receipt I would have been given at the post office on the day I posted it! £3.50 down the drain?

Is anyone else having problems with mailing to Greece?

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

I do looove getting mail art,

we just have to be careful and i have to remind everyone that mail art is good to Greece

if it is small and light and easy to be safely delivered to old MomKat :-)

Here is the blog link, hope it works:

 Do not send "Art"-in-the-Mail to me!

Mark it "Printed Matter", and it may arrive safely? :-)

[Jennifer Wallace]

Thanks, Katarina! The local post office member of staff who I took this to, to ask what was going on, said there should have been an explanation about why the envelope had been returned by the Greek customs or post office, some sort of message on the envelope. So - no message for you and no message for me!

Interestingly, he said the UK Royal mail check customs labels etc very carefully, because they have to pay a fee for every item returned!

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

Ah, the Greek HELLenic Post, sorry, Jennifer, so sorry for all this trouble,

but I have sent out warnings to my mail art friends in the past about heavy packets, packages, etc. and also be sure to mark envelopes like letters: writing "printed matter"  "no value" on the outside, 

Everyone PLEASE see the blog of 2023 when I first moved to Athens:

Do not send "Art"-in-the-Mail to me!

• Posted by Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat) on September 22, 2023 

I imaged this package arrived in Greece, and "normally" the postoffice shoulda - woulda - coulda sent me their tiny paper notice for me to go to the postoffice to pick it up...if indeed it was not rejected by Greek Customs? But things get shuffled around, lost on the steps, etc., I never got a notice.

Keep it simple and light, and in typical letter-size envelopes, and even be careful with stamping or writing "mail ART" on the outside of the envelope...avoid customs, tariffs...all in today's crazy world!

[Jennifer Wallace]

My next step will be to go back to the post office again - I  live only about 5 minutes walk away. I need to find out about the tracker number next.

[Predrag Petrovic]

If that particular piece of mail was rejected by Greek post, it would have official mark/stamp/s of the Greek post. So, most likely, you are ripped off, and most likely that piece of mail never left UK, actually, it is the victim of the UK Postal bureaucracy. With a good lawyer,  you can ask to be reimbursed for your postagemoney  , plus you need to ask for ``Non-material damage for suffering mental anguish``

With a good lawyer, it is possible. At the end, yes, Greek post has its own flows, but definitely in your case, it is the negligence of UK Postal system. If the piece is returned, it should bare the official sign, stamping, or anything to prove and/or explain why it is returned. Since UK postal system failed to produce that, you can sue them and have your money back.