Ombudsman’s report
Reporting to the Chair of the Board of Directors, the Office of the Ombudsman is independent of Canada Post staff and management. It gives Canadians another avenue if they feel Canada Post did not live up to its service commitments. It investigates customer complaints and recommends fair and equitable solutions. By identifying trends, focusing on prevention and recommending changes as needed, it also offers Canada Post another perspective to improve service.
In 2018, the overall number of appeals filed to our office fell by 11 per cent. This is the third consecutive year of decline in the number of appeals received, despite the significant increase in parcel volumes over that same period. In 2017, the number of appeals declined by 8 per cent, and in 2016 they fell by 2 per cent.
Compared to 2017, we saw a decrease in seven of the top 10 most common kinds of appeal, including a 26-per-cent decline in the largest category: damaged/lost parcel or missing content.
In 2018, we received 4,855 appeals, compared to 5,449 in 2017. Of the 2,020 cases we investigated, 45 per cent resulted in corrective action. In the rest, our investigation supported Canada Post’s actions. In comparison, corrective action was needed in 46 per cent of cases in 2017.
The number of appeals related to the Canadian Postal Service Charter increased by 352, or by 12 per cent. This increase was due primarily to more reported missing mail items (including missing contents, damage).
More than half the appeals did not result in an investigation because customers withdrew their submission before our investigation concluded, or they had reached out to us before Canada Post had time to fully address their issue.
The Office of the Ombudsman’s Annual Report will be available at canadapost.ca/ombudsman.
