Australia Post takes action over dumped mail but residents remain sceptical
By Sonia Isaacs
Contractors who dumped 14 bags of mail in a bin instead of delivering them to hinterland addresses have effectively been sacked, with Australia Post revoking their Authority to Deliver.
The bags, discovered last month in a commercial dumpster on Deception Bay Road at Rothwell, contained hundreds of letters bound for hinterland communities including Beerwah, Glass House Mountains and Maleny.
An Australia Post spokesperson said the organisation continues to support a police investigation into the matter.
“We’ve conducted a thorough internal review and can confirm the personnel involved are no longer delivering for Australia Post,” the spokesperson said.
“Additional measures have been put in place to monitor relevant delivery partners and ensure services meet the standards we expect.”
The mail was finally delivered to residents about two weeks ago, but Beerwah resident Gerry Collins said he remained sceptical about Oz Post’s assurances that its new monitoring measures will be effective, following more than a year of missing mail — including new bank cards, registration notices and magazines.
Mr Collins said it would take time for community confidence to be fully restored.
“I think they’ve got a long way to go, because this hasn’t been a one-off thing,” Mr Collins said.
“I guess that would indicate they found some wrongdoing there, but it doesn’t assure me that they’ve recovered all the missing mail.
“They’ve been aware that mail has gone missing for at least 12 months, and their response hasn’t been timely at all.
“Time will tell whether they’re being effective.”
GC&M News understands Oz Post cannot directly dismiss delivery personnel involved, as they are not direct employees, but can withdraw their “Authority to Deliver.”
Additional checks and balances have reportedly been introduced to strengthen oversight of delivery partners, though Australia Post has declined to share the details of these measures with GC&M News.
A Queensland Police spokesperson confirmed investigations remain ongoing and no charges have been laid.
Australia Post encouraged anyone with concerns about their mail delivery to reach out via 13 POST (13 7678).
