Q about UK Passport renewal

Chirimoya said:

I'm in the process renewing my son's British passport using the new system of downloading the form and couriering the passport and form to Washington DC.

Getting someone to countersign was the worst part because we don't know any Brits here on the east coast who fulfil the two-year rule, so I had to send the photo and form via Metropack to be signed by a friend in SD.

Now, my question is: the UK consulate in Washington is supposed send the renewed passport back by courier, but should I put my Miami P O Box address (I have two, one with Mail Boxes Etc in B?varo and one with POBI in SD) or my street address for the return address?

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You should PM SteveS(a brit), He went through this exact process a couple months back.

I had mine sent back here via courier. Didn't have a problem and you can track it all the way. I think they use DHL, can't remember, but it was one of the big three (UPS, FedEx or DHL)

Robert said:

I had mine sent back here via courier. Didn't have a problem and you can track it all the way. I think they use DHL, can't remember, but it was one of the big three (UPS, FedEx or DHL)

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Looks like in my case it will be UPS. Can I ask you, Robert, how did you know it was on its way back so you could track it? Did they email you the tracking number? Or did you have to phone Careline Services (which I assume is some sort of Mumbai based customer service outsource :cheeky?

They give you a tracking number and you can track it on-line.

Black Dog said:

They give you a tracking number and you can track it on-line.

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HOW do they give you a tracking number? Do you phone for it or do they email you?

Lambada said:

HOW do they give you a tracking number? Do you phone for it or do they email you?

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If it's the same as the visa application for Dominicans who send their passport to the UK consulate in New York, they email you once your passport had been sent and give you the tracking number.

beeza said:

If it's the same as the visa application for Dominicans who send their passport to the UK consulate in New York, they email you once your passport had been sent and give you the tracking number.

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Thank you beeza. Now I'd just like to hear from someone who renewed their UK passport and received an email with tracking number.

Chirimoya said:

"Here" as in to your home address, Robert?

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Actually DR1 office address as I'm there most of the day.

Lambada said:

HOW do they give you a tracking number? Do you phone for it or do they email you?

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I knew it had been processed and all was ok after the credit card charge appeared online. But now I think back, maybe they didn't send me a UPS tracking #.

As you said, maybe the Careline can help.

Robert said:

I knew it had been processed and all was ok after the credit card charge appeared online. But now I think back, maybe they didn't send me a UPS tracking #.

As you said, maybe the Careline can help.

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Ah! Thanks Robert. Yes my credit card charge appeared online after about 3-4 weeks but I didn't take that to mean all was ok because their online forms say no refunds if they have to return your passport unprocessed for you to submit again.

Being as how we're in the sticks up here & UPS doesn't have an office but uses Puerto Plata Express as their agent, if they visit & one isn't at home they unfortunately don't leave it with Puerto Plata Express but take it back to Santiago, the nearest office. Juan at Puerto Plata Express has been excellent, fully understands my reluctance to engage the Mumbai Morass (Careline :cheeky and so we are putting the search dogs on it from this end. Santiago UPS has been told if they get a sniff of it in the wind to phone Juan or me.

I suspect it hasn't been sent yet and events in countries like Haiti are making the process slower than when you applied (you posted your timeline on the other thread you started). Meanwhile I shall keep sending missives to the Deputy Head of Mission in Washington because his email address I do have.

If anyone has an email address for the Washington Passport people (maybe someone who has already been sent a tracking number) could they please post it here? Many thanks.

Lambada the Careline isnt based in Munbai its based in the UK used it myself, as for the passport they send a email to you that it has been processed and UPS sent a voicemail on the day it was to arrive stating that a truck will deliver at about so and so time if no one is home they will return at a later time. They will not deliver to a PO box as the need a signiture

Imbert369 said:

Lambada the Careline isnt based in Munbai its based in the UK used it myself, as for the passport they send a email to you that it has been processed and UPS sent a voicemail on the day it was to arrive stating that a truck will deliver at about so and so time if no one is home they will return at a later time. They will not deliver to a PO box as the need a signiture

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Grateful thanks for your reassurance and to Chiri. Imbert369, do you have the email address of the mail saying it had been processed?

Imbert369 said:

as for the passport they send a email to you that it has been processed and UPS sent a voicemail on the day it was to arrive stating that a truck will deliver at about so and so time if no one is home they will return at a later time.

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Didn't happen. No email. No voicemail. First I knew was Puerto Plata Express calling me this afternoon to say they had the envelope in their office. The UPS 'delivery' person had not visited my home to deliver (BushBaby was in all this morning & I was in this afternoon, plus the no attempt at delivery was confirmed by Edwin at PP Express).

I'm just so pleased that I called in to PP Express 3 days ago & alerted them to the situation. They have been excellent. Can't say the same for UPS & certainly can't say the same for UK Passport people in Washington. My email address & tel. no. were on the application yet I heard nothing from them at all. No email with tracking number, no email saying it had been processed.

In case anyone is interested & can use the info the timeline was as follows:
January 26th. Application sent off via UPS at PP Express office.
January 28th. UPS tracking confirmed receipt, signed for by Mike the Guard
at Washington Passport Office.
Then nothing until
5th March Phone call from PP Express office.

The UPS envelope sending new passport was dated 26th. Feb. (a week ago). I have now checked the tracking number on the envelope and it did set out on 26th. Feb but didn't start moving until 3rd March: it then fluffed around a few places in the US before arriving in SD yesterday and Santiago this morning. Subsequently delivered to PP Express lunchtime today. Journey starts at the bottom of this list:

SANTIAGO, DO 03/05/2010 8:01 A.M. DESTINATION SCAN
SANTO DOMINGO, DO 03/04/2010 12:49 P.M. ARRIVAL SCAN
MIAMI, FL, US 03/04/2010 9:27 A.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
03/04/2010 7:01 A.M. EXPORT SCAN
03/04/2010 5:41 A.M. ARRIVAL SCAN
LOUISVILLE, KY, US 03/04/2010 3:35 A.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
03/04/2010 12:02 A.M. ARRIVAL SCAN
LINTHICUM, MD, US 03/03/2010 10:26 P.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
03/03/2010 9:26 P.M. ARRIVAL SCAN
LANDOVER, MD, US 03/03/2010 8:55 P.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
03/03/2010 8:05 P.M. ORIGIN SCAN
US 02/26/2010 9:13 A.M. BILLING INFORMATION RECEIVED

UPS in the DR was speedy enough although I don't understand why UPS in the US received the packet on Friday but did nothing with it for 5 days until the following Wednesday. The UPS envelope is marked (printed) Extremely Urgent :cheeky:.

So if I were to rate them: UK Passport Office in Washington - poor performance, they could have emailed to say it was on its way. UPS in the US - poor performance - they appear to have sat on it for 5 days. UPS in the DR - so-so performance, they were quick enough once it got here, but didn't attempt to deliver, nor did they call me. Puerto Plata Express office (UPS agent in PP) - excellent performance. They listened to the story last Tuesday (this was Juan), took my details, pinned the paper in an obvious place in the office for the other shift and then called today (other shift, Edwin, so the paper worked) as soon as it arrived with them.

So...........if anyone HAS received an email from Passport Office in Washington advising that your passport has been processed & giving you the Tracking Number, please post the address whence that email came. Thank you.

For the benefit of anyone else involved in the UK passport renewal/application process, I contacted Dominick Chilcott, Deputy Head of Mission at UK Embassy in Washington and copied to our Ambassador here in DR. I enquired whether the procedure was to email applicants when the passport was processed and on its way back and if that wasn't the procedure, I asked if they would consider implementing it. I also summarised my post above about the delay with UPS in Washington and I pointed out that the telephone helpline (a charged service plus cost of international call) was unlikely to be wildly popular with expats who were already paying double what it would cost them to renew their passports in the UK, ?159 as compared with ?77.

I received a nice mail from our Ambassador here, saying my suggestion seemed like a sensible idea.

I also received the following from the Washington Passport Office:

Dear Ms Bedggood

Thank you for your e-mail to Dominick Chilcott. I have been asked to reply as I am in charge of the Passport Production Centre.

We do not send customers an e-mail with UPS tracking information once their passport is ready to be dispatched. My team issues in the region of 75,000 passports annually and I am afraid we do not have the resources to offer such a service. The person you were in touch with must have contacted our call centre for information on his passport and he would then have been given the tracking information by them.

I will raise the point you have made re the service from UPS with their customer service manager - we are always striving to improve our service so this is very welcome feedback. We have been coping with a backlog of applications hence the delay in processing your new passport.

Kind regards
Marie Forsyth

HM Consul
British Embassy Washington

So now you know NOT to expect email notification. If you want the tracking number you have to phone the helpline number. Sorry guys, I tried. I will be contacting David Miliband, UK Foreign Secretary, just to keep him apprised of Washington's decision.

xxxx xxxx Wasington, xxxxs xxxx cxxx fxxxx
xxxx
xxxx and they xxxx xxxxing xxxers.

That was my experience...


And this is the polite version......