AN elderly man had to wait nearly eight weeks to see a doctor after his medical records were lost in the post in the latest in a series of Thurrock post service blunders.

Phil Burns, 79, of Windsor Avenue, Grays, had been suffering with problems to his eyes when he went to his local GP, who referred him to Southend Hospital for immediate treatment.

The letter, marked urgent, was sent to the hospital on August 17 and after two months without reply Phil began to become concerned.

He said: "I waited before I contacted them because I know there are emergencies these people deal with, but when I spoke to them they said they hadn't received the letter from my GP."

Shocked, Phil was about to go back to his GP when a dog-eared letter was posted through the door.

"This letter came through the door with all my referral items from my doctor in it. To be honest I couldn't work out what it was at first, the letter had been opened at least half a dozen times by the look of it," he said.

The letter contained all Phil's medical records and had been sent on many times before it finally appeared in his letterbox.

He said: "I could have lost my eye because of this delay, not to mention that someone has been through all my medical history. It's quite worrying when you think about it."

Eventually, Phil managed to get an appointment at Orsett hospital, who apologised for the delay saying that they hadn't yet received his referral!

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: "We would advise the customer to contact Royal Mail Customer Services on 08457 740 740 if he has any complaints.

"The latest figures show a 91.2 per cent delivery rate within the RM postcode, which means most people have a next day delivery service.

"There could be any number of reasons why a letter is not delivered, but, as these figures show, this is the exception not the rule."