[lon2671]

Hi! I want to share our passport problem experience that had a happy ending yesterday. Lots of hints and tips that we’ve picked up in an attempt to get it sorted have been from this forum and want to thank everyone for that. Sorry if it’s a bit of a long story!!
I applied for my passport renewal on 01.03.2022 and got it back within 3 weeks, no problems.
My daughter submitted her adult passport renewal online on 09.03.2022 – her original passport had expired and she’d lost it and she needed a change of surname. All documents were sent to Belfast and online tracking showed that documents had been submitted on 22/03 and then processing on 25/03 – then NOTHING! Found out that her application was now at Durham. We lost out on our city break to Barcelona on 01/05 cos her passport never arrived but then also never got advised that we could do an upgrade despite many phone calls to the passport office before – then I found this forum. She had another holiday booked for 01/06 and found out through here that we could do an upgrade 14 days before. So, she phoned on 18/05 and got told to wait 48 hours for a callback, they called on 20/05 and told her to email DurhamUpgradeTeam@hmpo.gov.uk, the subject had to include URGENT UPGRADE and “the date of travel” 01/06/2022
Content to include – Full Name, DOB, Contact Number, Email address, Reference Number, Date of Travel and Proof of Flight (actual PDF not a screenshot).
She was told she’d get a callback within 48 hours to take payment and then she’d be able to collect her passport from Liverpoool which is our nearest office – 1.5 hrs away. Sounded so simple and promising but she didn’t get a callback. Phoned on 24/05, they tried putting her through to the processing team but no answer – apparently they can’t put you through to upgrade team as they have no phone number – got told she was on an urgent callback within 24 hours. More waiting, callback finally happened on 27/05 but then got told that the upgrade hadn’t been done properly, the advisor should’ve sent her an email first to confirm that she’s allowed to upgrade otherwise the email that she sent would’ve just gone into the junk mail folder. She got the email, then she sent another email which included all the details I mentioned before (again).
By this time given that there were only 2 working days left until she travelled on the 1st June panic had set in. She sent our MP an email and got a reply on 30/05 saying that he’d contacted the Passport Office and asked them to urgently contact her.
However by Sunday 29/05 we’d decided that the only option was to go to Liverpool Passport office and as we’d heard people were queueing from 4am onwards it was going to be an early start. She got there at 5am on 30/05 and there were already about 25 people queueing in front of her, all with similar stories and all consistently given different information by the Passport Office phone lines. She could hear some of them getting phone calls from the upgrade team whilst they were stood in the rain in the queue but she never got one. She waited and got seen at 12pm, got told that all her application documents were correct and that the hold-up was probably because of her change of surname but there was no reason why it shouldn’t have been approved as everything was correct. They contacted Durham and Durham agreed to approve it on 30/05 and contact her so that she could collect on 31/05. We didn’t hold out much hope for the phone call but Liverpool staff told her that if they didn’t phone then she should go back on 31/05, she wouldn’t have to queue but to go straight to the door and explain and they’d let her in. Durham phoned her at 1.50pm on 30/05!!!! Told her that her application had been approved and as the cut-off was 2pm he’d do it straight away and she could collect from Liverpool on that day 30/05!! Overjoyed is an understatement but we were still not convinced it would be true until it was in her hand. So back to the Passport Office, didn’t have to queue this time because it was a collection so explained this at the door and went straight in. Waited another 1.5 hours and got the actual passport in her hand at 4pm.
Big massive thank you goes out to Liverpool Passport Office staff who were so helpful. There were so many there and the ones that were in the queue with her all giving each other moral support were also all there around 3-4pm picking up their passports.
I can honestly say that she wouldn’t have got the passport without going to Liverpool and queueing. Maybe the upgrade team just pick and choose who they approve, I’m not sure but also don’t think that the MP intervention made any difference either.
Also, she didn’t pay any extra for this service so she’s only paid the original online passport renewal fee. She also got advised by the Passport Office phone line not go to her nearest Passport Office in person without an appointment as that would be a health and safety issue – not sure why that would be!!!! Anyway, we’re so relieved that she got the passport in the end but it still feels a bit surreal after going through what I can only describe as a very stressful nightmare that’s gone on and on without needing to. Hopefully by the time we’ll all be renewing next time there will be a better system.

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