Dear Sir,

I am beginning to wonder whether common courtesy has become a thing of the past in Bermuda. Maybe it took a flight out to avoid Covid — who knows!

On February 2, 2022, I hand-delivered a letter to the office of the Collector of Customs, Lucinda Pearman, and a few days later, I hand-delivered a copy of the same letter to the Ministry of Finance for the attention of the Acting Financial Secretary, Cheryl-Ann Lister. To date, I am still awaiting acknowledgement of my letter.

My issue with HM Customs concerned a cheque that was inadvertently sent to “Company X” for my attention on August 8, 2021. I finally received this cheque on January 21, 2022.

HM Customs was questioned about the delay, and the response was that the cheque was under investigation — really!

While I have no issue with HM Customs doing its due diligence, I do, however, take issue with the length of time it took to process my cheque and, to date, no explanation.

It has taken me a few months to put pen to paper, as it was my expectation that I would have heard something from one or both of these departments. Needless to say, I am convinced that this lack of response is only a symptom of a much bigger problem in the Civil Service.

They are being paid to do better!

ANNETTE BARCLAY

Sandys