Mail Afloat
For the Provision of Mail Forwarding, serving 'Liveaboard' and 'Continuous Cruising' Narrowboaters

P: PO Box 4937, Walsall, WS69AF - T: 01922 417872 - E: admin@mail-afloat.co.uk

Our Gold and Silver Service Systems - in Detail

Which of our Gold or Silver schemes you join will depend very much on your intended travelling lifestyle.  The level of service is to the same high standard whichever service system you choose. The difference relates merely to the duration of the contract, the way you pay, and how much you pay. Perhaps unusually our 'GOLD' service works out at the cheapest option, on a monthly cost basis.  Why not ring us for a chat about your own specific requirements - we are a small family business, and know about narrowboat life - we will help if we can.

So how does the service work (this description applies to each of the schemes we operate) ....... 

Description of Service: Mail is received at our dedicated PO Box for clients, then held by us as appropriate until it can be redirected on to you at a temporary UK Poste Restante (or other UK address).  You, the client, advise us of that temporary address from time to time, week to week, as and when you work out where you will be on the canal system. Such routine redirection of ordinary post office mail should incur no additional costs. The service can generally be adapted to suit the individual requirements of each client (eg destruction of obvious junk mail). 

To prevent fraud, each client is allocated a security client registration number and we will prearrange with you a 'secret question and answer' known only to 'Mail Afloat' and you the individual client - so when you contact us we can make sure that it is indeed you that we are dealing with.

We require an advance payment of a 'Balancing Fee' - what is it for........   

'Balancing Fee' Requirements: A minimum 'balancing fee' of £20 is payable at the start of each of the scheme contracts. This money is used by 'Mail Afloat' to pay for ancillary costs such as a redirection which has to be separately paid for.  Of course these payments are made and accounted for - at cost - and will only be used for genuine ancillary costs.  If and when the 'balance' of the 'balancing fee' we hold for a client falls below £5 (because we have had to use the funds for those additional costs), we will require a top up of £20 to be paid as an ongoing 'balancing fee'.  If, for any part of the contract period, the client's forwarding address is to be outside the UK, we will require the 'balancing fee' amount to be increased to a level of £50 - because all forwarding of mail for that 'overseas period' will need to be on an at-cost basis. 

Mail Afloat undertakes to properly account for such 'balancing fee' payments received from clients.  The balance of 'balancing fee' remaining will be repaid to clients on termination of contract. If a contract is being renewed, any remaining balancing fee is carried forward from the old contract to the new contract.

So which of the services would suit you, the client, best ......... 

MAIL AFLOAT BRONZE SERVICE: Designed specifically for those living just temporarily aboard. 
Cost of Bronze Service: Monthly Fee of £15, payable in advance by cheque or monthly standing order, for either a couple or for a single person. Service can only commence each month, once the relevant monthly payment funds are cleared through our bankers.  
'Balancing Fee' Requirements for Bronze Service: Minimum of £20, payable in advance. £20 top up required if/when 'balance' falls below £5. In both cases the figure of £20 is increased to £50, where client's forwarding address is outside the UK.

MAIL AFLOAT SILVER SERVICE: Designed for those who will be living aboard a cruising narrowboat on a month to month basis, rather than for a full year. 
Cost of Silver Service: Advance fee based on an amount of £12 per month payable in advance, for up to one couple living/cruising together.  Payment can be by cheque or by single standing order.  For a six month contract, this would mean an advance payment of £72.  Service can only commence once payment funds are cleared through our bankers.  
'Balancing Fee' Requirements for Silver Service: Minimum of £20, payable in advance. £20 top up required if/when 'balance' falls below £5. In both cases the figure of £20 is increased to £50, where client's forwarding address is outside the UK.

MAIL AFLOAT GOLD SERVICE: Designed specifically for those who will be living aboard a cruising narrowboat throughout the year. 
Cost of Gold Service: Advance fee based on an amount of £12 per month payable in advance, for up to one couple living/cruising together. Payment can be by cheque or by single annual standing order.  Service can only commence once payment funds are cleared through our bankers.  
'Balancing Fee' Requirements for Gold Service: Minimum of £20, payable in advance. £20 top up required if/when 'balance' falls below £5. In both cases the figure of £20 is increased to £50, where client's forwarding address is outside the UK.

What to do next - Please do read the conditions of contract shown on our web page entitled 'Legal Stuff' 

Then if you are happy that you would like to use our service give us a ring - as a family business we do prefer to speak individually with clients before starting a contract. Once we have had that chat, we may invite you to complete and sign an application form, which can be printed off from this website, to start a 'mail afloat' contract. If you have decided to proceed we will have, at the same time, discussed your 'security question' and allocated a 'security client registration number'. 

Once we have finalised the above issues we will await for payment to activate your 'mail afloat' contract. Once activated we will contact you and suggest that you arrange for your contacts to be told of your new 'mail afloat address'. You, the client,  will be responsible for advising your family, friends, and other contacts, of your new address.