Army Records

[sookie23]

I applied for a relatives army records back in August. I've not heard anything back yet, but looking on their site it states that they will confirm they have received your application. Does anyone know how long this normally takes, I know covid had altered their time scales. I'm hoping I hear back before the cheque payment expires.

[AntonyM]

They are currently taking well over a year - I'm waiting for one I applied for in July 2020 ( they have confirmed they received the application and it is the queue to be dealt with - but only after I emailed them to check).

The Navy/RAF requests seem to be coming through more quickly ...taking a few months.

[annswabey]

I'd agree with Anthony. In fact I was waiting for some I ordered in 2019, which I only received about 3 months ago. Perhaps they're catching up a bit as I received 3 Army records a couple of days ago which I'd only applied for in June 2021! Royal Navy and RAF are much quicker, as he says

[sookie23]

Many thanks for the replies. I will email them to see if they can confirm they've received my application.

[sookie23]

I must have been one of the lucky ones. army records all received send of for in August this year and got them Tuesday.

[Matt Muir]

Do you have the Email address you used to contact them. I aplied for some army records in March this year and have heard nothing todate.
Just checked and the cheque has not been paid in either.
Matt

[sookie23]

My cheque has still not been cash, that's the one thing I did keep checking for.


APC-sp-disclosures4@mod.gov.uk

[Matt Muir]

Thanks for the Email address, looks like they are swamped.......this is the auto repy I received...................................

As a consequence of the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic and direction from the Scottish Government, the department was unable to function properly for an extended period lasting many months. The files necessary to process the vast majority of genealogical requests are only held in paper format and have not been accessible during this period.

A significant backlog of work has built up during the lockdown period as postal applications continued to be sent to the office. Regrettably these unprecedented circumstances mean that applications sent in the last year or so may not yet have been actioned or even opened. Additional staffing resources have been identified and are being utilised.

Not in a big rush for them, I have enough to keep me going.
Just a thought, do the banks still only allow 6 months to present a cheque for payment ?

[cbcarolyn]

Thanks for the Email address, looks like they are swamped.......this is the auto repy I received...................................

As a consequence of the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic and direction from the Scottish Government, the department was unable to function properly for an extended period lasting many months. The files necessary to process the vast majority of genealogical requests are only held in paper format and have not been accessible during this period.

A significant backlog of work has built up during the lockdown period as postal applications continued to be sent to the office. Regrettably these unprecedented circumstances mean that applications sent in the last year or so may not yet have been actioned or even opened. Additional staffing resources have been identified and are being utilised.

Not in a big rush for them, I have enough to keep me going.
Just a thought, do the banks still only allow 6 months to present a cheque for payment ?

if you walkedin and paid a cheque somewhere they wouldn't take it, but a business batch sending in cheques they would bother to check unless over £1000, technically I think, unless it has changed, cheque are valid for 6 years. Although presumably they are all more than 6 months old, so bank might get picky!

[sookie23]

this is the reply I had when I queried the cheque

In regards to payments cheques don't actually have an expiry date . However it is common banking practice to reject cheques that are over six months old to protect the person who has written the cheque , in case the payment has been made another way or the cheque has been lost or stolen. However, its up to the bank's discretion , which may include contacting the account holder for approval _ which due to covid situation a lot of banks are doing.

Regardless of this one of the team will contact you directly when we are dealing with the application so you will not be disadvantaged.


I also got the automatic reply that you got and 5 days later I had the above email, so hopefully someone will contact you soon.

[Matt Muir]

Just a quick update on this old post.

Having requested some Army Records back in March 2021, in the post this morning
I recieved a large brown envelope containg the records.
Also a covering letter including an apology for the delay and my original cheque for £30.
The letter stated that they had agreed that the fee would be waived in my case.
An excellent service, I shall send the money on to my local animal rescue centre.
Matt

[TrevorFranklin]

NOTE:
"From 1 April 2023 it will be free to apply for a military service record from the MOD. You’ll need to pay the £30 fee if you submit an application before 1 April."
Get a copy of military service records: Apply for the records of someone who's deceased - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)