A family who lost out on a January holiday due to long passport waiting times faced further disappointment ahead of a planned Easter break.
The ECHO previously reported that hundreds of people had taken to social media to complain after waiting months for a new passport. Scott Gavin, from Kirkby, was one of those who had been affected.
According to Gov.uk, typical processing times for standard online applications were between five to six weeks in the week ending March 20. However, a tweet from the Passport Office on Monday (April 4) said: "Is your passport due to expire? You'll need to allow up to 10 weeks to process your passport application when applying from the UK."
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Scott told the ECHO that back in November, himself and his wife Leanne had sent off five passports for renewal with the hopes of going abroad in January to Fuerteventura. After receiving four of them back in early December, a family holiday was booked for their six children's Christmas presents.
The family were "excited" to jet off abroad for the first time in three years, after facing six cancellations because of the pandemic. But when the fifth passport still had not arrived, they began to panic.
He said: "Around mid-December they said there was a discrepancy against our son's passport, Robert, because his father's middle name was not on the passport application. It's not the first time it had been renewed but I asked why we weren't notified so it could've been sorted."
After photocopying the required details over with recorded delivery, Scott said a few days later he was told the office had not received the details, with the same being told a week later when they tried again. They were then told the application had been cancelled.
Scott added: "We tried to apply for a fast-tracked new passport but couldn't because we didn't get the old passport back so then had to apply via a lost passport and in the end we had to cancel our holiday in January.
"We love spending time away with the kids, it was our first holiday after having six cancelled and it was their Christmas present off us. They opened the box with flip flops, sunglasses and the boarding passes and were so excited.
"It just all went to pot, it was an absolute nightmare. I'm like a big kid when I book a holiday, I get the kids wound up, my dad did it and it's the best feeling in the world but then we had to tell them it was cancelled."
Pinning their hopes on an Easter break, the family booked a holiday to Majorca for Easter Sunday which would be their "last big family holiday" due to Scott's mum being poorly. But as of Wednesday, the fifth passport had still not arrived.
Scott said: "It's ridiculous, absolutely shocking. It's a constant fight back and forth. You can't get an appointment or speak to anyone and they put the phone down on you.
"This would be my mum's last holiday as she's really ill and now she won't have either one grandson there or all of her grandchildren and son or daughter-in-law because we can't leave him alone. He's 15 but has additional needs so has the mindset of a seven-year-old.
"He doesn't understand. He's going to think it's his fault that we've missed out on another family holiday, it's a nightmare. We tried to get an appointment but told it wasn't urgent but he will be heart-broken if he can't go.
"We've missed out on a £1,800 holiday in January and had to pay for two passports for one kid when there's proof we sent the initial details when they first asked. We thought booking in April would give them plenty of time."
Despite a 10-week delay warning from officials, a number of people are reporting longer waits - with some having to cancel or move their holidays. Scott confirmed that after speaking to the ECHO, he received a call from the Passport Office to say the required passport will be delivered this week, just in time for their Easter break.
A HMPO spokesperson said: "Due to COVID-19, over 5 million people delayed applying for a British passport throughout 2020 and 2021. In preparation for the demand for international travel returning, we have published clear guidance in place since April 2021 making clear people should allow up to ten weeks to get their passport.
"In busier periods, call waiting times will take longer. However, we continue to work with our supplier to further recruit and support the effort to return response times closer to normal levels."
