SENIOR business chiefs are to hold talks with the Royal Mail as the region's traders continue to be hit hard by a delivery crisis.

The North-East Chamber of Commerce pledged to seek an end to the troubles by calling representatives of major companies and the Royal Mail together for discussions.

Businesses have been infuriated by the "teething problems" encountered since the Royal Mail combined its first and second class deliveries.

Postal staff have been forced to work more than double their normal shifts in recent months to cope with a huge backlog of mail.

Darlington, Durham and Derwentside have been particularly badly affected, with businesses and residents furious about late or undelivered post.

Royal Mail has responded by sending planning teams into several North-East offices in a back to the drawing board move to establish where the scheme has gone wrong.

Business representatives will look for more answers when they gather at the chamber's event at Durham County Cricket Club, Chester-le-Street, next Thursday.

Among those attending the meeting will be Bob Storrey, Royal Mail's North-East manager, and Royal Mail North external relations manager Lorraine Whitehouse.

Chamber chief executive George Cowcher said: "We need the Post Office to provide a first-class service, but since the switch to a once-a-day delivery, businesses have experienced significant problems with late deliveries.

"It's not just a case of a few isolated incidents, as organisations from all areas of the region have been affected.

"On top of long-term concerns about reliability and effectiveness, many businesses are now complaining that the first post is not arriving until late morning and sometimes into the afternoon."

Mr Cowcher said: "We recognise Royal Mail is trying to modernise but businesses must have a service they can rely on.

"We want this to be a constructive meeting that will give business an opportunity to state its case and talk to the Royal Mail about how to improve things.