A WIRRAL grandfather says he is facing a 'cancelled Christmas' after a vital cheque was delivered to the wrong person.

Peter Moonan, from Wallasey, was forced to apply for a budgeting loan from the Department of Work and Pensions after he found himself struggling to make ends meet.

He was hoping that the £388.95 would pay for a new cooker, as his old one had been condemned, and would help towards paying winter bills and Christmas presents.

But the Girocheque was delivered to another person by mistake and they managed to cash it to receive the sum of money.

Mr Moonan, a former construction manager, telephoned the DWP about the mix-up on Monday but was told he may still have to pay back the money himself - despite never getting it.

He said: "I received a letter telling me what my repayments would be and I was told the cheque had already been sent out. But I never got it. This person, whoever they are, went into the Post Office and took the money for themselves.

"There have been a few problems in the past with mail getting mixed up between flats in this area so they already had a letter addressed to me as 'proof of identification'.

"I thought you would have needed proper photographic I.D but obviously not. The worst bit is that there is a chance that I will still have to pay back the loan even though I never had it in the first place."

The 52-year-old reported the issue to the police but was told it was not his place to do so as he is not the 'aggrieved person' - meaning the money was not stolen directly from him.

Now he has been told it is the responsibility of the Post Office branch manager to get in touch with the police so that CCTV footage can be seized.

And the DWP have said his cheque will not be re-issued.

Mr Moonan, a grandfather-of-four, said: "As far I'm concerned, Christmas is cancelled. I was hoping to get the grandkids a few bits but I can't now as I can't see any of this getting sorted before the end of the year.

"I'm not looking for any free hand-outs, I just want to highlight how hard it is to get anyone to take responsibility for what has happened.

"There is so much confusion between the DWP and the police over who is the so-called 'aggrieved'.

"The most frustrating part is that it is clear I have not cashed the cheque, there is CCTV evidence showing who has, and no one is willing to lift a finger, meanwhile I am £388.95 out of pocket."

A Royal Mail spokesman said: "We are very sorry that Mr Moonan is unhappy with the service he has received from Royal Mail. Our customer services department has no record of Mr Moonan's complaint but the manager at Wallasey delivery office is happy to investigate on his behalf and respond to him as soon as possible."

A DWP spokesman said: "Mr Moonan has now reported non receipt of a girocheque, enabling us to investigate the matter fully and decide whether a replacement can be issued. He will be informed of the outcome in due course."