1st class stamps 60p - 2nd class 50p

[marinyork]

And what would the social history books say about a price rise of 30% I wonder? Perhaps not unprecendented but certainly something worth mentioning. That's really the problem here. Problem with you is you read small snippets of things that make their way out of social history books without actually thinking what it means in a wider context (you've done this very often quoting peak manufacturing). 1840 would be a more interesting comparison if you dug out how many properties there were in the UK in 1840 and how many people the postal service employed or some other factor.

It is about labour, why some urban areas have a very poor and overcontended postal service whilst some rural areas get outstanding value for money.

 

[compo]

Don't the job Centre provide stamped envelopes for those on JSA who are sending applications off? I'm pretty sure they used to.

Don't know about the JobCentre's but the tax man certainly doesn't. Last week I received a tax form to do with my pension but no envelope to send it back in. I had to supply an envelope and a stamp.

 

[marinyork]

Don't the job Centre provide stamped envelopes for those on JSA who are sending applications off? I'm pretty sure they used to.

In theory. In practice, no.

If push came to shove, under the old new deal you'd probably be able to wangle some stamps out of your new deal provider. If I'd pushed extremely hard on the matter I think I'd have been able to get some - questionable whether it was worth the hassle (or potential consequences - they can easily give you hassle back). Jobcentre, no chance. Jobcentre will have a big argument with you if you use their phones to apply for jobs - even though they aren't supposed to. I was pretty hacked off once a while ago now when I said to send a fax to an agency that had no intention whatsoever of giving me a job and the jobcentre wouldn't let me use their fax machine, so I had to fork out at enormous cost to do so. E-mail? No, must be fax. MUST BE FAX. Fortunately I don't have to deal with any of that any more.

If you're applying for a particular job such as a DWP job, they will give you the form, fill it in, give it back to them and they send it via internal mail. So that saves you money.

But this is exactly the sort of move that's going to lead to arguments in jobcentres up and down the land - "I can't afford the stamps", "why should I be forking out for a job that I'm not going to get" etc.

 

[StuAff]

Oldfatfool and smutchin have pretty much nailed it on the head. We've been shafted by various governments time and time again for decades. If Thatcher hadn't forced RM to take a pension holiday, the fund wouldn't be billions in debt. And if deregulation had been handled correctly, we could have been as strong as Deutsche Post (who charge about 90p for a first class item, btw). At one and the same time we have people whining about the price of stamps, bulk mailings, and so on, who simply haven't considered the costs of providing the service and what they get for it. I wonder how many of them pay Murdoch TV ££££ a month for stuff they don't watch, and for which they still get advertising (ditto in newspapers and magazines), and how many of those who call us 'overpaid' (I'm not!!!) would be happy to take a wage cut so someone else can get a cheaper service from their company.

And Francesca, most of us are honest and consiencious. No need to insult us like that.

 

[Archie_tect]

Is HMG increasing the cost of stamps to increase the profitability to then make RM a more attractive to sell off later in the year?

I don't trust them to keep it safe....

 

[col]

That's scandalous. They were about 20p for a 1st class and 16p for 2nd class the last time I bought any. Shows how long ago it was since I did.

In my last place of work a friend & colleague used to open all our customer mail (200+ letters daily). Some mail didn't get stamped by Royal Mail in the top-right hand corner of the envelope. So if you were careful in detaching the stamp from it's envelope, you could re-use it with a little bit of Pritt Stick.

I've still got loads of re-usable stamps in my kitchen drawer.

Only problem is theyre all for 20p and 16p.

 

[Yellow Fang]

I assume RM will still honour the first class stamps we've already bought. I've recently bought four sets of commemerative, comemmerative, fancy stamps to personalise my letters and cards. Only they look too nice to break up.

I've read time and again how RM are in trouble, but they do a decent service on the whole. If I am expecting some package from another courier service, I know they aren't going to deliver on the day they say they will. I know I will end up cycling to the depot to pick it up.

 

[StuAff]

I assume RM will still honour the first class stamps we've already bought. I've recently bought four sets of commemerative, comemmerative, fancy stamps to personalise my letters and cards. Only they look too nice to break up.

I've read time and again how RM are in trouble, but they do a decent service on the whole. If I am expecting some package from another courier service, I know they aren't going to deliver on the day they say they will. I know I will end up cycling to the depot to pick it up.

Yes, all those stamps are still valid. Those that have an actual monetary value printed on are still worth that value,and those with 1C/2C etc but no price are valid for full or part payment on an item at the rate that applies when you send it. In other words, buy your first class stamp for 46p the day before the increase and it'll be worth 60p in postage the next day.

 

[Night Train]

I still have (just counted) 168 first class stamps left over from the pile my Mum bought for me when they were really cheap.

Can't see why she bothered as I hardly need to send any letters and I'm not concerned about the price for the few times I do send a letter!

 

[col]

Iv got a book of six first class in my wallet, had them a couple of years now.

 

[Noodley]

If you are all in a fluster about the price of stamps, you'd better not look at the "penny chew" tray next time your're in the corner shop...

 

[col]

And will you need to have the riches of a Tory donor to be able to shop at Poundland?

Why how much is everything?

 

[Blue Steel]

The regulator is the main reason behind the rise in postage costs to joe public. When the market was opened up 5 or 6 years ago RM where strangled in what they could charge the likes of TNT, DHL and UK Mail etc etc for delivering the 'final mile' whilst the competition could charge the bulk senders (including many gov't depts) what they could get away with for collecting and delivering to the nearest RM sorting Hub.

Obviously RM still have the same overheads and job to perform but now only 1/2 (if that) of the mail actually is Royal Mail end to end so revenue as been massively hit. (check your mail in the morning and see how much as a TNT or Business post frank on it)

Unfortunately this loss as to be turned back into a profit somehow, if only to pay my wage rise and pension (which the Labour govt managed to lose/ spend)

Before anyone decries RM just ask yourself what private company is likely guarentee a delivery to every address in the UK daily, major towns maybe but villages and rural areas? I can't see TNT or DHL driving 15 mile up a farm track every day to deliver one letter with a 50p stamp on it can you?

In fact they have had a license to deliver mail door to door since the market opened up but have declined to set up such a delivery service preferring to just cream of the lucrative business collection side previously mentioned. So when they decide to have their 2 penneth in the press slagging off RM for price increases or threatening to strike just consider what the alternative would be.

This ^^^. I work for the Royal Mail, and it is depressing to see what used to be an excellent service reduced to the sorry state it is in now. Some days I deliver more than my own body weight in mail, and most of it is pure junk. As oldfatfool says, check the top right corner of what comes through your letter box. Most of it is being delivered by us on behalf of TNT, UKMail etc.

If you think it's bad now wait until they privatise it, carve it up, and sell it off.

 

[biggs682]

been and stochpiled up on stamps ready for xmas 2012 & 2013