Paying more for less? Stamp prices have gone up — again.
Sending a card to a friend? Returning an application form by post? From today, a first class stamp will cost 95p, up from 85p yesterday.
This is the latest in a series of inflation busting price rises from Royal Mail. The price of a 1st class stamp is up nearly 50% in the last 5 years alone.
Percentage increase in stamp prices, compared to 2017
Inflation calculated using Bank of England’s inflation calculator. Figures for 2022 are not yet available.
For 2nd class stamps there’s a price cap in place, helping protect consumers from big price rises. This is good as it means you can access slightly cheaper stamps. But 2nd class stamps have still increased by more than 20% over the last 5 years. Given you can’t send letters with any other company, consumers are left with no choice but to stretch to meet Royal Mail’s prices if they want to send a letter.
1st class stamps aren’t a premium service. They’re an important part of the way we communicate with friends, family and organisations. They should be available to consumers at truly affordable prices.
Consumers are much more likely to use 1st class stamps on a regular basis than 2nd class ones. Almost half (45%) use 1st class stamps all or most of the time, whilst only a third (33%) use 2nd class stamps all or most of the time.
“One-price-goes-anywhere”
— but it might take longer than expected.
It costs the same to send a letter to someone living at the other end of the country as it does to someone in the town you live in. This is called the one-price-goes-anywhere principal. But it might take longer than expected to get there.
Almost 15 million people were left waiting for their mail this Christmas as a result of widespread mail delays. Of those, more than half (54%) waited over a week for their letters.
And this wasn’t just a one-off. Last year, we found that 16.5 million people were hit by letter delays in January. And we saw a 365% increase in people coming to our webpage for advice on what to do about lost post.
Postmen and women have been working round the clock to keep us all connected throughout the pandemic, often under tough conditions. But Royal Mail, as a company, has missed the mark.
Royal Mail is asking you to pay more to send letters after 2 years of falling short
It’s disappointing to see such a steep price hike from Royal Mail against a backdrop of late bills, hospital appointment invites and Christmas cards over the last 2 years. Add into the mix Royal Mail’s healthy growth in profits and a £400 million payout to its shareholders only 5 months ago, this price rise starts to look quite jarring.
Consumers are shouldering a double penalty of paying a higher price for a bad service.
Ofcom needs to wake up and stand up for consumers
The cost of living crisis is deepening. Our new research shows that 47% of people on low incomes predict they’ll be falling behind on essential bills or have to make cut-backs this month. With households already facing a squeeze on their incomes, this feels like the wrong time to up stamp prices yet again.
3 in 4 (75%) think it’s unfair to consumers for the cost of 1st class stamps to increase again.
Ofcom is the regulator for the postal market with the power to change things. But at the moment, it seems to be hitting the snooze button when it comes to holding Royal Mail accountable for delivering reliable postal services at a truly affordable price. Now is the time for the regulator to take action.
