Need to know
Royal Mail is raising stamp prices from next month
Need to know: Royal Mail stamp prices to rise again in April
- Royal Mail is hiking stamp prices again from April 7 despite repeatedly missing delivery targets and growing criticism over service performance.
- Second-class stamps will rise by 4p to 91p, while first-class stamps increase by 10p to £1.80. The cost of a first-class stamp has more than doubled in six years after eight price rises.
- Anne Pardoe from Citizens Advice said: “More than half-a-decade has gone by since the company met its delivery targets and people still face a gamble, with many uncertain if their important documents or letters like medical appointments will arrive on time.”
- Royal Mail has faced MPs over “chaos” in the postal service since Christmas, with some letters reportedly delivered in “batches”. The firm last met its annual first-class delivery target in 2019-20.
- The company, owned by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky’s EP Group, is piloting Saturday second-class delivery cuts across 35 offices. Talks with unions over wider service changes have been extended after failing to reach agreement.
- Royal Mail argues the increases reflect rising delivery costs. Richard Travers, managing director of letters at Royal Mail, said: “We always consider price changes very carefully, balancing affordability with the rising cost of delivering mail. On average, UK adults now spend just £6.50 each year on stamps and there are 70 per cent fewer letters sent than 20 years ago. In the meantime, the number of addresses we deliver to has increased by four million to 32 million addresses across the UK.”
- The postal company also argued that despite the price rises, UK stamps still cost less than the European average of £1.56 for a second-class stamp and £1.93 for first class.
- Read more: North London woman left ‘fuming’ after Royal Mail ‘loses’ diamond bracelets worth £15k
Holly Williams, Press Association Business Officer, Véronique Hawksworth
