The cost of a first class stamp will rise to £1.10 early next month, Royal Mail has announced, breaking the £1 barrier for the first time.
The company said it would increase the price of a first class stamp by 15p from 3 April, a year after it went up by 10p to 95p. The price of a second class stamp is also going up, by 7p to 75p.
The charity Citizens Advice condemned the increase, which it said could not come at a worse time for consumers hit by the soaring food and energy bills owing to the cost of living crisis.
Royal Mail said the increases were needed to ensure the universal service, which means letter delivery costs the same irrespective of distance, “remains sustainable”. Its decision follows a 25% decline in letters since the pandemic.
The 507-year-old business, which was privatised in 2013, has been hit by repeated strikes in a long-running dispute with the Communication Workers Union over pay and changes to working conditions, and was also the victim of a cyber-attack earlier this year that halted international parcel and letter deliveries.
It expects to make an operating loss of up to £450m this year.
Royal Mail said it remained committed to the universal service but that costs were increasing as “customer behaviours change”. It has asked the government to reduce its obligation to deliver letters six days a week, to five days.
Nick Landon, chief commercial officer at Royal Mail, said: “We appreciate that many businesses and households are facing a challenging economic environment and we are committed to keeping our prices affordable.
“We have to carefully balance our pricing against a continued decline in letter volumes and the increasing costs of delivering letters six days a week to an ever-growing number of addresses across the country.”
Matthew Upton, director of policy at Citizens Advice, said the higher cost of stamps came as many consumers endured postal delays.
“These record-breaking prices couldn’t be coming at a worse time for consumers, who’ll now be paying 64% more for a first class stamp than five years ago. Almost one in five people are already struggling with current prices for second class stamps.
“Royal Mail is choosing to hike prices at a time when millions are missing important letters, thanks to post delays. Nobody should be paying more for this kind of sub-par service.”
He said Ofcom should be holding Royal Mail to account over two years of missed delivery targets. “Enough is enough, it’s time for the regulator to act.”
Research by Citizens Advice found that 60% of UK adults have experienced letter delays, with 6.2 million people missing important mail last Christmas, such as health appointment letters.
Royal Mail’s most recent quality of service report showed it delivered only 54% of first-class post on time in the third quarter, against a target of 93%.
This article was amended on 4 March 2023. The subheading on an earlier version gave the incorrect price for second class stamps from April as 95p. This has now been corrected to 75p.
