Martin Lewis' Money Saving Expert website has urged all Brits to stockpile a 68p household item before Monday April 3. The warning comes days before price hikes will see the cost of the commonly-used essential rise.
While stockpiling is not usually encouraged, the Money Saving Expert says stocking up on stamps could save people a considerable amount of money. From Monday April 3, the cost of stamps is set to rise in the UK.
First-class stamps will rise from 95p up to £1.10 - a difference of 15p. The price of second-class stamps is also set to increase from 68p up to 75p - making for a 7p increase.
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Money Saving Expert said: "This means you have until Sunday 2 April to stock up on first or second-class stamps to secure them at their current price to beat the hike. Just ensure you're given new barcoded stamps rather than old-style versions without a barcode."
MyLondon reported that Royal Mail blames the increases on a "25% drop in letter volumes since the pandemic, increasing costs and the highest inflation rates for a generation".
This means that sending letters and parcels is going to cause a bigger dent than usual in your wallets. But if you're planning to secure as many stamps as possible before the increase, it's worth noting that a major change is coming in July that will make your postage sticker worthless.
From July 31, stamps without a barcode will be rendered unusable. The Royal Mail states: "Mail posted with non-barcoded Definitive stamps after 31 January 2023, will for the first six months be delivered as normal, no surcharge will be raised.
"After this six month grace period, an item with a non-barcoded stamp would be treated as if there is insufficient postage. Any item that has insufficient postage is subject to a surcharge. Surcharge fees can be found on our website."
How to swap out non-barcoded stamps
Non-barcoded stamps can be exchanged for the new barcoded version through the Stamp Swap Out scheme. To swap out stamps, complete one of the Royal Mail Stamp Swap Out forms and send it back to them along with any non-barcoded stamps. The step-by-step process for doing this is explained here.
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