God knows, I don’t do many clever economy measures, but one was back in April when the price of first-class stamps went up by all of 10p to 95p, and I bought about five books of them, thinking that I was saving, ooh, six quid. I know, a pound for a stamp? Back when inflation was still two per cent?
Anyway, it turns out that my one inflation-proofed investment has been subverted by the Royal Mail. They’re replacing old style stamps — the ones you used to be able to steam off the envelopes if they didn’t get postmarked — with bar-coded ones which you’ll be able to track digitally. In the first place, they’re ugly; stamps are models of economical design but these ones are ugly. Further, I’d have preferred it if they’d simply guaranteed that a first class letter would be delivered the following day, which is what you pay for, but I don’t think we were asked.
Your old stamps will have to be used, or replaced, by the end of next January. The exceptions are Christmas and picture stamps which will still be valid. And they’re not making it easy, like offering a straight swap at your local post office. Nope, you have to print out a form and send it off with your stamps, thereby ensuring that a sizeable number of people can’t be bothered. A nice earner for Royal Mail, that.
Granted, most people don’t dream of buying stamps. In fact when Royal Mail workers go on strike tomorrow (and I’m right behind them), I’m not sure how many people will notice.
But letters do things that emails don’t. They don’t require an instant response, like a text or an email, or any response at all. A thank you letter is nicer than a thank you text, partly because it usually involves the human hand. They are an excellent way to get in touch with corporations and companies….more formal than online forms, more certain to get where it’s meant to. Christmas and birthday cards are nice.
Now the Royal Mail is actually penalising the people who bothered to buy stamps by making them redundant within three months. There’s no reason why it can’t continue to operate a two track service or allow people to replace their old stamps over the counter.
People used to feel warmly about their local post office, about their postman, about getting a letter. All that goodwill…where’s it gone?
