The price of a first class stamp is to increase to over a £1 following an inflation-busting increase. The Royal Mail has announced that, from April 3, the price of a first class stamp will go up by 15p.
It means a stamp will cost £1.10, up from 95p. The price of second class stamps will also rise by 7p, from 68p to 75p, reports The Mirror. The 16% increase is way above the 10.1% rate of inflation. And it comes after a 10% increase in the cost of stamps from 2022.
Royal Mail says the decision has been made after "careful consideration". It says letter volumes have dropped by 25% since the Covid-19 pandemic.
It said the price hike was needed in order to keep its Universal Service agreement sustainable. This is the pledge that says it will deliver to anywhere in the country at the same price.
Commenting on the price rise, Nick Landon, chief commercial officer at Royal Mail said: “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. We are seeing a fundamental change in consumer needs with a greater shift in demand from letters to parcels. It is vital that the Universal Service adapts and stays both relevant and sustainable.
"We need to make these price changes to ensure we can continue to maintain and invest in the one-price-goes-anywhere Universal Service for years to come.”
By using a first class stamp, your letter should reach its intended address the next day. With a second class stamp, it usually takes around two to three working days to arrive, including Saturday. Citizens Advice says the price hikes to first-class stamps represent a 64% increase over the last five years. Almost one in five people are already struggling to meet the cost of second class postage stamps.
Subscribe here for the latest news where you live
The group also criticised the changes as it recently uncovered "significant" letter delays for the third year running during the 2022 festive period. The charity estimates 60% of UK adults were hit by letter delays, with 6.2 million people missing important mail like health appointment letters during Christmas last year.
Matthew Upton, director of policy at Citizens Advice, said the "record-breaking" price rises "couldn’t be coming at a worse time for consumers". He said: "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 subpar service."
Citizens Advice have called on Ofcom to "hold Royal Mail to account" claiming the regulator at the moment is letting Royal Mail "get away" with rising prices and missing targets. Matthew added: "Enough is enough, it's time for the regulator to act.”
