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[chrissie]

They seem to be on the ball with their announcements (Postcomm).  I saw yesterday that Royal Mail (rotten mail to me) are going to be allowed to put the postage up by at least 5p from next April (as they usually do)!!  Five pence!!  Doesn't sound much does it but when it comes to the weight ratio then it can go up by 6p - 8p and more and that's a lot to add on when it boils down to the nitty gritty.  Also read that RM will be given free rein to charge as much as it likes for sending a package which weighs more than 500g.  Postcomm, whose said purpose is to protect the service, apparently said it has no choice but to allow the rise (!).   

I for one can only hope that RM don't take advantage of this generous <snarl> decision, ha ha as if they will look a gift horse in the mouth.....especially when I read that they lose (?) 6.4p a letter they process/deliver.  What with VAT going up 2.5% from January, everything will go up anyway and with the hike in postage if they take it up will add even more to the cost of things that we buy.

I don't hold out much hope that common sense will prevail as when it comes to fleecing the public it seems we're easy game and pay up without even batting an eye lid in this 'ere country!!  Never ending is it when it comes to grinding us into submission 

[UncleUB]

I totally agree Chrissie.

Postage costs going up,service is getting worse.Our post turns up at any hour of the day. 

[roseway]

I've got some sympathy with Royal Mail, because they're the victims of a regulatory regime which has allowed third party companies to take over some of the high volume, profitable parts of the mail network, leaving RM with the labour-intensive non-profitable parts. So third parties can make arrangements with large companies and organisations to collect their mail in bulk and deliver it unsorted to RM. RM then have to do the much more difficult parts of the process (sorting and delivering) for a reduced fee, because the third party takes part of the fee for doing the easy bit.

It seems to me that the ultimate villains are not the RM, but successive governments meddling with their operation instead of getting it organised efficiently.

[silversurfer44]

Another one to agree here. I have an acquaintance who was in the line of knowledge of RM operations and often gave stories of how and amount of monies wasted by ahem! managers and the RM in general. The thing is with RM the government are selling off the profitable parts of the service and leaving what we have to pay for, the delivery of the letters. This section does run at a loss, but with all the other services of which some make a large profit the Post Office/Royal Mail as a whole does make profit. What a crazy greedy world we live in.  

As I was typing this Roseway has echoed what I have written, although in different words.

[HPsauce]

I've got some sympathy with Royal Mail, ....

, leaving RM with the labour-intensive non-profitable parts.

Yes, I see the evidence of that every day in my post.

I did read somewhere that they make a BIG loss on every letter that comes to them from the third-party companies for RM to do the "last mile" delivery as the pricing is unfair.

[not/einstein]

did i hear right the other day they are on about evening deliveries.....................?

[CurlyWhirly]

I've got some sympathy with Royal Mail, because they're the victims of a regulatory regime which has allowed third party companies to take over some of the high volume, profitable parts of the mail network, leaving RM with the labour-intensive non-profitable parts. So third parties can make arrangements with large companies and organisations to collect their mail in bulk and deliver it unsorted to RM. RM then have to do the much more difficult parts of the process (sorting and delivering) for a reduced fee, because the third party takes part of the fee for doing the easy bit.

It seems to me that the ultimate villains are not the RM, but successive governments meddling with their operation instead of getting it organised efficiently.

I too was going to slam Royal Mail until I read the above explanation as to what is going on.

I had no idea 

[HPsauce]

I had no idea 

Here's a quote giving more idea:
"Rivals such as UK Mail collect and sort letters themselves, but rely on Royal Mail to deliver "the final mile" - up to people's letterboxes.

Royal Mail says it currently loses 2.5p on each item delivered in this way. "

[CurlyWhirly]

Royal Mail says it currently loses 2.5p on each item delivered in this way.

In that case I have no problem with the cost of a first class stamp rising by 5p as long as Royal Mail doesn't keep putting the price up now they have had price restrictions lifted !

[camallison]

I had a long think about this one from a purely personal point of view.  In the past year, the only letters I have sent are "official" ones to various government departments, and NO personal ones.  Even when I was in business, almost all of my communication was by email, with attachments, since around 1992.  Therefore, whilst I sympathise with those who use snail mail, it doesn't really affect me directly.  Royal Mail has, over successive years, only served to kill itself off.  Their management don't seem to have grasped the challenges fully and only offered a gradually poorer service to the public.  My post used to come at around 07:30 EVERY weekday morning and 09:00 on Saturdays.  Now it comes any time up to 14:00 weekdays and sometimes NEVER on Saturdays.

'nuf said!

Colin

[BritBrat]

I think Royal mail should double the cost of postage not for the likes of you and me but for all the junk mail we get.

Then we may not get so much and if we do RM gets to make some money.

[silversurfer44]

Believe it or not RM actually make money out of junk mail, if they didn't you could see the cost of a stamp going up even more.

[sevenlayermuddle]

You can opt out of junk mail delivered by the Postie, but RM deliberately make it very difficult to find out how to do so, and will generally refuse to understand the question if you ask to have it done.  I seem to remember a Postie recently got in hot water for telling people how to do it.

The easiest way I've found is to call RM and ask to speak to somebody who can arrange leaflet deliveries for you, which gets you through to the right department.  Once your connected, you can have the conversation you really wanted to have...

I did that myself in a house I was living in 15 years ago and, at that that time, it was implemented by the Postie simply carrying a list of 'forbidden' households.  One one occasion, I was awoken by the doorbell at about 7am, to find an apologetic post Lady explaining she'd made a mistake and stuffed some leaflets through, and offering to take it all back.
 

Seriously though, SS is right, RM make money out of leaflet deliveries and we'd all have to pay more to make up the deficit if the junk stopped coming.  Personally, I'd be willing to pay that price but would everybody?

[sevenlayermuddle]

but RM deliberately make it very difficult to find out how to do so, and will generally refuse to understand the question if you ask to have it done. 

As an afterthought I had a quick google, it seems easy to find the opt-out details online nowadays.  Well I did say it was fifteen years ago I last tried it.  

[Floydoid]

Seriously though, SS is right, RM make money out of leaflet deliveries and we'd all have to pay more to make up the deficit if the junk stopped coming.  Personally, I'd be willing to pay that price but would everybody?

And the posties themselves earn extra for doing the leaflets - about 2p for each one.  When I worked for RM (a few years ago now) I could boost my weekly earnings by about £20 from the leaflets alone.  Of course the rounds in the posher areas which got the highest volume of targeted marketing were highly sought after.

I personally think that if it wasn't for the volume of packages from the likes of ebay and the larger online shopping sites - such as Amazon - then RM would have gone under long ago.