Royal Mail disruption today as UK delivery delays hit 62 postcodes

In the face of impending stamp price hikes next month, the firm has come under fire for falling short of delivery targets. Royal Mail has stated it is endeavouring to “minimise” customer disruption. However, it acknowledges that several delivery offices throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are contending with “high levels of sick absence, resourcing, or other local factors”.

As of Monday, March 23, 25 delivery offices are encountering delays. Royal Mail stated: “We aim to deliver to all addresses we have mail for, six days a week. In a small number of local offices, this may temporarily not be possible due to local issues such as high levels of sick absence, resourcing, or other local factors.

“In those cases, we will rotate deliveries to minimise the delay to individual customers. We also provide targeted support to those offices to address their challenges and restore our service to the high standard our customers would normally receive.”

It added: “We’re sorry for any inconvenience and thank you for your understanding.”

These delays coincide with an upcoming increase in stamp prices in April. From April 6 the cost of First Class stamps will rise to £1.80 and Second Class stamps to 91p. In 2020, a First Class stamp was priced at 76p.

From next month, customers will face an additional 10p charge, representing a 137% increase over the past six years. Citizens Advice has revealed that since 2020, First Class stamp prices have climbed eight times.

Richard Travers, managing director of letters at Royal Mail, said: “We always consider price changes very carefully, balancing affordability with the rising cost of delivering mail.

“On average, UK adults now spend just £6.50 each year on stamps and there are 70% fewer letters sent than 20 years ago. In the meantime, the number of addresses we deliver to has increased by four million to 32 million addresses across the UK.”

Only 77% of first class post and 92.5% of second class arrived punctually in its 2024-25 financial year – falling short of its respective 93% and 98.5% benchmarks.