Royal Mail to hike price of first-class stamps from next month

The Royal Mail has announced its plans to increase the price of first-class stamps by to almost £1.

Meanwhile, second class stamps will increase by 2p to 68p with the new prices coming into effect on April 4.

Royal Mail has justified the price increase – of 10p to 95p -by saying there has been a long-term decline in people using letters alongside rising inflation, Wales Online reports.

Read more: Stamps go digital with scannable barcodes to send videos and personal messages

Letter volumes have fallen by more than 60 per cent since their peak in 2004/2005 and by around 20 per cent since the start of the pandemic alone.

Nick Landon, chief commercial officer at Royal Mail said: “We understand that many companies and households are finding it hard in the current economic environment, and we will always keep our prices as affordable as possible.

“Whilst the number of letters our postmen and women deliver has declined from around 20 billion a year to around seven billion since 2004/5, the number of addresses they have to deliver to has grown by around 3.5 million in the same period.

“We need to carefully balance our pricing against declining letter volumes and increasing costs of delivering to a growing number of addresses six days a week.

“As customer needs change and we see a greater shift from letters to parcels, it is vital that the universal service adapts to stay relevant and sustainable.

“These price changes are necessary to ensure we can continue to maintain and invest in the one-price-goes-anywhere universal service for future generations.”

It comes amid a rising cost of living crisis throughout the UK with the price of petrol also soaring to record highs and households seeing surges in gas and electricity bills.

Read more about the cost of living crisis here: Council tax rise approved at rowdy town hall meeting where councillors shouted and traded nicknames

Read more about surging petrol prices here: Average petrol price hits new record high of more than £1.51 per litrefuel

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