Using Old(but still unused) 1st Class Stamps

Fraserwalker1 · 10 January 2012 at 6:55PM

Hi,
I sell lots of games and dvds on Ebay and they are 92p to post so I normally just stick 2 1st class stamps on to cover the postage. I recently got given sets of 1st class stamps from 2001 from a friend and was wondering if I can still these use to post and if so, are they now worth 46p seeing as they wouldn't have been at the time?
Thanks

juno · 10 January 2012 at 7:01PM

As long as they just say "1st" on them they're valid for the current first class rate.

If they say a value they are valid for that value.

Fraserwalker1 · 10 January 2012 at 7:12PM

Yeah, they just say 1st on them.

Comyface · 10 January 2012 at 9:05PM

I remember seeing Martin on the telly one time, just before stamp prices went up, telling us to get any stamps we may need 'cos they'd still be '1st class' even though you'd paid less for them.

wileycat · 10 January 2012 at 10:47PM

The only thing to be wary of is using 2nd class stamps to make up 1st class prices.

Stamps use phosper bars that are different for 1st and 2nd class.

sharpy2010 · 11 January 2012 at 3:18AM

Whats a phosper bar?

trukdiver · 11 January 2012 at 8:22AM

sharpy2010 wrote: »

Whats a phosper bar?

It's a transparent strip printed on the stamp. It reflects light so that a machine can identify the type of stamp.

sharpy2010 · 11 January 2012 at 1:18PM

Ah I've got a feeling its those two bars you can see when you hold the stamp in a certain direction towards the light. I did wonder what those were for!

wileycat · 11 January 2012 at 1:19PM

Thats the ones.

macfly · 11 January 2012 at 1:58PM

I wouldn't be wary of that at all. It's not how the sorting system works. Mail is given the service appropriate to the price.

spadoosh · 11 January 2012 at 2:02PM

Ya know how stamps are legal tender.... did i massively miss a trick by not buying £1000's of stamps a few days before they went up and then after depositing them into my bank?!!