MSE News: MPs back stamp price rises

JimmyTheWig

custardy wrote: »

well you should have raised that 10 years ago

I think I did!

are you saying RM has no competitors?

No real competitors, as far as I am concerned.

custardy

JimmyTheWig wrote: »

I think I did!


No real competitors, as far as I am concerned.

well thats not an answer,is it?
all you ever see on these threads is people whining about price rises,then followed up by well I only send a few items anyway.
RMs money earning contracts are in a competitive market
one where they have limitiation on what they can do and price.
people malign RM for being a dinosaur,then constantly harp on about how things used to be

PAT52_2

custardy wrote: »

when did that change?

I don't know - I just know that, as advised by my local Post Office, next day delivery is no longer guaranteed. "So, it's no longer possible to send a birthday card the previous day to make sure it arrives exactly on time?", I asked. "Not unless you pay for Special Delivery" was the reply. I knew the answer anyway....for some time now, my experience using the 1st Class service is that - although occasionally it arrives the next day - it generally takes 2 days. Not guaranteed, then.

custardy

PAT52 wrote: »

I don't know - I just know that, as advised by my local Post Office, next day delivery is no longer guaranteed. "So, it's no longer possible to send a birthday card the previous day to make sure it arrives exactly on time?", I asked. "Not unless you pay for Special Delivery" was the reply. I knew the answer anyway....for some time now, my experience using the 1st Class service is that - although occasionally it arrives the next day - it generally takes 2 days. Not guaranteed, then.

when was 1st class guaranteed,ever?
you were never "making sure" it arrived next day
you are the same as so many
you want a cheap service but expect next delivery for 25p
last figures I saw were over 60,000 less staff in letters
be a lot higher now
do you think that has no effect?

JimmyTheWig

What custardy is saying, pat52, is that first class has never (certainly in the last 30 years) guaranteed next day delivery. Special delivery has always been the only way to guarantee that.

hermante

I see a business opportunity here. It costs 25p to send a letter from Hong Kong to anywhere in the UK (delivered by Royal Mail1 no less), so if you upload your letter onto my website, I will get my friend to print it off and send it for you.

Maybe we should have local and non-local stamps.

Arg

TINT wrote: »

Royal Mail is still one of the cheapest in Europe,although we have the highest fuel prices,it must cost them a fortune to deliver to every address , and a stamp is still cheaper than a chocolate bar, very good service and good value.

Only if it reaches it's destination in a timely manner instead of being posted through the wrong persons letter box or down the back of a postmans sofa.

KxMx

Custardy, you are always rubbishing any suggestions posters on here make with ways to improve the service etc.

So what would you do to make Royal Mail affordable, efficient and competitive?

custardy

KxMx wrote: »

Custardy, you are always rubbishing any suggestions posters on here make with ways to improve the service etc.

So what would you do to make Royal Mail affordable, efficient and competitive?

dont see any ideas here?
all i see is it should be better and cheaper.
I have posted many times on the subject.
feel free to go looking.
go and look at exactly what RM does, before using phrases like competitive.
down stream access
USO
all things to look at

alexanderalexander

PAT52 wrote: »

I knew the answer anyway....for some time now, my experience using the 1st Class service is that - although occasionally it arrives the next day - it generally takes 2 days. Not guaranteed, then.

(i) First class has never been time-guaranteed;
(ii) what you say above is simply incorrect - the substantial majority of first class post does arrive the next day (92.3% according to the latest statistics - see here: http://www.royalmailgroup.com/news/2012/royal-mail-quality-service)

The letters business is clearly in decline due to the internet (banks going 'paperless' with statements etc) but it's a double-edged sword in that parcels (which attract a much higher per-item cost) are far more numerous. I'd suggest that the Royal Mail needs to reposition itself get a far greater hold of the parcels business.

Also, although current mail volumes are below the all-time peak (which I think occurred around 2005) they are still higher than in the 70s and 80s -- and back then stamps were cheap and the Royal Mail was making a profit. Can anyone explain that? I have a sneaking suspicion that the Royal Mail has been badly mistreated by successive governments....