Royal Mail online postage vent

Abbafan1972

Hi there,

I have been using this service for quite a long time, more recently have been using the labels which print 4 per page.

As of today, you can't use these for letter size now. I have gone to do a label for a birthday card and it won't let me print on labels (4 per sheet) or paper 4 per sheet. They've changed the size of the labels apparently.

I am not happy about this at all. The labels I got were quite expensive. I used the online service as a stop gap when I need to post a letter as you can guarantee most of the shops round here won't have any stamps, even my local Asda rarely have them now and I don't always get the time to go to the post office.

:mad:

daytona0

Forgive me, I don't know a thing about Royal Mail other than buying a stamp and putting it into the letterbox!

1. Can you not make these labels yourself instead of paying Royal Mail?

2. You say "expensive", but how much are we talking? And by what factor has it been reduced (ie can you only print off 2 at a time now, or just 1)?

zax47

If you read the info email they sent you then it does say that the new version of 4 per page label size will be a couple of days and that at the moment just 2 per page (so bigger) is available.

Options? 1) go to Post Office instead or 2) be patient? { Or 3) 1st World problem, there are people dying elsewhere...}

stevemLS

Buy a book of stamps?

DCFC79

stevemLS wrote: »

Buy a book of stamps?

Which can be found in many shops eg the supermarkets, the convenience stores or the corner shops will sell them.

Hermione_Granger

zax47 wrote: »

Options? 1) go to Post Office instead or 2) be patient? { Or 3) 1st World problem, there are people dying elsewhere...}

Now how did I guess that the person who referred to this as a "1st world problem" would also have posted something that could also be called exactly the same?

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5119937

Since the Danish Kitchen shut we've tried a few other cafes in York, just for a cuppa and a toasted t-cake, but they are either expensive, cramped, unwelcoming or all 3!

A cafe closing down is hardly the end of the world yet you felt it important enough to post about.

zax47

Hermione_Granger wrote: »

Now how did I guess that the person who referred to this as a "1st world problem" would also have posted something that could also be called exactly the same?

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5119937


A cafe closing down is hardly the end of the world yet you felt it important enough to post about.

Hardly the same thing. I was asking for recommendations, whereas the OP was just whining. Pram, toys, etc..... :T

BTW: Are you a novice stalker or a full-blown bunny boiler?

Hermione_Granger

zax47 wrote: »

Hardly the same thing. I was asking for recommendations, whereas the OP was just whining. Pram, toys, etc..... :T

BTW: Are you a novice stalker or a full-blown bunny boiler?

"the OP was just whining" in the Praise, vent & warnings forum, (and they even titled their post as a vent) and no, you weren't just asking for recommendations. You were also whining.

but they are either expensive, cramped, unwelcoming or all 3!

zax47

No, the OP was needlessly whining! RM sent an email to all it's online customers this week;

Dear Customer,
We’ve been testing changes to our online postage label designs and are launching these immediately - Wednesday 26 August. We realise this email provides little pre-notification but it was important we first get the changes thoroughly tested and that we then made them available to you as soon as possible. Sorry if this immediate change causes you any inconvenience but please read on for the information you need.
There’s no change to the size of our new labels – it’s just the design that’s different. Most importantly, we’ve introduced a new barcode to the design. At Royal Mail, we’re updating all our external shipping labels to show a new data rich 2D barcode. These changes standardise our labels across all our channels and allow us to develop capabilities for the future. From 26 August, our new barcoded label designs are available through OLP, replacing the designs you’re more familiar with.
So what does this mean for you?
Online Postage changes
You’ll still have all the same sizes for labels, paper and envelopes available to you. And here are the printing formats best for:
LETTERS
Envelope Format

• DL size (prints out Landscape)
• C5 size (prints out Landscape)
• C6 size (prints out Landscape)

Paper Format

• 2 per page (prints out Landscape)

Label Format

• 2 per page (prints out Landscape)

We’re still working on making the 4 per page paper/ labels for LETTERS available, so please print 2 per page while we get this sorted for you.
LARGE LETTERS, SMALL PARCELS and MEDIUM PARCELS
Paper Format

• 2 per page (prints out Landscape)
• 4 per page (prints out Portrait)

Label Format

• 2 per page (prints out Landscape)
• 4 per page (prints out Portrait)

There’s a further improvement when using Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed®, Royal Mail Signed For® and International Tracked & Signed or International Signed, the tracking number will now be on the label/envelope. You should still drop your items off at a Post Office® branch in order for them to be scanned in and start the tracking process, and if you require a Certificate of Posting.
From 26 August, all new labels will automatically be changed over for you to print directly from Royal Mail Online Postage.
Kind regards,

Online Postage Team
Not my fault if they're hard of thinking..... :eek:

BTW: You didn't answer my question, so I'm guessing full blown bunny-boiler.....

jnmccrt

It doesn't say in that letter that the 4-per-page labels will be available for letter size in a couple of days, but when they get this "sorted".

I'm with the OP on this. These labels, which are one of the only two sizes Royal Mail let you use for online postage, are expensive to buy unless you get them in bulk. I use them a lot for sending out online orders and I would spend hours in post office queues, delaying everyone else, if I didn't buy my postage online. Worse, I've been overcharged by post office staff who don't look up the prices as carefully as I do.

The Royal Mail online postage website is barely fit for purpose, to be honest. I've just bought postage for the USA and it has come out as "Usa" on the label. A small thing, but, like getting things "sorted" and not being able to choose smaller label sizes, representative of the overall quality of the site.

custardy

jnmccrt wrote: »

It doesn't say in that letter that the 4-per-page labels will be available for letter size in a couple of days, but when they get this "sorted".

I'm with the OP on this. These labels, which are one of the only two sizes Royal Mail let you use for online postage, are expensive to buy unless you get them in bulk. I use them a lot for sending out online orders and I would spend hours in post office queues, delaying everyone else, if I didn't buy my postage online. Worse, I've been overcharged by post office staff who don't look up the prices as carefully as I do.

The Royal Mail online postage website is barely fit for purpose, to be honest. I've just bought postage for the USA and it has come out as "Usa" on the label. A small thing, but, like getting things "sorted" and not being able to choose smaller label sizes, representative of the overall quality of the site.

Its a fair point. However RMs push to improve parcel sorting/mech is dealing with some old tech.
The push to add 2D barcodes and utilise the data are probably pertinent as to why they want standardised label sizes.