We'd like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum... Read More »
Royal Mail Swap Out - Fraudulent stamps

bluebot
Posts: 3 Newbie


I purchased some sheets of stamps a few years ago before one of the price increases. I've used some of them but many have been sat in a drawer for around 3 years.
I dug them out and sent them back into Royal Mail as part of the swap out scheme in order to get the barcoded stamps in return, but to my surprise, I just received a letter saying that 89 of the 92 stamps I sent in were not genuine so have not been exchanged!
I had no idea at all that these stamps were fraudulent. I paid full price for them at the time and have been using them to send letters occasionally without any issues. But it seems like I have been the victim of a scam (assuming Royal Mail are correct in what they say - which I have no way to prove or disprove as they kept the stamps).
I looked back at my emails and found my order for these stamps which I purchased from Amazon. I have contatced Amazon but they said they can not do anything about it as it was longer than 2 years ago when I purchased, and Royal Mail aren't interested as they say they were not genuine so it's not their problem.
I assume there is nothing I can do here but it feels really frustrating to be in this situation where it looks like I was scammed by the seller on Amazon and now have lost all that money. Does anyone have any advice (other than don't by stamps from Amazon again!)
0
Comments
-
You probably won't get anywhere with RM as the T&C say they will keep (and presumably destroy) any stamps they decide are fakes.
Is the seller still active on Amazon? I'm assuming this was a third party on Amazon Marketplace rather than direct from Amazon. Check their feedback; are they still selling stamps at large discounts? If you challenge them, they will deny it and as you don't have the stamps as proof there's little you can do.
Try passing the seller details to Royal Mail https://www.royalmail.com/report-stamp-fraudI need to think of something new here...2 -
Nothing you can do to recover your money, but report the seller to RM.0
-
Are you sure they haven't caused issues when you've used them in the past? It would be the recipient, not the sender, who would need to deal with unpaid postage.
1 -
bluebot said:I purchased some sheets of stamps a few years ago before one of the price increases. I've used some of them but many have been sat in a drawer for around 3 years.I dug them out and sent them back into Royal Mail as part of the swap out scheme in order to get the barcoded stamps in return, but to my surprise, I just received a letter saying that 89 of the 92 stamps I sent in were not genuine so have not been exchanged!I had no idea at all that these stamps were fraudulent. I paid full price for them at the time and have been using them to send letters occasionally without any issues. But it seems like I have been the victim of a scam (assuming Royal Mail are correct in what they say - which I have no way to prove or disprove as they kept the stamps).I looked back at my emails and found my order for these stamps which I purchased from Amazon. I have contatced Amazon but they said they can not do anything about it as it was longer than 2 years ago when I purchased, and Royal Mail aren't interested as they say they were not genuine so it's not their problem.I assume there is nothing I can do here but it feels really frustrating to be in this situation where it looks like I was scammed by the seller on Amazon and now have lost all that money. Does anyone have any advice (other than don't by stamps from Amazon again!)
If they were bought from Amazon then it's quite feasible they were fake. You would have to find the seller and their details and send them a letter before action demanding the money back you paid for the 89 that have proven to be fake.Should've = Should HAVE (not 'of')
Would've = Would HAVE (not 'of')
No, I am not perfect, but yes I do judge people on their use of basic English language. If you didn't know the above, then learn it! (If English is your second language, then you are forgiven!)0 -
I was under the impression that (despite what Royal Mail say about enabling them to send videos etc) one of the main drivers behind the introduction of barcodes was precisely because there are so many counterfeits being sold on the likes of eBay and Amazon....
2 -
p00hsticks said:I was under the impression that (despite what Royal Mail say about enabling them to send videos etc) one of the main drivers behind the introduction of barcodes was precisely because there are so many counterfeits being sold on the likes of eBay and Amazon....I need to think of something new here...0
-
Thanks all.It looks like I will just have to give up on this. I tried contacting Amazon who have sent a request to the 3rd party sellers to respond to me but I'm not holding out much hope! I think the sellers are no longer active on amazon anyway.It was 89 stamps that I sent in rather than 89 sheets (ie 3 of the stamps I sent in were genuine - they were 2nd class stamps I had from a different source).I've checked with friends and family who I've sent things to in the past using these stamps and nobody has ever had an issue with underpaid postage.I understand the barcode stamps are supposed to make counterfeits harder. It's just a shame that the burden and loss sits on the shoulders of the consumers rather than the scam companies doing this. They will continue to make a profit so will continue to do this and consumers will be the ones out of pocket!1
-
bluebot said:I understand the barcode stamps are supposed to make counterfeits harder. It's just a shame that the burden and loss sits on the shoulders of the consumers rather than the scam companies doing this. They will continue to make a profit so will continue to do this and consumers will be the ones out of pocket!
Why would anyone be selling stamps on Amazon as a business when RM would not sell at a discount to them? So the only way to make profit on them would to be to sell them at a HIGHER price, thus not a viable business.
So any sheets of stamps being sold at under the face value from a business are likely to be fakes.
It's like when people make the assumption that a website ending in .co.uk must be a UK one, so buy stuff without even checking that the business has listed a genuine UK address and phone number, then seem surprised when some cheap tat from China turns up that they can't return...Should've = Should HAVE (not 'of')
Would've = Would HAVE (not 'of')
No, I am not perfect, but yes I do judge people on their use of basic English language. If you didn't know the above, then learn it! (If English is your second language, then you are forgiven!)10 -
bluebot said:Thanks all.It looks like I will just have to give up on this. I tried contacting Amazon who have sent a request to the 3rd party sellers to respond to me but I'm not holding out much hope! I think the sellers are no longer active on amazon anyway.It was 89 stamps that I sent in rather than 89 sheets (ie 3 of the stamps I sent in were genuine - they were 2nd class stamps I had from a different source).I've checked with friends and family who I've sent things to in the past using these stamps and nobody has ever had an issue with underpaid postage.I understand the barcode stamps are supposed to make counterfeits harder. It's just a shame that the burden and loss sits on the shoulders of the consumers rather than the scam companies doing this. They will continue to make a profit so will continue to do this and consumers will be the ones out of pocket!2
-
pinkshoes said:bluebot said:I understand the barcode stamps are supposed to make counterfeits harder. It's just a shame that the burden and loss sits on the shoulders of the consumers rather than the scam companies doing this. They will continue to make a profit so will continue to do this and consumers will be the ones out of pocket!3
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply

Categories
- All Categories
- 350.2K Banking & Borrowing
- 252.8K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 453.1K Spending & Discounts
- 243.1K Work, Benefits & Business
- 597.5K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 176.5K Life & Family
- 256.1K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.6K Read-Only Boards