Fraudulent Royal Mail stamps

dmendis13

I bought an item off ebay which took a long winded course to get to me 6 months. Another was sent around the time i ordered in Nov 2023, because it seemed to be lost (a fixing for my daughters trampette). I got a card through from the Royal Mail in May to say the sender hasnt paid the correct postage. I paid the £5 then got it realising it was due to a fraudulent stamp for an item that cost less than £5 so was quite irritated. As a duplicate had been sent in November. The ebay seller has ignored my message, but i have escalated to the Royal Mail who have basically said tough. There is an article on  this website dated 30.4.24, which says they are waiving the £5 penalisation on customers.  This hasnt happened in my case i just wanted to know if anyone has had a similar experience. I am irritated the Royal Mail are not doing what they have publicised they will be doing. It isnt the customer's fault and i had no control over this. Had i known what the item was i wouldn't have paid to have it delivered.

Okell

dmendis13 said:

... There is an article on  this website dated 30.4.24, which says they are waiving the £5 penalisation on customers...

Do you mean on this website?  Where?  (If you can't post links cos you're a newbie just give a description as to where it is).

I suspect your issue really lies with the seller...

[Edit:  Do you mean this?  Royal Mail waives £5 penalty fee in fake stamps crackdown (moneysavingexpert.com)

I suggest you make a formal complaint to RM but bear in mind that article aslo says: 

"Royal Mail is introducing a host of new measures to try and prevent people from being caught out, including: 

• Temporarily pausing the £5 penalty fee for anyone receiving a letter with a fake stamp on it. Instead, the letter you receive will have a sticker on it telling you a fake stamp has been used – though Royal Mail won't issue backdated refunds to people who wrongly believe they've already been charged..." ]

born_again

So to be clear seller sent a 2nd item FOC to replace the "lost" one? Which has now turned up, all be it costing you £5.