Royal Mail Complexities and in plain sight hidden price hikes.

Jogon_2

I don’t understand how the Royal Mail justify:

I sent a small parcel via their tracked 48 (when it should be tracked 48/96 as it never seems to get there in 48hrs) but i digress.

1: So online purchase price options are many, Parcel Collect where I can arrange a time slot for them to call and pick up my parcel and for them to bring the relevant label i’ve paid for…no extra cost for this service

2: or take to a delivery office (our local one opens two hours a day for most of the week and there are at least 4 post offices closer) me to provide the label or I can take a qr code for them to print out and apply…again at no cost me other than the initial online charge

3: Parcel Shop -Collect+, me to print the label or when it’s collected from me i prove the QR code for them to print the label…this costs me an extra 20p

4: and the one i chose Parcel Shop or Post Office, again print at home (which i did) and then take to the post office…which I did and for then when it’s scanned in (I didnt ask for this when handing it over) the account i used when purchasing the initial postage online is debited with a further 20p??

So not only do the post office have two price hikes a year, now they charge for taking items to their post offices?   How is my buying the label online, applying the label and then taking it to the local post office more expensive than them having to collect from my property, them printing out a label when they get here and then take it back to the local delivery office?

Money_Grabber13579

Royal Mail seem to be trying to encourage users to bypass the post office and transact directly with themselves. Which makes sense because Royal Mail will have to pay the post office for them to provide their services so they can eliminate that cost by collecting directly from customers.

The online prices are also cheaper than if you bought directly in a post office, so the extra 20p is effectively putting you in the position you would have been in, had you bought the postage at the post office.

Spoonie_Turtle

You seem to be under the impression that Royal Mail and the Post Office are the same company - they are not. 
This is likely also why Collect+ has a fee, because that too is a separate company.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Jogon_2 said:

So not only do the post office have two price hikes a year now they charge for taking items to their post offices?

To be fair Royal Mail cut the price of Tracked when they introduced the fee for taking to the Post Office so you are paying the going rate and those who use the collection/DO drop off are benefiting from the service being cheaper  

Rantband

If you use the Royal Mail Click & Drop site - https://send.royalmail.com/send/youritem? it tells you that using Collect+ or Post Office will cost 20p.
Where are the hidden price hikes ?

soolin

Rantband said:

If you use the Royal Mail Click & Drop site - https://send.royalmail.com/send/youritem? it tells you that using Collect+ or Post Office will cost 20p.
Where are the hidden price hikes ?

If you buy RM24 or RM48 via ebay then there isn't even a charge for dropping off at the Post Office.

Spoonie_Turtle

Rantband said:

If you use the Royal Mail Click & Drop site - https://send.royalmail.com/send/youritem? it tells you that using Collect+ or Post Office will cost 20p.
Where are the hidden price hikes ?

"In plain sight", according to the thread title