Royal Mail is one of this country’s most iconic brands, indelibly woven into the fabric of our society.
It spans almost 500 years and its history has a rather pleasing symmetry: it first served the public under the reign of King Charles I in 1635 and continues today under the reign of Charles III.
Although Royal Mail is no longer state-owned and the faceless digital world relentlessly undermines its relevance, each year its army of couriers clad in their striking red outfits deliver more than seven billion letters across the country. There are many letters.
Many people, especially seniors, still rely on it to pay utility bills or deposit checks into mail-operated savings accounts.
Submissions that friendly couriers leave through our mailboxes may not always be welcomed.
More than 7 billion letters are still delivered across the country each year by Royal Mail’s army of couriers decked out in their striking red outfits.
But the thrill of receiving a physical birthday card or handwritten note from a friend is something to behold (sending letters also brings joy, as I can confirm).
But let’s not go overboard with the spoonfuls of saccharin. Royal Mail, owned by International Distributions Services (a company listed on the UK stock exchange), is far from perfect.
In some ways, it’s a corporate wolf in sheep’s clothing. Like many private companies and public organizations, its executives live in their own cozy little world. They have lost contact with their clients.
The company’s relationship with its heavily unionized workforce is feisty (and that’s being polite), while its request to simplify the universal postal service obligation under which it works (it wants to deliver second-class mail just three days a week ) has been received as a leadership balloon with both the public and politicians.
But the problem that could become your Achilles heel is fake seals. His attempt to deal with a locust-like swarm of fake stamps plaguing our postal service (most, supposedly, from China) is clumsy at best. At worst, it is immoral.
Instead of devoting all its energy to ensuring these fakes don’t enter this country (and cracking down on retailers who buy them), Royal Mail has adopted an approach that is as baffling as it is outrageously unfair.
Interestingly, it has decided to let criminals follow their fraudulent paths. Instead, he has chosen to target recipients of mail sent with fake stamps, imposing £5 fines on them if they wish to receive his letters.
In other words, he is going after the innocent in this multi-billion dollar business in what appears to be a cynical attempt to recoup the huge losses he suffers from counterfeit stamps. (For those who can’t keep up with the rising cost of stamps, a first class stamp for a standard letter now costs £1.35).
You couldn’t make up for it. Not even the laughable tribe who recently appeared before Lord Sugar in the television series The Apprentice would dream of such a crazy solution to a business problem. This despicable attack on the innocent should stop NOW.
Since the beginning of the year, Money Mail has received a stream of correspondence from readers who have been fined for receiving a letter sent with a false stamp.
This has become a torrent as the magnitude of the problem has emerged and more people have come out of the woodwork to admit that they have also been fined.
Counterfeits: Counterfeit stamps have always been a problem. However, it was not until the introduction of barcode stamps in early 2022 that Royal Mail revealed the true extent of the problem.
Counterfeit stamps have always been a problem for Royal Mail. However, it was not until the introduction of barcode stamps in early 2022 that Royal Mail began to get an idea of the true magnitude of the problem.
The barcode is located next to the seal, separated by a simulated perforation. Royal Mail says the code links physical letters to the digital world, allowing the recipient to scan them (in time) to access messages such as a birthday greeting from the sender.
However, its real purpose appears to be to identify fraud. While it is relatively easy for fraudsters to produce stamps with counterfeit barcodes, it is now much harder for fake stamps to escape detection, thanks to Royal Mail’s revenue protection team and its army of fraud detection machines that scan barcodes to see if they are legitimate.
The result is that counterfeit stamps are STILL flooding the market, and are typically sold online or through websites like eBay.
They find their way to High Street retailers and even Post Office counters. Since 1989, retailers can legally purchase stamps from whomever they choose. Many who buy fakes may not realize that they are counterfeits and think they have found a great price online.
Others may be aware that the deal seems iffy, but are willing to take the risk because they can make huge profits since customers can’t tell the difference at the checkout. The difference now is that, thanks to barcodes, Royal Mail can suddenly make huge profits from this deluge of counterfeits.
It simply detects stamps as they pass through the postal system and issues a £5 fine to anyone who sends a forged letter – something that was extremely difficult before barcodes were introduced.
Royal Mail’s call to simplify the universal postal service obligation it operates under has gone down like a lead balloon with both the public and politicians.
Challenging the fine is a waste of time. Royal Mail’s response to complaining customers is ridiculous. While it accepts that they are not responsible for the stamps used, it says that Royal Mail must be paid for the postal service used, making the surcharge “non-refundable”.
Royal Mail is then asking those fined to help it reduce stamp fraud by reporting it confidentially.
Even when complainants return to Royal Mail and say that the sender of the offending letter bought the stamps at a local post office, the company is not interested. The fine still stands.
There is also growing evidence that some customers are being fined because the machines it uses to detect fraudulent stamps mistakenly identify genuine stamps as fake.
In recent weeks, following Money Mail’s investigative work, MPs from all major political parties have called on Royal Mail to suspend fines.
For example, Sarah Olney, Liberal Democrat MP for Richmond Park in Greater London, says it is “ridiculous” for Royal Mail to “penalize innocent people”. Absolutely.
For the moment, Royal Mail is content to continue fining innocent people.
Yesterday, he told Money Mail: “The combination of new barcode stamps with additional security features, the surcharge and Royal Mail’s active work with law enforcement authorities, has led to a 90 reduction percent on counterfeit stamps in our network.
The statement is a tacit acknowledgment that it is using fines to try to stop illegal trade.
Money Mail believes the £5 fine should be removed, not suspended. It is incorrect.
Furthermore, Royal Mail should be required to return the money it has stolen from the innocent victims of this counterfeiting scandal and apologize.
Unfortunately, for this change of direction to occur, we need the Government to step forward. Although Ofcom regulates the postal service, it said yesterday that “matters relating to the authenticity of stamps are not within the scope of Ofcom’s regulation, which is set out in Parliamentary legislation.”
Well, they should be.
Fines imposed by Royal Mail on innocent people amount to corporate theft. Dick Turpin plc. He should no longer be allowed to get away with this.
I imagine you agree.
jeff.prestridge@dailymail.co.uk
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