New type postage stamps

[JourneymanParticipant @journeyman]

Posted by duncan webster on 08/12/2022 14:07:16:

Bought some online postage last night. It used to be very straightforward, but now it is impossible to avoid the option of having it collected. I walk past the postbox most days as I'm emptying the dog, so I don't find this at all helpful.

The Royal Mail online postage website gives you the option of collection or drop-off, ie put it in a post box as per the image below. Despite offering free collection in a yellow box which makes it look as though that is the only choice.

Just select 'Postbox, print at home'. Hope that helps for future use.

John

[peak4Participant @peak4]

Posted by Journeyman on 08/12/2022 15:53:24:

Posted by duncan webster on 08/12/2022 14:07:16:

Bought some online postage last night. It used to be very straightforward, but now it is impossible to avoid the option of having it collected. I walk past the postbox most days as I'm emptying the dog, so I don't find this at all helpful.

The Royal Mail online postage website gives you the option of collection or drop-off, ie put it in a post box as per the image below. Despite offering free collection in a yellow box which makes it look as though that is the only choice.

Just select 'Postbox, print at home'. Hope that helps for future use.

John

Unless it's changed recently, you need to deal with the collection aspect a screen or two later than that.
When I recently sent a small packet, I had to wait until I got to the payment basket.
Even though I was only sending one item, there were two lines in the basket; I would then been able to de-select the free item (the collection)

p.s. just been to the PO to buy some more stamps, and ask for a form/envelope to exchange my non-barcode 1st class stamps.
I was told there that the use-by date has now been extended from Jan to July, though I don't know if that's the 1st or 31st

Bill

Edited By peak4 on 08/12/2022 16:09:39

[Grindstone CowboyParticipant @grindstonecowboy]

July 31st according to the Mirror (won't bother with a link)

Rob

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

Posted by Journeyman on 08/12/2022 15:53:24:

Posted by duncan webster on 08/12/2022 14:07:16:

Bought some online postage last night. It used to be very straightforward, but now it is impossible to avoid the option of having it collected. I walk past the postbox most days as I'm emptying the dog, so I don't find this at all helpful.

The Royal Mail online postage website gives you the option of collection or drop-off, ie put it in a post box as per the image below. Despite offering free collection in a yellow box which makes it look as though that is the only choice.

Just select 'Postbox, print at home'. Hope that helps for future use.

John

I tried that, it didn't make any difference. Perhaps the target button is so small I didn't hit it

[JourneymanParticipant @journeyman]

Duncan, my error I should have said, as Peak4 pointed out, the actual decision is made right at the end a page or so further into the process. Not a particularly brilliant website I'm afraid.

John

[NealebParticipant @nealeb]

I printed a small batch of parcel labels last night (like to do a few at a time as "flip on short edge" double-sided printing means two labels per sheet of A4) and saw the same problem. Spent ages trying to resolve before finding, as mentioned, that the very last page shows "free collection" as a line item that can be deleted. Confusing way to do it, and each parcel generated another entry to delete.

Worth printing at home, though – appears to knock something like 50p off second-class parcel rate.

Edited By Nealeb on 09/12/2022 08:18:18

[Lee RogersParticipant @leerogers95060]

So the ritual that begins with sorting the brown envelopes from the others, bin unopened the ones from Virgin, Saga, Sky etc . Butter toast, look on the back for the return address, stir tea. Decipher handwriting, spoon out marmalade…………..study postmark ! Another small pleasure consigned to history. I'll just have to open them to find out who, where they came from.

[Speedy Builder5Participant @speedybuilder5]

Are these stamps when used collectable for charities / philatelists ?

[Graham MeekParticipant @grahammeek88282]

Posted by peak4 on 08/12/2022 16:07:17:

Posted by Journeyman on 08/12/2022 15:53:24:

Posted by duncan webster on 08/12/2022 14:07:16:

Bought some online postage last night. It used to be very straightforward, but now it is impossible to avoid the option of having it collected. I walk past the postbox most days as I'm emptying the dog, so I don't find this at all helpful.

The Royal Mail online postage website gives you the option of collection or drop-off, ie put it in a post box as per the image below. Despite offering free collection in a yellow box which makes it look as though that is the only choice.

Just select 'Postbox, print at home'. Hope that helps for future use.

John

Unless it's changed recently, you need to deal with the collection aspect a screen or two later than that.
When I recently sent a small packet, I had to wait until I got to the payment basket.
Even though I was only sending one item, there were two lines in the basket; I would then been able to de-select the free item (the collection)

p.s. just been to the PO to buy some more stamps, and ask for a form/envelope to exchange my non-barcode 1st class stamps.
I was told there that the use-by date has now been extended from Jan to July, though I don't know if that's the 1st or 31st

Bill

Edited By peak4 on 08/12/2022 16:09:39

Hi Bill,

If you want some free advice I would urge you to think again an on Exchanging your stamps. See also my post in the the "Banks" thread also on this site.

Regards

Gray,

[Lee RogersParticipant @leerogers95060]

Posted by Speedy Builder5 on 09/12/2022 11:00:04:

Are these stamps when used collectable for charities / philatelists ?

We sold a huge stamp collection at auction a few years ago , divided into several lots the bulk of it was sold at face value , a ten year old 1st class stamp was still a first class stamp whatever it's original price. I wonder if the barcode now retains face value? IE. you will have to pay more if the price has gone up .

[Clive HartlandParticipant @clivehartland94829]

I gave up collecting Great Britain stamps when the self adhesive stamps came in.

Sad, i know but sometime down the line a family member will be glad.

I often wonder if foreign countries use self adhesive stamps? Clive

[Frances IoMParticipant @francesiom58905]

The IoM sells booklets of self adhesive stamps – if you take a letter or parcel to a Post Office they will normally place what appears to be a bar coded stamp but in past when I ask for a selection of the IoM colourful commemorative issues (at one time a good revenue stream) on the envelope knowing the recipient was a family historian buying my cd it was allowed.

[Anonymous]

Posted by Clive Hartland on 09/12/2022 14:28:30:

I often wonder if foreign countries use self adhesive stamps? Clive

 

Canada does. Canada also uses generic stamps for postage within the country …. that is, they have no value printed on them and are valid indefinitely. (The purchase-cost changes from time to time).

(Seems to me that if Canada adopts a bar-coded system there might be a clash with that "valid indefinitely"  ).

Edited By Peter Greene 🇨🇦 on 09/12/2022 17:02:50

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

I thought I'd seen it on the news that I could swap stamps at the local post office, but no, I have to send them off. With their past record of dishonestly prosecuting innocent post masters am I being overly pessimistic for not expecting to see replacements? If they 'dissappear' in the system I will have no proof that they ever existed. Best I can do is photograph them as above, but what a crazy system.

[Ian ParkinParticipant @ianparkin39383]

Duncan

my wife and i gathered together our old stamps that needed changing and to our shock we had over £300 worth so we had to use special delivery which was £8 or so

They were sent off to Edinburgh and after about 3 weeks new ones were sent from Tyne and Wear..with additional stamps to cover the special delivery cost

Ian

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

Can you still pay for things with stamps?

regards Martin

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

Actually I think the rot set in when they deregulated the postal service and the business model has got worse ever since. Makes no sense not to have a single monopoly running the post.

[egaParticipant @ega]

Further to my post on 8 December, I have today received my swapped-out replacement stamps. The delay seems acceptable in the present circumstances and I would encourage others to use the service.

These rather large new stamps can clearly not be sold in the old-style little booklets and are going to consume much more paper and ink than before. Incidentally, I note that the purple ones are "plum purple" and the green "holly green" which seems nicely seasonal!

I shan't hold my breath for the tracking feature which ought to come with the, presumably, unique code.

[Author]

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