Royal Mail faces the prospect of another substantial penalty for failing to meet its letter delivery targets once again. The company disclosed that 75.7% of first-class mail was delivered within the next working day, with 96.4% reaching recipients within three days. For second-class mail, the delivery rates were 90.2% within three working days and 98.2% within five days, missing both the existing and newly established lower thresholds.
This performance shortfall results in a significant number of undelivered items, exacerbated by a spike in stamp prices. First-class stamps saw a 10p increase to £1.80, up from 64p in 2016, marking a 181% rise over a decade. Second-class stamp prices also rose by 4p to 91p.
Royal Mail potentially faces another fine from regulator Ofcom, following a £21 million penalty imposed for missing targets in the previous financial year. The company attributed the challenges to a difficult start to the year but expressed optimism about ongoing improvements. By March, Royal Mail reported that 81.1% of first-class mail was delivered within one working day, with 90.2% of second-class mail reaching recipients within three days.
Citizens Advice’s Director of Policy, Tom MacInnes, criticized Royal Mail for consistently failing to meet delivery targets and urged swift improvements to the service. The organization called for real accountability rather than mere compliance with standards.
During a parliamentary hearing, Royal Mail’s owner, Daniel Kretinsky, apologized for delivery issues but denied any worsening trends. The company’s Chief Operating Officer, Jamie Stephenson, highlighted substantial investments aimed at enhancing reliability and achieving new delivery targets.
Amanda Fergusson, CEO of the Greeting Card Association, emphasized the importance of Royal Mail’s improvement plan delivering significant progress to enhance service reliability and affordability for customers.