New Barcoded Stamps.

Callistemon21 ??

Missed this before - just caught up with this thread ?

I sent off my stamps nearly 3 weeks ago, it said 7 working days was the hopeful turnaround.

Am starting to feel a bit concerned that they have been ‘lost’ somewhere along the line. I have a proof of posting, and took a photo of my form and the stamps, but reading through the T&C’s, doesn’t look promising if they go astray.

Someone on GN posted that they had sent theirs off successfully, and this encouraged me to do it.

I’m sure it’s a ploy to stop people stocking up and avoiding price rises. If the new stamps have an expiry date how will we know when it is? If it’s on a QR code a lot of people won’t be able to scan it.

Germanshepherdsmum

Couldn’t get Christmas stamps last year. Only ordinary ones. Much as I like Shaun the Sheep, something tells me that stamps are going to get even more expensive. And will the code have a shelf life so we can’t stock up to avoid price rises? Cynical, moi?

That was my first thought! I bought 100 stamps sometime ago before a large price increase and still have loads left. As the new stamps will now have a “shelf life” I won’t be able to do that.

I’m quite cross actually as I won’t use my current stash for a few years so I’ll end up trying to swap them. But then I’ll end up with them all expiring at the same time, probably before I’ve needed to use them!

I probably only use 15 or so a year as I don’t post many Christmas cards any more and only a couple of birthday cards.i thought I was being thrifty by buying a stock but I’ve been caught out this time!

I still have some old unmarked stamps I steamed off envelopes. I don't suppose they will refund them, they must be years old! And they look like they've been steamed off. For some reason I collected them but never used them, although I probably could have done. You just stick them on with some glue.

Suspect each time there's a price hike any old stock will be unusable whereas currently we can advance stockpile.

??

You could write AreWeThereYet on the envelopes, SueDonim

Sorry, AreWeThereYet, couldn't resist ?

Maybe I’ll buy some Xmas cards that are still in the sales, write them and post them now, Arewethereyet. That way, they should arrive by Dec 2022.

Why? Is it not more expensive to produce these? Would have thought since less people use the post they would be looking to use cheaper types of manufacture.

SueDonim Ha ha there's always one ?? Send your cards two days earlier and use them up ? Mr A just found a book of stamps for large cards while we were talking about this but they'll go at Christmas if not for birthdays.

I doubt many people will still have hoards of stamps in 14 months time.

I do! For some reason I bought two sheets of stamps several years ago. I can’t recall why, maybe there was a big price hike or something. They’re 2nd Class stamps but nowadays I almost always use 1st Class because it seems more reliable and the sheet of 2nd class sits there glaring at me.

I heard somewhere that the reason for the codes is that RM have had a lot of trouble with counterfeit stamps recently and the idea is that fraudsters won't be able to reproduce a stamp with a barcode which has a doppelganger in the RM database. Being a cynic, I thought that, maybe if stamps didn't cost so much, nobody would bother counterfeiting them ??

On the plus side, I recently came across a book of first class stamps wedged in the back of a drawer that had clearly been there for some years. They were those weird gold coloured ones that, I think, marked some anniversary or notable event. The self adhesive glue has solidified and the stamps are welded to their booklet and therefore unusable so I was wondering what to do with them. Now I can simply fill in the form and despatch them for a refund. Result!

So how likely is it that a lot of people will forget, or not bother, to use/swap their stamps?

Well I only have a dozen so will be buying new in a few months anyway after posting birthday cards and things. I doubt many people will still have hoards of stamps in 14 months time. I might have the odd one that I won't find for about three years because in a Safe Place.

So how likely is it that a lot of people will forget, or not bother, to use/swap their stamps?
Meaning a nice little boost to PO finances when they have to buy new ones.

Coastpath

I bet your DD was so pleased to get your card with or without pretty stamps Callistemon21*

At least it got there in the end. Last November I posted a Christmas parcel to my cousins in Tasmania - it arrived back on my doorstep undelivered and with no comment at all in February!

Australia Post is very spasmodic, Coastpath.
Pre-Covid it was quicker to deliver by hand.

Couldn’t get Christmas stamps last year. Only ordinary ones. Much as I like Shaun the Sheep, something tells me that stamps are going to get even more expensive. And will the code have a shelf life so we can’t stock up to avoid price rises? Cynical, moi?

I bet your DD was so pleased to get your card with or without pretty stamps Callistemon21*

At least it got there in the end. Last November I posted a Christmas parcel to my cousins in Tasmania - it arrived back on my doorstep undelivered and with no comment at all in February!

I wonder if they'll get to Australia any quicker?
DD got our Christmas card last week and I posted it in November.

Come to think of it, there were no pretty stamps on it, just a horrible label.

The Christmas stamps were very dull this year, Coastpath, they used to be lovely little works of art.

I wonder if they played Away in a Manger or Hark the Herald Angels Sing?

I never even thought about it.

I miss the days of nice big old stamps with lovely pictures on that made your Christmas cards look so festive. I had the barcode ones at Christmas - a tiny Christmassy picture and a whole lotta barcode. Not at all attractive.

??Jax*

I think the barcodes will eventually allow better tracking of post, hopefully by the sender.
I will download the app and I love Shaun the Sheep, might send myself a letter ?

And who on earth even wants to see them

Nor me either. But I would take a bet that lots of people will jump on any old band wagon.

Then again, if you were able to put a personal video on of you wishing your GC a 'Happy Birthday' when you send their birthday card maybe that would tempt some?

I can just about see the value of being able to send the grandsons a holiday postcard with a stamp on that plays them a video of Shaun the Sheep. If I can find postcards to send, that is. When I eventually found some in a dusty corner of a gift shop on our last UK short break they were faded relics from the 1950s (a bit like us, really).

The last letters I sent were to HMRC and the Pension Service. I doubt they'll be impressed by Shaun and his antics.