Royal Mail apologises after wrongly claiming real stamps were fake
ROYAL Mail admitted yesterday it incorrectly branded a genuine firstclass stamp as counterfeit.
The postal service said earlier this week it was investigating a problem with barcoded stamps after claims that people had been wrongly fined to collect post with stamps that had been deemed fake.
Postmasters have said the allegedly counterfeit stamps were bought from Royal Mail directly, prompting fears that they are mistakenly being identified as fake.
After investigating the case of Catherine Prest, 68, the company confirmed hers was in fact genuine.
She complained to Royal Mail after her son was told he had to pay £5 to retrieve a letter she had sent because the stamp was counterfeit.
‘Failed’
Ms Prest bought a book of firstclass stamps fromWHSmith in Guildford in December and used three to send three cards the following month, including the one to her son. He never received the item and was instead fined to pick it up.
She told GB News: “It wasn’t nice. We’re not a family that does that – we don’t do fraudulent things.
“Then it became a mission for me to sort it out. I felt this was not right.”
Ms Prest contacted the retailer, which explained that the stamps were bought from Royal Mail, so she used the “report fake stamps” section of postal service’s website but did not hear anything further.
Unsure what to do next, she wrote to her MP, Sir Paul Beresford, who subsequently contacted Royal Mail on her behalf. She was asked to send the intercepted envelope with the alleged counterfeit stamp to Royal Mail headquarters for investigation.
In a letter dated February 22, seen by GB News, Royal Mail’s senior public affairs manager Michael Hogg said the stamp had been re-checked by the firm’s revenue and protection team and it was confirmed as genuine. He said: “Royal Mail had therefore been wrong to apply the surcharge and I am very sorry that our actions have failed you.
“An investigation is now under way by senior colleagues to ascertain why this has happened, and what can be done to prevent it happening again.” To “say sorry”, the letter included a £5 cheque to cover the cost of the charge paid and a presentation pack of stamps. Sir Paul called the case “a pretty poor show”.
Royal Mail said: “Since the introduction of barcoded stamps, we have been able to significantly reduce stamp fraud.”
They were introduced in February 2022. Non-barcoded stamps are no longer valid.