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The Royal Mail is changing the way it deals with letter postage, with a significant impact on the voluntary and community sector.
If your organisation sends regular mail-outs to members or other organisations, you need to know about changes taking place to the way in which letters will now be charged by Royal Mail. The changes have been controversial, and charities need to take action now to assess the potential impact.
Letter
This should cover most letters, bills and statements, some brochures and catalogues.
Large Letter
This would include A4 envelopes, most brochures, catalogues and company reports, and some magazines
Packet
Any items that exceed the maximum lengths, widths, thicknesses and weights for Letter or Large Letter. Some examples would be VHS cassettes, books, and bulky items.
This month, the Royal Mail will move from a weights-based charging model to one which relies primarily on the size and thickness of a mailing; they're calling the amendments 'Pricing in Proportion', but some of the new charging regime points will undoubtedly result in amendments to the way we use mailings, for the sake of efficiency.
The changes to the postal system are aimed at reducing the cost and increasing the efficiency of post to the average user. Royal Mail claim that more than 80% of letter post will either remain the same price as before, or will fall in price due to the changes announced by the service. Some in the industry have disagreed, most notably Postwatch, the postal industry regulator, which states on its website:
Postwatch understands there will be ‘winners and losers’ financially due to these changes. As a result we urged Royal Mail to draw up proposal to mitigate the effect on those set to lose, to lessen the impact the changes may have on all business.
Royal Mail has published mitigation proposals for larger users only. The scheme has two qualification thresholds, a £100,000 per year minimum for current Royal Mail postal spend and a subsequent minimum 50% increase in this spend from the introduction of PiP. The scheme will run for two years, with a 40%rebate of the increase in the postage bill in the first year and a 20%rebate in the second.
Much to the disappointment of Postwatch, there will be no specific mitigation for small and medium enterprises nor will there be any legal requirement on Royal Mail to provide mitigation as a result of the impact the changes may have on some businesses. This therefore places significant emphasis on being prepared and well informed about the changes and how they will affect your business.
A full report is available on the Postwatch website.
A standard letter is now defined as one with the following dimensions:
A large letter is now defined as one with the following dimensions:
Price is finally determined by the mass
A consignment is a parcel if it exceeds any of the dimensions for a large letter.
Cost is determined by mass:
For information, advice or answers to your questions, please visit www.royalmail.com/size or call the dedicated customer service team on 
0845 611 3113.
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