Final sweep - stamp swap

[Dave2002]

I found this page https://www.consumercouncil.org.uk/s...wap-out-scheme relating to the somewhat poorly managed Royal Mail stamp swap out scheme.

I had indeed found some spare stamps so I found the return form - easy to find, and thought I'd chance sending them back. Today the replacement stamps arrived - about 2 weeks after I sent the old ones in.

The last day to actually use the old stamps is apparently July 31st. I did find some more, in a wallet, after I'd sent the first batch in, so unless I really want to use those I figure I might as well send off for replacements for them too.

Whether this will continue to work later on I'm not sure. Anyone who only has a few old stamps might decide to keep them as souvenirs!

[oddoneout]

I found this page https://www.consumercouncil.org.uk/s...wap-out-scheme relating to the somewhat poorly managed Royal Mail stamp swap out scheme.

I had indeed found some spare stamps so I found the return form - easy to find, and thought I'd chance sending them back. Today the replacement stamps arrived - about 2 weeks after I sent the old ones in.

The last day to actually use the old stamps is apparently July 31st. I did find some more, in a wallet, after I'd sent the first batch in, so unless I really want to use those I figure I might as well send off for replacements for them too.

Whether this will continue to work later on I'm not sure. Anyone who only has a few old stamps might decide to keep them as souvenirs!

I had some old stamps(a few pennies value to make up 2nd to 1st class in the days when I had folk to write to and that was something I needed to do on occasion, not enough to be worth sending in, so I used them on a couple of birthday cards I wanted to send last month. They obviously didn't cover the whole cost so needed "topping up", which is where it all nearly came adrift. Fortunately both cards were in reasonable size envelopes because the amount to be made up took more than one of the new, very much bigger, stamps, and fitting them round the combination of the several old stamps and still leaving the address visible took some figuring out by the lady serving me.
I do have some stamps that are being kept - designs that appealed for whatever reason - that I now need to put all together in a suitable folder or somesuch.

[Pulcinella]

I had some old stamps(a few pennies value to make up 2nd to 1st class in the days when I had folk to write to and that was something I needed to do on occasion, not enough to be worth sending in, so I used them on a couple of birthday cards I wanted to send last month. They obviously didn't cover the whole cost so needed "topping up", which is where it all nearly came adrift. Fortunately both cards were in reasonable size envelopes because the amount to be made up took more than one of the new, very much bigger, stamps, and fitting them round the combination of the several old stamps and still leaving the address visible took some figuring out by the lady serving me.
I do have some stamps that are being kept - designs that appealed for whatever reason - that I now need to put all together in a suitable folder or somesuch.

They are indeed ridiculously large!

[Serial_Apologist]

I found this page https://www.consumercouncil.org.uk/s...wap-out-scheme relating to the somewhat poorly managed Royal Mail stamp swap out scheme.

I had indeed found some spare stamps so I found the return form - easy to find, and thought I'd chance sending them back. Today the replacement stamps arrived - about 2 weeks after I sent the old ones in.

The last day to actually use the old stamps is apparently July 31st. I did find some more, in a wallet, after I'd sent the first batch in, so unless I really want to use those I figure I might as well send off for replacements for them too.

Whether this will continue to work later on I'm not sure. Anyone who only has a few old stamps might decide to keep them as souvenirs!

That's a shame - I thought the last day for the old stamps was December 31 and threw away my last first class stamp!

[oddoneout]

That's a shame - I thought the last day for the old stamps was December 31 and threw away my last first class stamp!

There has been quite a bit of publicity about the change in cut off dates - I think I had a flyer through the door about it as well - and it was discussed somewhere on the Forum as there were differences of opinion about said date. Not surprising as the Royal Mail info was less than clear at times.

[Lordgeous]

When I sent my old. stamps (about £40 worth) I received a letter back saying that although I'd sent the required form, I hadn't included any stamps! I then realised that there was no way I'd sent them, leaving the whole system open to theft or fraud. I did eventually recveive another letter saying ignore the first which had been sent in error!

Anyway, I had sent in a useful collection of different value stamps but what I received in return was a sheet of first class stamps - a minor, if clever, ruse to make more money out me as I rarely use first class!

[oddoneout]

When I sent my old. stamps (about £40 worth) I received a letter back saying that although I'd sent the required form, I hadn't included any stamps! I then realised that there was no way I'd sent them, leaving the whole system open to theft or fraud. I did eventually recveive another letter saying ignore the first which had been sent in error!

Anyway, I had sent in a useful collection of different value stamps but what I received in return was a sheet of first class stamps - a minor, if clever, ruse to make more money out me as I rarely use first class!

I gather there were quite a few cases of "absent" stamps, with the possibility of misappropriation being possible on both sides. I suspect the swap resulting in just 1st class coming back was the best way to speed the process up - so long as you receive at least the equivalent value of usable stamps then you hadn't lost out, and Royal Mail hadn't expended staff resources trying to match like for like. In any case as the new stamps are so big having an assortment could pose problems as I mentioned in an earlier post.

[Dave2002]

When I sent my old. stamps (about £40 worth) I received a letter back saying that although I'd sent the required form, I hadn't included any stamps! I then realised that there was no way I'd sent them, leaving the whole system open to theft or fraud. I did eventually recveive another letter saying ignore the first which had been sent in error!

Anyway, I had sent in a useful collection of different value stamps but what I received in return was a sheet of first class stamps - a minor, if clever, ruse to make more money out me as I rarely use first class!

I sent in second class stamps, and I received similar replacements. I guess it was your mix and match ensemble which resulted in your outcome - but at least you have more value than if you'd left them in a drawer.