According to the UK charity Citizens Advice, the number of people experiencing postal delays over the peak Christmas period last year was the highest in five years, with 16 million customers reporting a delay.
Of those 16 million, 5.7 million people suffered serious consequences as a result, missing health appointments, fines, benefit decisions and important legal documents, according to the charity.
Among those who send or receive post with Royal Mail, more than a third (36%) said they sent fewer Christmas cards in 2025 because stamps were too expensive. Another third (34%) reported not getting post for between one and three weeks at a time, then receiving a bunch of five or more letters in one go.
Almost a quarter (22%) of those who experienced post delays said they were left feeling anxious or distressed about benefits, bills, losing money and missing other financial information.
Worrying trend
Citizens Advice has criticized Royal Mail for not doing enough to prioritize consumers who “have no choice but to put up with delivery delays and service cuts, despite ever-rising stamp prices”.
Anne Pardoe, head of policy at Citizens Advice, said, “We’re afraid there’s no light at the end of the tunnel for consumers struggling with Royal Mail’s persistent delivery failures. When people have no other postal provider to choose from, the sheer volume of delays is simply unacceptable.
“The company’s dreadful festive slump is about much more than late Christmas cards. People are left distressed after missing health appointments, fines and benefit decisions.
“This is a worrying trend, and with cuts to delivery days looming, Ofcom must start cracking down even harder on missed targets before things go from bad to worse. Any future stamp price increases should be conditional on Royal Mail meeting these targets.”
A declining service
According to Citizens Advice, Royal Mail has failed to meet its First Class annual delivery target since 2017 and hasn’t achieved its Second Class target since 2020. However, the cost of a First Class stamp has doubled in price since 2020 to £1.70 (US$2.34).
The charity said it is concerned service reliability could “go from bad to worse” following regulator Ofcom’s cuts to Royal Mail’s Second Class delivery days and new, lower delivery targets as part of universal service obligation (USO) reforms.
Royal Mail can now deliver Second Class post every other weekday, instead of six-days-a-week (Monday-Saturday) and these changes are expected nationwide this year. Ofcom is now consulting on service affordability as part of the USO review and will explore the future of the current price cap on Second Class stamps, set to expire in April 2027.
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