Royal Mail Swap Out Scheme

Machin forgeries are a huge problem for Royal Mail and the forgers manage to replicate all of the security features with relative ease. 2D barcode forgeries have already been found! It doesn't help that the technology to read the barcodes probably hasn't yet been installed.

The USPS has problems with forgeries too. The USPS has few security features. I have seen address labels from charities that were printed better.

A couple of days ago The Guardian had an article tied to the 100-day deadline for use of the old definitives without the barcode:

Royal Mail warns there are only 100 days left to use stamps without barcodes

And if you go back through their archives a few months, you can find this detailed article with a rather provocative title and details of "perhaps the lowest-stakes act of sedition ever committed" (ha ha):

‘Eventually it will just be a barcode, won’t it?’ Why Britain’s new stamps are causing outrage and upset

Ryan

The date when non-barcoded machins can't be used has been extended by 6 months from 31st January to 31st July. Also, for the first time, forms and freepost envelopes are available from Post Offices.

This follows media pressure that the deadline was too soon and that the forms were only available via the internet and not easily accessible to many pensioners.

It has also been reported that they are having to recruit more staff to cope with the demand. Clearly they misunderstood the response they would get, especially from stamp collectors like me and dealers who have sent them all their unwanted machins!

I recently managed to find enough for the over £200 application and they arrived last week after about 3 weeks.

I now have enough inflation proof 1st and 2nd class stamps to last my lifetime!

Received the scanned leaflet in the mail this morning, another reminder by Royal Mail to swap your old stamps by 31 July 2023.

I think that the swap out is a bit of a swizz mainly because the new stamps have already been forged, and it's also a way of getting out of people putting two 1/2p stamps on to make up 1p, I also don't like the way they send out like for like and after sending in £1500 of surplus machin's in left with sheet after sheet of 1p and 2p stamps and with the extra size of them they are difficult to shift 🤔
On the plus side my neighbours are pleased I'm doing 2nd class at 50p and 1at at 80p but I've got to shift hundreds of them.

Err we'll sort of I know the booklets got checked I think I stripped out some cyl number booklets to put in the individual Machin albums.

For an estate, I have recently been asked to sell £1150 face value GB non - Machin commems 2013-2018 ,  still untouched in the envelopes as purchased fromRoyal Mail, so they don’t qualify for swap out. With inflation the face value of 1st class has almost doubled since 2013 issues. So what can my contact expect to realise for her £1150 inheritance?

Last year before the swap out I was able to sell similar material to a dealer for 50% face with 1st class at 60%. Current offers are around 40-45% with both my prospective buyers telling me they are cutting back, as the market is swamped with Matrix code swap outs. One major dealer suggested he would only pay 1/3 face today.  Commercial users can get all the coded stamps they can use and more at bargain prices.

I just received the scanned letter this morning along with the mentioned batch of stamps from the "swap out scheme". Just finished checking the stamps for errors/flaws & correct backing papers. 9 of the items were 1st class booklets of 4 which were all "normal" apart from a few minor not worth mentioning specks on the print. I found 3 stamps with good flaws & 3 with backing papers not listed on my Deegam profiles. 1 stamp went straight into my specialist album due to its date print tab. Just the phosphor bands to check now for any irregularities.