PPA steps in to UK Royal Mail row
The magazine industry’s campaigning body has hit out at proposals by the Royal Mail to introduce variable pricing structures for postal services.
The Periodical Publishers Association said it had deep concerns over the Royal Mail’s plans for “subjectivity” when establishing a price for individual items.
Although negotiations have been taking place with the Royal Mail for two years on its size-based pricing proposals, the PPA has yet to have fears allayed over pricing decided by “flatness” of a mailed product or the extent to which it can be folded into a letterbox.
PPA chief executive, Ian Locks, said: “When a mailing cost of many thousands of pounds can be doubled on the apparent whim of a Royal Mail front line operator who judges whether a product is sufficiently flat or flexible then there is just too much room for individual decision.
“With weight the steps are graduated and there are not these huge jumps.
“The introduction of subjectivity to a pricing policy has to leave open the possibility of abuse – and that, surely, is something no one would wish to encourage.”
The PPA said in the past the Royal Mail had “gone out of its way” to preserve publishing in A3 sizes, for business and trade titles, alongside accommodating the proliferation of cover-mounting for computing, games and music magazines.|
