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Royal Mail Ends Saturday Second-Class Deliveries Under Ofcom Reforms

Ofcom predicts the new schedule will save up to £425 million a year under relaxed performance targets secured by a 99 percent timeliness backstop.

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Overview

  • Second-class letters will be delivered on alternating weekdays from Monday, July 28, eliminating Saturday service under the updated Universal Service Obligation.
  • First-class mail continues to run six days a week and second-class stamp prices remain capped to protect affordability.
  • Delivery standards have been adjusted to 90 percent next-day achievement for first-class and 95 percent three-day targets for second-class while enforcing that 99 percent of mail arrive no more than two days late.
  • The reforms follow EP Group’s £3.6 billion acquisition of Royal Mail owner IDS and respond to a drop in letter volumes from 20 billion to 6.6 billion over the past two decades.
  • International Distribution Services praised the overhaul as vital for sustainability and reliability while Citizens Advice warned that eased targets may not raise performance standards.