Buying stamps in Newsagents

J

JAG

Registered User
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Not a terribly important question but is it normal for a newsagent to charge extra for purchasing stamps? Yesterday I needed a48c stamp for postage within Ireland and I was charged 5 cent extra. I've never come accross this before.
 
That's a new one on me too. I think that shops have to have a license to sell stamps. They might be in breach of it for doing something like that.

Mind you, it's ten times handier than queuing up in the post offices near me with queues out the door and invariably miserable-looking staff. If they even payed IMRO and had a bit of music it might detract from all the sniffles/coughs/rummaging in bags.

Rebecca
 
Why not use that automated stamp dispenser? Or are these resolved for the larger PO's? The only problem is you have to lick the stamp before applying it to the letter.
 
I have often bought stamps from different newsagents , both singly and the booklets of stamps, and was only ever charged face value. As for the dispensers, the one near me is regularly out of order including over the whole of Christmas 2004 - now why is An Post losing 800 grand a week !!!!!!
 
Newsagents get a discount from An Post (7.5% I think ) to sell stamps. they no longer require a licence however An Post would take the franchise off them if they overcharged. Dem: An Post made a profit of €3m last year and sold two companies last week for €85m making a profit of €70m. Dont believe all you read about an post - its management crap.
 
Rebecca,

Your local post office sounds very like mine. I try not to go in there anymore because of the queues well outside the door and when you do finally get inside the door there is usually only one cashier on duty. About 2 years ago my local post office began closing at lunchtime on Saturdays. Does anyone know if this is common among large post offices?
 
stobear said:
Why not use that automated stamp dispenser? Or are these resolved for the larger PO's? The only problem is you have to lick the stamp before applying it to the letter.
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Those booklets of stamps are a pain - you end up with all these 2c stamps that are effectively no use.
 
ClubMan said:
Those booklets of stamps are a pain - you end up with all these 2c stamps that are effectively no use.
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not often I fully agree with Clubman but on this occasion I do. But you can also get books of stamps with 10 self adhesive stamps in them. Maybe we should close down all the post offices nationwide except a few in the bigger town and cities. they are a throw back to older days when there was no other way of getting pensions/ child benfit and paying bills etc. So maybe keep a few in the bigger towns/cities and close the rest. Same with post. anyone living rural to pay extra for delivery or collect post at a central depot. That way everyone would be paying for what they get and it would be a fairer service all round.
 
A few years back the GPO and maybe other POs had what were effectively pay as you go franking machines - you inserted your money, entered the amount of postage that you needed and got postage to that value in the form of a franked self adhesive strip. When they weren't out of order they were great. No queueing and no fiddly 2p/2c "leftover" stamps. I always wondered why they disappeared.
 
Joe1234 said:
...... About 2 years ago my local post office began closing at lunchtime on Saturdays. Does anyone know if this is common among large post offices?
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Yes it is. At the same time they seem to have decided to stay open over lunchtime on weekdays. This is useful. The one nearest to me used to open on Satuday afternoons and did just about no trade. So, It was a good move from my view point.
 
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