IT HAS been hailed as the biggest upheaval in the British postal service since the Penny Black first graced envelopes more than 160 years ago.

However, many customers were still unaware of the new pricing policy when they joined the end of the queue at post offices yesterday.

A consumer watchdog criticised Royal Mail for failing to give sufficient warning of the changes, while some customers confessed to confusion at the counter.

The rules, which came into force yesterday, mean that post will no longer be priced on weight alone, but also according to shape and thickness.

In an attempt to bring prices into line with handling costs, Royal Mail has introduced three categories of mail — letter, large letter and packet — which it claims will make the service more efficient.

The organisation insists that 80 per cent of postal charges, including business mail, will stay the same or become cheaper; but there were mixed reactions in local branches.

At one branch near the Royal Mail London headquarters in Old Street, Ian Bailey, 35, from Surrey, said: “It was so easy just to buy a 1st-class stamp, put it on and post it. Now you have to think about the size and thickness, the type of stamp as well as the weight. It is a lot more complicated.”

In Plymouth, Sarah Davey, 29, questioned the efficiency of the new policy: “The woman behind the counter told me to take back my letter and fold it in half, which made it cheaper,” she said. “What nonsense.”

However, David Oakland, 63, the branch postmaster, said: “Talk of chaos is completely unfounded. We were well prepared for the change and all of our customers have so far reacted well.”

“It’s very simple really,” said Julia Godwin, a counter clerk in Islington, North London. “Some people may need time to get used to it, but you actually get better value for some mail. You used to pay 32p for up to 60g, but now you can get up to 100g for the same price.”

No such luck for Jill Hetherington, 73, whose attempts to reduce the size of a birthday present for a friend, a glasses case from Buckingham Palace, were unsuccessful. “I thought I could squash it into a large letter, but it had to go as a package,” she said.

Postwatch, the industry watchdog, said that a third of 307 post offices visited failed to display information about the Pricing in Proportion policy in the first week of August.

Lorna Clarkson, Royal Mail’s director of pricing, said: “Royal Mail has to rebalance its prices as competitors are already forecast to take one in seven mail items (three billion) this year.”

1st-class post

Packets weighing up to 100g will cost £1. Heavier items will cost more