trust Postal Decline: Adapting To The Future

[Michael37]

Oh dear. The cost of posting a letter in NZ has just increased because the use of postal services is declining at a "significant rate". One of many things that being in the future requires us to adapt to.

Quote: NZPOST Changes From July 1st 2019

Why did New Zealand Post increase prices?
The price of sending a standard letter within New Zealand increased by 10 cents to $1.30 on 1 July 2019, to better reflect the true cost of sending a letter.

NZ Post delivers over 400 million mail items a year, but the number of letters sent continues to drop at a significant rate. We’re working hard to keep the cost of posting mail as low as possible, by significantly reducing our network costs and making big changes to how we operate.

How did the letter price affect KiwiStamps?
Existing KiwiStamps retained their value. You can use any KiwiStamps you have already purchased for Standard Mail after 1 July 2019, without paying any more postage. New packs of KiwiStamps purchased from 1 July 2019 reflects the new pricing.

Why did NZ Post increase the price to send a letter or parcel overseas?
Letter volumes around the world are declining, while the cost to process and deliver mail continues to rise. We have worked hard to keep prices as low as possible, however we need to increase the price from time to time.

It has actually become difficult to find an actual post box when the need to actually post a letter arises. These red NZPost boxes used to be numerous and handy but they have been slowly disppearing and we have the strange situation now that when we post a letter in Hamilton for an address in Hamilton it actually gets taken 123kms (77miles) north to Auckland for sorting before being delivered back to its destination in Hamilton. This can take up to ten days now that all Hamilton's mail sorting centres have been closed down to reduce overheads.

We do have some privately owned postal providers in NZ but they are more expensive than the state provider: 

The State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986 required New Zealand Post to operate as a successful business and to be:

• as profitable and efficient as comparable businesses not owned by the Crown
• a good employer
• an organisation that exhibits a sense of social responsibility by having regard to the interests of the community in which it operates and by endeavouring to accommodate or encourage these when it is able to do so.

The Act also spelled out the broad nature of the Crown’s ownership of the company, defining the role of directors and outlining the responsibilities of shareholding Ministers. The reporting requirements for SOEs are also outlined in the Act.

The Act creates an arms-length relationship by distancing management tasks from political control. Under the Act, the Government must fund any non-commercial activities that the Government wants carried out.

The decline of the postal system is not actually a big problem for me personally as I don't post many letters now, doing most of my invoicing by email, but it is one of the small things that add up to a major changing of ways in a person's lifetime. 

[Debp]

Our postal stamps also went up again in January....now 55 cents.   Usually the local news will tell us ahead of time so people can buy some at the old price.   Not this time, so I was surprised at the increase.

Our stamps don't have a price on them anymore because they kept going up....they just say forever on them.   So you can buy them ahead of increases.

I still mail bills and sometimes my mother sends out birthday cards.

[Debp]

3 minutes ago, Sonshine☀️ said:

I miss the days of long ago when I, full of hope, rummaged through the mailbox outside to see if I got a letter from a family member or a friend.  Those were the days. 

When I was a teenager, I had many foreign pen pals.   I eagerly anticipated the mail each day!

[Michael37]

47 minutes ago, Debp said:

Our stamps don't have a price on them anymore because they kept going up....they just say forever on them.   So you can buy them ahead of increases.

Thanks for your comments, Debp.  Yes, The previously purchased stamps are still useable. We have the same deal as follows

Standard Post	Medium = 1 x KiwiStamp	Large = 2 x KiwiStamps	Oversize = 3 x KiwiStamps

[other one]

27 minutes ago, Sonshine☀️ said:

I miss the days of long ago when I, full of hope, rummaged through the mailbox outside to see if I got a letter from a family member or a friend.  Those were the days. 

I do understand, but personally I'd rather FaceTime with the grandkids and have long face to face phone calls with our offspring and friends and other relatives.

[Michael37]

8 minutes ago, other one said:

I do understand, but personally I'd rather FaceTime with the grandkids and have long face to face phone calls with our offspring and friends and other relatives.

Yes, other one.  "Who writes letters anymore?", the younger generation ask. A lot of oldies just love the technology too. Many jobs were lost when the mail sorting centres closed. Some had been in this employment for about 50 years.