Is it too expensive to send Christmas cards?

At the start of year we asked Which? members if they sent fewer cards in 2012 than they had the previous year and more than half said yes. And a whopping 63% said the reason for sending fewer was that stamps are too expensive.

I was surprised to learn that Royal Mail increased the cost of a first class stamp by 14 pence between December 2011 and December 2012. So if you sent Christmas cards to 50 people it would cost £7 more now than it would have done in 2011.

First class post too expensive?

Stamp prices were frozen in December 2012, but with a 60p postage cost for every card you send first class, have you stopped sending so many?

Which? members told us they’d found a few work arounds to reduce the cost of postage – the most popular being posting early and sending cards second class. With a saving of 10p per card, I know I’d opt for second class too.

Christmas emails and texts

The second most popular option is to deliver cards by hand and the third, sending an e-card. Both are still personal and, in the case of e-cards, usually free. Perhaps you like to avoid all of the above and let your friends and family know that you won’t be sending cards but instead, issuing a small donation to charity.

Is it sad that we’re sending fewer Christmas cards, or is it just inevitable as we communicate more online? Do you send fewer than you used to?

 Loading ...