Royal Mail is on the cusp of major change. Ofcom has finished its consultation into proposed reforms of the UK postal service, with rollout expected from July 2025.
If your business relies on direct mail, fulfilment, or postal communications, these updates matter.
What’s changing?
In recent years, people have been sending far fewer letters, and Royal Mail has been losing hundreds of millions of pounds.
The changes aim to help the postal service align with current customer needs, preventing it from becoming unsustainable, and customers paying higher prices.
According to the Ofcom consultation review document, which you can find here, the proposed changes are as follows:
- The First Class national target to require 90% of items to be delivered next day (i.e. D+1).
- The First Class postcode area target to require 87% of items to be delivered next day (i.e. D+1) in each of 118 postcode areas of the UK.
- A new First Class ‘tail of mail’ target to require 99.5% of items to be delivered within three days (i.e. D+3).
- The Second Class target to require 95% of items to be delivered within three days (i.e. D+3).
- A new Second Class target to require 99.5% of items to be delivered within five days (i.e. D+5).
- There would be no changes to parcel deliveries under the new proposals.
What that means in real terms
Second Class becomes D+3: Shifting to a three-day delivery cycle, available to all services.
D+2 Priority. A new two-day service, including Saturdays, for business mail and subscriptions at an increased cost to D+3 rates.
Letter Economy Mail. Stays on a five-day cycle—though operational details remain unclear.
Large Letter Economy via DSA. Currently unavailable but that could change.
Dedicated NHS Mail stream. Crucial for healthcare providers and suppliers.
Dedicated NHS Mail stream. Crucial for healthcare providers and suppliers.
What to expect
Royal Mail have indicated that businesses may have access to regional delivery schedules, a helpful tool for planning, if it proves reliable.
We are continuing to ask for clarity.
So far, Royal Mail hasn’t widely shared this information. We’re staying in close contact with postal partners and will keep you informed every step of the way.
Talk to us
We’ll continue sharing updates as we get them but in the meantime, we are interested to know how a three-day cycle could affect your mailing timelines.
Is D+2 Priority a solution or another cost challenge, and tell us what support would help you adapt?
Email us at , or learn more about our environmental mailing services.