Universal Mail UK - International Postcard Stamps usage

From time to time I get asked about these stamps, which are widely sold from tourist attractions, and often exclusive to them.  I suspect that is largely because my original webpage on the story of these still features at or near the top of search engine listings. 

UniversalMail UK Ltd was established in 2006 following deregulation of the UK postal industry. 

While most of Royal Mail's competitors have concentrated on the high-volume mass-mail and business market, leaving Royal Mail to do the final sorting and delivery, UniversalMail UK has an access agreement with Royal Mail which enables any postcard or envelope(*) bearing a UniversalMail UK postage stamp to be posted to any detination outside the UK through the extensive network of Royal Mail post boxes, located throughout the country. 

All UniversalMail UK postage stamps are also accepted over the counter at Royal Mail Post Office branches. UniversalMail UK’s clients include tourist operators, regional tourist offices (information centres), hotels, general retailers and souvenir shops.

The first stamps were self-adhesive, produced in October 2008.

Although they originally provided stamps for 20g letters this was a short-lived facility and now only stamps for postcards are sold.  Nonetheless, they are all only for international addresses.

Some people who write about these complain to me, despite the clear statement that we are not involved in the UMUK service at all.  The latest, just before Christmas, was to a UK resident "sent by a friend from New Zealand staying in London at the time". 

Christmas card stamped with Universal Mail UK International Postcard stamp, rightly surcharged as being unpaid.

If anybody has any examples of these properly or improperly used I'll be pleased to add them.

I tested the system in the early days and some were improperly processed through the Royal Mail international system and passed to the postal authority in the destination country.  I'll add examples later.

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