Finnish postal operator Itella has upgraded its services with blue letterboxes for 1st classmail while 2nd class mail has become faster with sending restrictions now being lifted.
As of February 1, 312 new blue letter boxes for 1st class mail will be introduced in the busiestmailing locations across Finland while the traditional yellow boxes should be used for 2nd classitems.
Therefore, customers are advised to put 2nd class items in the yellow box and 1st class items inthe blue one if they find both boxes in a mailing location. If they accidentally slip their letterinto the wrong box, it will still be delivered, but the delivery speed may change to that of 2ndclass, Itella explained.
From now on, 1st class letters that are mainly delivered to the recipient over one night shouldbe marked with the number 1 indicating the delivery speed, or writing the word “Priority” on theitem or using Priority labels available from postal outlets.
Ulla Seppälä, Business Director at Itella, said: “Marking the letter delivery speed is animportant measure for ensuring the delivery speed of 1st class items. Even though our machines willidentify all stamps, they cannot make computations required for calculating 1st class postageconsisting of stamps of different values. Humans are of course capable of that, but most of thedeliveries are processed mechanically.”
Also from now on, letters addressed abroad are marked with either Priority or Economy labels orthe respective words, as set out in international agreements.
Along with the 1st class mail enhancements, 2nd class mail is now delivered with a faster speedthan before while postage prices for 2nd class and 1st class remain unchanged at €0.60 and €0.75respectively.
The updated 2nd class letters will no longer have the minimum quantity requirement of 20 itemsand won’t be needed to be taken to a postal outlet any longer. It will also be no longer necessaryto write the number 2 on the items, indicating the delivery speed, or to put an Economy label onthe items. Customers just submit 2nd class letters and cards to the familiar yellow letterbox. As arule, 2nd class items will be delivered to the recipients over two nights, that is, on the thirdworking day on weekdays.
“We expect 2nd class to become the preferred way of consumers and SMEs to send their letters andcards. We asked our customers what delivery method and speed would be the best. For 80% of therespondents, it is enough that the deliveries reach the recipients over two nights. The updated 2ndclass letter matches that desire very well indeed,” Seppälä said.
As of February, all letters, papers, packages and direct advertisements delivered by Itella willbe carbon neutral. This feature will be automatically included in all products without any extracharges for customers.
In addition, the emptying schedules of some letterboxes and some item submission schedules toPosti shops or postal agency shops will be extended to 5 p.m. at the latest throughout Finland. Thechanged schedule will make it possible to collect outbound mail by using fewer transport vehicles,and will also make delivery of 2nd class items from the sender to the recipient one work dayfaster.
