For some years Royal Mail has produced plastic Special Delivery envelopes in a variety of sizes. Those that are prepaid for postage are rightly termed Postal Stationery, but many other types exist.
Firstly there are the unstamped ones which enable users to pay by stamps, by franking machine or by Horizon label at the counter:
These are not regarded as postal stationery by most collectors.
Another type is used by companies which send a lot of special delivery mail. This is an old one from Crucial Technology which has the Postage Paid Impression on one side but the bar-coded special delivery label is on the reverse:
Are there other examples - or examples of recorded signed for reply envelopes? Let us know by email or through the comments box.
Thanks Harry for showing me the first type with a Horizon label paying the fee; I should have included that as an option.
Update:
Thanks also to Paul D for sending this further example of a PGFC bag (note address now Poole rather than Bournemouth!) This has the same sort of Royal Mail bar-code label but the only indication that this is to be sent by Special Delivery is in the top panel which reads
The whole style is very odd. Are there any others out there, in different colours? Any more which just have the word ' Mail ' at top left, and no Royal Mail SD branding? Paul says that "the reverse states: 'This envelope will be sent via Royal Mail Special Delivery' (Again not in red nor Royal mail font)."
On a recent visit to a WHSmith I found a variant of the dark blue PGFC which shows the text at the top and right side on a plain background - and thus much easier to read. A 'penalty' warning is also shown adjacent to the opening. The non-address side is also shown:
Do please let us know, using the comment link below.
Firstly there are the unstamped ones which enable users to pay by stamps, by franking machine or by Horizon label at the counter:
Another type is used by companies which send a lot of special delivery mail. This is an old one from Crucial Technology which has the Postage Paid Impression on one side but the bar-coded special delivery label is on the reverse:
A fourth type is the 'Business Response Special Delivery' - only recently discovered by me but they may have existed for some time. The two examples I have found are used by a company offering to buy your surplus gold. Two sizes have been found so far:
Thanks Harry for showing me the first type with a Horizon label paying the fee; I should have included that as an option.
Update:
Thanks also to Paul D for sending this further example of a PGFC bag (note address now Poole rather than Bournemouth!) This has the same sort of Royal Mail bar-code label but the only indication that this is to be sent by Special Delivery is in the top panel which reads
Special Delivery response
Licence no. NAT247817/PL1
The whole style is very odd. Are there any others out there, in different colours? Any more which just have the word ' Mail ' at top left, and no Royal Mail SD branding? Paul says that "the reverse states: 'This envelope will be sent via Royal Mail Special Delivery' (Again not in red nor Royal mail font)."
On a recent visit to a WHSmith I found a variant of the dark blue PGFC which shows the text at the top and right side on a plain background - and thus much easier to read. A 'penalty' warning is also shown adjacent to the opening. The non-address side is also shown:
Do please let us know, using the comment link below.
A Business Response SD envelope in dark blue instead of silver has been added.
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