A general election candidate failed to put stamps on letters he sent to would-be voters and has ended up costing them money. Pontypridd candidate Jonathan Bishop mailed letters to a number of constituents but didn't put stamps on 98 of the letters.
Residents were then contacted by Royal Mail and told they had outstanding mail to collect but without any indication what it was. Those who chose to collect them were charged £5 and opened them to discover a piece of election campaigning.
A spokesman for Royal Mail said any claims for refunds should be directed to the person who sent the letters.
Heledd Fychan MS was one of those who received the letter and paid the £5. She raised the issue in the Senedd on Tuesday, July 9, and said she had contacted the candidate to ask about refunds. In a response to her, Mx Bishop wrote: "Royal Mail and The Crocels Press Limited have taken part in an investigation into this matter and identified up to 98 people could be affected. The names and addresses of those 98 people have been supplied to Royal Mail who will: deliver without charge to those who have not paid; refund those who have paid. Royal Mail and The Crocels Press Limited have apologised for the situation and lessons will be learned."
Crocels Press Limited is a company listed on Companies House with Mr Bishop as its sole director. In the letter to Ms Fychan it says those affected should contact The Crocels Press Limited on briefs@crocels.net for more information.
Speaking afterwards Ms Fychan said: "Clearly something went very wrong and it’s imperative now that everyone that paid £5 to receive the election communication is refunded. Constituents paid thinking it was an important letter and were rightly angry when they found out what they paid for."
Mx Bishop came last in the constituency results having secured 44 votes with Labour's Alex-Davies Jones elected with 16,225 votes. Mark Beech, on behalf of The Crocels Press Limited, said: "We became aware that some of the publicly-funded deliveries of leaflets we printed as part of the second wave of campaigning in Pontypridd were being delivered by Royal Mail at a charge to constituents, despite being handed over to Royal Mail in the usual manner.
"Some but not all of the 98 mailings issued had stickers placed on them by Royal Mail's Pontypridd Sorting Office by mistake, and Royal Mail have agreed with us to refund all those we can verify as being affected. Constituents should contact us if they are one of the 98 identified as part of the wave 2 campaign.
"Not all of the 98 were affected, with one reaching out to say they liked how personalised and professional the leaflet was. Nevertheless, we have issued apologies to all those who have contacted us as requested."