Things to Consider When Buying a Franking Machine

For offices engaged in activities which involve sending out more than 10-15 items of mail a day, a franking machine can be a highly cost effective investment. Apart from the obvious benefit of streamlining calculation of postage and providing more efficiency in a company’s mailing system, franked mail looks more professional, is very convenient and can save your company a great deal of money in the long run (franked mail is up to 30% cheaper than using stamps!). When you buy a franking machine for your office you are also discounting the need for a last minute dash to the post office. If your company spends on average over £35 on monthly postage may be it is high time you consider searching for options to buy franking machines. However, selecting a franking machine that suits all your postage demands and budget can be an intimidating task. This article will shed light on the many things you have to consider if you decide to move your company’s traditional stamp based postage system to a franking system.

Prime considerations

You can choose to buy outright, lease or hire. Leasing means you don’t have to tie up capital and you can lease an entry level machine for less than £20 per month including service. Whether you decide to buy or hire there are certain important considerations that you need to take in to account such as price, installment procedure, warranty conditions, training and service cover.

Service cover is a mandatory requirement for Royal Mail approval to use a franking machine. The cost is often included in the rental or lease price. Other operating costs for franking machines include ink cartridges and labels, re-crediting your machine with postage and annual rate changes so that your machine uses the latest Royal Mail postal rates. Again depending on the supplier and the service package you choose, these costs can be included in the monthly lease charge. The running costs of these machines will depend on the type of franking machine you have purchased. Generally, ink cartridge replacements start at about £49 and labels cost about £20 for 200.

Other considerations

Although used franking machines are occasionally advertised, these should be avoided as they will require licensing from Royal Mail and may be old and therefore unreliable or unserviceable. As a modern machine is available at such low lease rates this risk is unnecessary.

The franking machine supplier can provide all the items you need to maintain the reliable working of the machine and support the highly professional look of franked mail compared to traditional stamped and handwritten letters. Whether your company deals with several hundred letters or a few letters in a day, there are many benefits to look forward if you are using a franking machine.