Russia 1918 Liapine 5 stamp (Savings 10k) high resolution

George V Post Office Savings Bank deposit slip

A savings stamp is a stamp issued by a government or other body to enable small amounts of money to be saved over time to accumulate a larger capital sum. The funds accumulated may then be used to make a larger purchase such as taking out a savings bond or to pay a large upcoming bill. Often issued in conjunction with post office run savings banks, savings stamps have also been issued by private companies. Supermarkets have issued the stamps to enable the spreading of large bills,

package holiday A package tour, package vacation, or package holiday comprises transport and accommodation advertised and sold together by a vendor known as a tour operator. Other services may be provided such as a rental car, activities or outings during the ho ...

companies have used them to enable customers to save for an annual holiday, and utilities companies have used the stamps to enable customers to spread the cost of their bills. Savings stamps are not to be confused with trading stamps which provide a discount on goods purchased as part of a customer

loyalty program A loyalty program is a marketing strategy designed to encourage customers to continue to shop at or use the services of a business associated with the program. Today, such programs cover most types of commerce, each having varying features and ...

. In

philately Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is pos ...

, savings stamps are regarded as a form of

Cinderella stamp In philately, a cinderella stamp is "virtually anything resembling a postage stamp, but not issued for postal purposes by a government postal administration". There is a wide variety of cinderella stamps, such as those printed for promotional ...

In the United Kingdom

From 1880 ordinary penny

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...

s were used to save up one shilling (12 pence) which was then sufficient to open a Post Office Savings Bank account, although the minimum amount required changed to £1 in 1912. Mackay, James. ''Stamp Collecting: Philatelic Terms Illustrated''. 4th edition. London: Stanley Gibbons, 2003, p.133. This scheme continued until after the Second World War but has now ended. In addition the Bank used specially designed savings stamps with higher values which also could be used to save enough to open an account. Private companies in Britain also used savings stamps including the holiday company

Butlins Butlin's is a chain of large seaside resorts in the United Kingdom. Butlin's was founded by Billy Butlin to provide affordable holidays for ordinary British families. Between 1936 and 1966, ten camps were built, including one in Ireland and o ...

and supermarkets such as

Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company ...

and

Safeway Safeway is an American supermarket chain founded by Marion Barton Skaggs in April 1915 in American Falls, Idaho. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and features a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, del ...

. A wide variety of utility companies made use of the stamps, particularly regional electronic companies, but also

British Telecom BT Group plc (trading as BT and formerly British Telecom) is a British multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered in London, England. It has operations in around 180 countries and is the largest provider of fixed-line, b ...

for telephone bills and government bodies for payment of

National Insurance National Insurance (NI) is a fundamental component of the welfare state in the United Kingdom. It acts as a form of social security, since payment of NI contributions establishes entitlement to certain state benefits for workers and their fami ...

contributions or

television licence A television licence or broadcast receiving licence is a payment required in many countries for the reception of television broadcasts, or the possession of a television set where some broadcasts are funded in full or in part by the licence ...

s. Most uses of savings stamps have now ceased in the UK, replaced by electronic cards.

In Ireland

A number of Irish credit unions offer a savings stamp scheme called Sammy Stamps, which are collected predominantly by children and sold through schools. Stamps can be credited to credit union accounts or cashed in at face value.

In the United States

In the United States ''Postal Savings Stamps'' were introduced in 1911 and War Savings Stamps were issued during both World Wars. Savings stamps are worth their face amounts; the denominations are $0.10, $0.25, $0.50, $1, and $5. The sale of savings stamps was discontinued on June 30, 1970.

Elsewhere

Belgium and France used special savings stamps in the 1880s and many other countries around the world have used them for diverse purposes, including Canada, India, Russia, Bulgaria and Singapore.

War savings stamps

War savings stamps were issued by several British Commonwealth countries, including Gold Coast"Gold Coast War Savings" in ''Sixth Sense'', Murray Payne Ltd., Axbridge, No. 102, August 2013, p. 9. and India.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Savings stamps
A British £5 Vehicle Licence Savings Stamp.A Butlins holiday camp savings stamp.
Philatelic terminology Cinderella stamps