PEOPLE who change their address should let the Royal Mail know their new details or risk losing valuable post which could contain sensitive personal information.

Adrian Knapper, a former postman and now director at Whitegates Estate Agents in Hanley, says a Royal Mail study has shown that with the growth in the rental market someone under 35 will have, on average, lived in five different houses and around half forget to redirect their mail when they move.

Letters containing personal information which never reach their intended recipient are a major contributor to the £2.7 billion of identity fraud that occurs each year.

Adrian says: "The Royal Mail's own redirection service may seem an unnecessary expense to perpetuate the receipt of what is likely to amount to some junk mail.

"It costs between £8 for a month and £41 a year, but letters with credit card offers or financial services could prove more costly if they fell into the wrong hands. "Services like iammoving.com can also minimise the risk of mail going to an old address."