Scrapped Maori stamps mistakenly mailed

Kapa haka stamp

A small band of stamp collectors are sitting on what could be a million-dollar windfall, after banned Maori stamps were sent out by accident.

The stamps, with a face value of 45c and up, are now worth hundreds of dollars apiece.

New Zealand Post has admitted that more than 500 of the cartoon-style stamps, depicting Maori in kapa haka stances, were issued by mistake.

Ivor Masters, NZ Post stamps and collectibles general manager, said eight customers had received the stamps before the issue date.

He urged those who ordered the stamps and got them through "human error", to return them to NZ Post.

"We have withdrawn the whole issue, an error occurred. We want all the product to be destroyed."

However, he said there was unlikely to be any action taken to try to force the stamps' return.

The blunder is likely to be a cash windfall for the eight customers.

"If somebody walked into my shop today with one of those stamps I would pay $500," said New Zealand Stamp Collectors Club president and stamp dealer Steven McLachlan. "Anybody would be a fool to send them back. There is no way I would advise anyone to send them back."

He said demand and the small number of stamps available could see prices rise to up to $2000 each. The cover prices ranged from 45c to $2.

Mr McLachlan said the mistake was also likely to spark frustration among collectors who had an arrangement with NZ Post to receive one of every stamp issued. Many would now see their collections as incomplete.

"There will be a lot of aggrieved collectors out there."

The stamps were to be released in May, but outrage by some Maori, who said the stamps were ugly and depicted the culture in a bad light, forced a rethink by NZ Post officials.

There are estimated to be up to 50,000 New Zealand stamp collectors, and there are also regular overseas buyers.

Hamilton collector Alan Craig said he was disappointed it had taken so long for NZ Post to reveal that some of the stamps were supplied.

"The people I am most jealous of, and green with envy, is those eight people who got orders. I am saying they are sitting on potentially a million dollars-worth of stamps."

NZ Post's Mr Masters said procedures had been tightened to ensure the mistaken distribution of stamps did not occur again.