Having the right address can add tens of thousands to the value of your home and knock hundreds of pounds off your insurance premiums, as residents of one London suburb know only too well.
After a 40-year battle to have their district recognised in its own right rather than being lumped in with a less affluent neighbour, the people of Whitton have finally succeeded.
A postcode quirk had ensured that the southwest London suburb was linked with Hounslow, once “the most dangerous place in Britain”, even though it is in the borough of Richmond, home to Sir Mick Jagger, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, and Sir David Attenborough.
The area will be uncoupled from Hounslow after the Royal Mail agreed that Whitton should become its own postal locality, subject to public consultation, which could take six months.
About 2,500 homes near Twickenham rugby stadium are affected. Previously, envelopes addressed to “Whitton” would be returned by the Royal Mail, with the name crossed out and replaced with “Hounslow”.Residents believe that the change could add tens of thousands of pounds to the value of their homes and cut insurance premiums.
Advertisement
The campaign was backed by Vince Cable, the business secretary, whose constituency includes the district.
The average house price in Hounslow is about £330,000, according to the Zoopla property website. In Richmond it is about £820,000.