AFD was chosen by Royal Mail over a decade ago to examine, process, and deliver the primary (Postcode Address File) PAF data to all consumers of “raw” PAF. This is the data that over 40,000 organisations rely on, and it is used by millions of individuals every day across the world.

No one knows PAF better than the Postcode People at AFD, with over 420 years of combined PAF knowledge and experience helping the thousands of organisations we serve to overcome their data difficulties. AFD Software remains the best choice for resolving your address data issues.

All 31 million delivery addresses in the British Isles are recorded in the Royal Mail’s Postcode Address File – and this file is at the core of a huge range of delivery services – not only for physical products, it is also the foundation for strategic planning and delivery of key services. AFD Processes the PAF to produce a suite of files from optical character recognition data for Royal Mail sorting machines through to multiple-residency details and geolocated addresses down to a 1 metre accuracy. Organisations, including AFD itself, use this data to build products, services and systems that help to deliver parcels, route goods, register patients, identify students and a cornucopia of other applications. AFD’s own products based on this file, drive the computerised systems used by some of the biggest logistics and distribution organisations in the British Isles, not just the postal service.

Like any large database, the PAF file is constantly changing, and Royal Mail relies on AFD Software’s established expertise every month to ensure that the file is properly assembled, quality-checked and speedily shipped either electronically or on physical media. AFD also processes hundreds of daily updates to the file to ensure key organisations are fully up to date where this is critical – and in the last month alone, over 30,000 new delivery points have been added. 

AFD’s address lookup API and postcode lookup API with Royal Mail data deliver rapid, accurate address validation to thousands of organisations. Contact one of our experienced data quality consultants to discuss your requirements today.