Royal Mail warns of Christmas delivery disruption in 25 areas

Royal Mail has warned of delays to Christmas cards and presents in 25 of its delivery offices in parts of the UK. The postal service said it has been affected by Covid-related self-isolation, high levels of sick days, resourcing and “other local factors”. It is working to minimise delays to deliveries in affected areas, but admitted it may not be able to offer a full service in some locations. Which areas are affected? A total of 25 areas are experiencing disruption to deliveries, but the majority of its services are running as normal. The postal service has 1,200 offices in total, so most areas will be unaffected by the delays. A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “Deliveries are operating as normal across most of the country. “We aim to deliver to all addresses we have mail for, six days a week. “In a small number of local offices this may temporarily not be possible due to local issues such as Covid-related self isolation, high levels of sick absence, resourcing, or other local factors. “In those cases we will rotate deliveries to minimise the delay to individual customers. “We also provide targeted support to those offices to address their challenges and restore our service to the high standard our customers would normally receive.” The postal service confirmed the following areas are experiencing disruption: When is the last posting date for UK addresses? With Christmas now less than two weeks away, you will need to make sure all presents and cards are posted soon to ensure they arrive in time for Christmas. The final Christmas posting dates for sending items to UK addresses via Royal Mail are as follows: Royal Mail Bulk Mail Economy - Friday 17 December Royal Mail 2nd Class, 2nd Class Signed For, Royal Mail 48 - Saturday 18 December Royal Mail 1st Class, 1st Class Signed For, Royal Mail 24, Royal Mail Tracked 48 - Tuesday 21 December Royal Mail Tracked 24 - Wednesday 22 December Special Delivery Guaranteed - Thursday 23 December

Royal Mail warns of Christmas delivery disruption in 25 areas - see full list

Which areas are affected?