We are committed to ensuring we deliver for the country. Our colleagues are keeping the mail moving – delivering letters and parcels across the UK, including to those who find it difficult to leave their homes.

Throughout this crisis, we will continue to deliver the most comprehensive service we can to all our customers. However, as cases of coronavirus increase across the UK we, along with other organisations, are experiencing growing levels of employee absence due to illness and self-isolation.

Absence rates are currently double what we normally expect at this time of year. To manage these severe absence levels – which are growing – we are implementing a range of mitigations. These include changing the time guarantee on Special Delivery and deploying non-operational managers in Delivery. We are working closely with approximately 11,000 Post Offices that remain open to provide another avenue – where appropriate – for you to access essential mail services.

Despite our best endeavours, it is likely that some areas of the country will experience a reduction in service levels due to coronavirus-related absences at their local mail centre or delivery office.

We will continue to actively monitor this rapidly evolving crisis. We will keep talking to you. And, we will continue to focus on the delivery of our two priorities: i) safeguarding the health and wellbeing of our people and the communities we serve; and ii) delivering as comprehensive a service as possible at all times.

Thank you for your support and patience.

See more on coronavirus service updates at the link here: https://www.royalmail.com/d8/coronavirus-changes-service

Domestic
We will continue providing the best delivery service we can and protect the health of our people, and our customers. We have already made a series of adjustments to our parcel handling procedures. We are keeping our ways of working under review. There may be more changes in the coming days and weeks. We will keep you informed.

International

We are working with our airline and postal/courier partners across the globe to maintain services. The number of countries that we can access is changing daily.

Most major export routes remain open and we continue to accept and process mail. Specifically, Royal Mail’s international services to the USA remain operational.

There are significant delays to a number of countries right now due to a lack of available transport links and suspension of certain country’s postal operations. We strongly advise not to send items to destinations listed as ‘On suspension’ in the International Incidents Bulletin here.

Contingency plans

We have strong contingency plans in place to ensure mail is kept moving. The scale, vast network and business continuity expertise of our organisation means we have extensive experience in being able to quickly deploy plans so we continue to provide customers with access to our collection and delivery services, and their mail.

https://www.royalmail.com/coronavirus

March 24th Update:
We are following public health guidelines on social distancing and will be enforcing a 1-meter social distancing policy within our network. Due to this, we will be temporarily suspending label purchase and collections of packages greater than 15kg and recommend you remove them from your listing until further notice. We will continue to collect your <15kg shipments daily.

The health and safety of our drivers, associates, shippers and customers continues to be our top priority. Amazon will continue to monitor all local regulations and will update this communication in the event of changes. To find more information about how Amazon helps employees, communities, and customers affected by COVID-19 please visit the Amazon blog.

If you have any questions or would like to speak to one of our support team please contact shipper support via the Amazon shipping portal.

Please visit Amazon Shipper Central https://ship.amazon.co.uk/help/Whats-New#COVID19_Update to review the most up-to-date guidance and to speak to a Shipper Support agent about any specific questions.

In this critical global health crisis, our Logistics services and our worldwide network play a critical role, also in saving lives – whether it is by sending emergency medical equipment and supplies to healthcare workers; delivering necessity goods to private customers; or by finding solutions for companies to continue their operations.

Delivery in Europe

The areas in Italy that were closed off by the virus are now accessible again. Delivering and picking up shipments is possible. Note that many shops in Italy are closed. In that case shipments will be hold at the terminal. Keep an eye on track and trace and stay in contact with your recipient about his opening hours.

The shops are closed in France, it is currently not possible to send parcels to a DHL point. We temporarily disable this option in our shipping systems.

For all Spain it is now not possible to send to a DHL point and your shipments to the following postal code areas might be delayed: 8256, 8280, 8281, 8282, 8283, 8289, 8292, 8293, 8294, 8640, 8700, 8710, 8711, 8712, 8717, 8718, 8719, 8781, 8783, 8784, 8785, 8786, 8787, 8788, 8789.

In Austria, the following zip codes have been completely quarantined. We cannot pick up or deliver shipments here. We hold the shipments locally until they can travel along to their destination: 6450, 6452, 6456, 6458, 6553, 6555, 6561, 6562, 6563, 6580, 9844, 5542, 6762, 6763, 6764, 6767.

See DPD’s status updates here for the latest post codes affected.

Parcel volumes remain high but we are delighted to say service levels are at their highest ever and we are delivering Diamond Service levels of over 99.9%.
We’ve been reporting our highest ever service levels this week, but of course we recognise that this is due to two main factors – road usage is down by an estimated 75%-80% and so many more people are at home!

Protecting our workforce and your customers remains our top priority and we have implemented social distancing practices throughout our operation.

Our depots and hubs are high security environments, but we are now also using our CCTV technology to help keep our people safe. The technology is helping us study movements around the depots, to continuously improve the measures taken to protect our people and ensure social distancing at all times. For example, we have created new entrance and exit points to remove potential bottle necks and borrowed the concept of chevrons from the motorway network, to help keep people 2 metres apart on our walkways.

Contact free delivery

Contact free delivery is now our standard process and customers will not be asked to sign our handheld units.

Latest Update

• We have introduced a delivery wave program with drivers, creating a 10-minute gap to avoid too many drivers being together at critical times in the morning.
• We are implementing a Peak period, 5-6 day working structure that will give us maximum flexibility and allows for driver and warehouse absentees.
• Cleaning has been increased throughout the business as a preventative measure
• Full home working is being undertaken across the business for all roles that can work from home
• We’ve introduced measures to support our self-employed drivers should they need to self-isolate

London Update

Transport for London has announced there would be a partial shutdown of 40 London Underground stations from Thursday morning.

Therefore we have immediately implemented a response plan – which involves car sharing and hiring minibuses to support our people getting to work.

https://www.dpd.co.uk/content/products_services/service_updates.jsp

See more on the specifics of UPS service updates here.

Governments of most European countries have implemented various containment measures in an attempt to stop the spread of the Novel CoronaVirus. Limitations do not apply to the movement of goods and UPS continues to operate a regular service.

We are currently operating Monday through Friday and serving our customers as usual. Despite current challenges, we continue to service our customers as best we can. Current circumstances may cause some delays in transit. For example, new border controls, reduced air freight capacity in the market, and local protective regulations and quarantine measures may all impact service.

Within countries, some parcel deliveries may not be possible due to the closure of shops or businesses, or restrictions in various postcodes, in which case parcels will be returned to sender. Undeliverable parcels due to this emergency carry either of the below tracking statuses:

• C5 – Emergency
• DH – NO UPS CNTRL

As per government announcements, most shops have been ordered to close until further notice. Please note that as a result shipments to UPS Access Point™ locations could be impacted.

For parcels requiring a signature, our drivers can temporarily do this on behalf of the customer to avoid unnecessary contact via hand-held devices. We kindly request customers to open the door, accept the parcel and state their name for security purposes. Parcels that are not signed for will be marked with code CV19 plus 11 digits of the consignee’s name as proof of delivery.

Italy:

Saturday deliveries have been suspended.

Pick-ups and deliveries have been suspended in the following zip codes due to government restrictions (Red zones, areas not accessible) . Packages will be stored for 15 days.

Medicina: 40059

ARIANO IRPINO: 83031

SALA CONSILINA: 84036

Caggiano: 84030

Polla: 84035

ATENA LUCANA: 84030

Riccia: 86016

Pick-ups and deliveries are delayed due to local operating conditions in the following zip codes:

Modena: from 41010 to 41126

Genova: from 16010 to 16167

Spain:

Pick-ups and deliveries have been suspended in the following zip codes:

Igualada 08700

Santa Margarida de Montbui 08710

Odena 08711

Sant Marti de Tous 08712

Vilanova del Cami 08788

Austria:

Pick-ups and deliveries have been impacted in the following zip codes:

5542

5611 / 5612 / 5630 / 5632 / 5645

6553 / 6555 / 6561 / 6563 / 6580

6754 / 6762 / 6763 / 6767

6888

9844

France:

Pick-ups and deliveries have been impacted in the following zip codes:

07000 – 07099

07110 – 07999

26110-26190 / 26217 – 26900

Germany:

For the following zip codes, shipments must be dropped off with pre-printed labels.

41800 – 41899

52000 – 52599

Portugal:

Pick-ups and deliveries have been suspended in the following zip codes:

3880000 – 3880999

3885000 – 3885999

Signature Confirmation Update: For inbound mail deliveries, letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items will be handled as follows:

Items requiring signature on delivery will no longer be signed at the moment of handover to the recipient, for health, safety and security reasons. Instead, the postman will ask for the recipient’s name and will enter this information in the signature field of the handheld device or delivery manifest. This temporary measure came into force from Monday, 16 March 2020 and remains in effect until further notice. For delivery of items to a mail room, the addressee will receive a text message or telephone call. Deliveries to premises or areas needing to be closed down due to COVID-19 are suspended.

On March 18, 2020, the Postal Service™ received notifications from various postal operators regarding changes in international mail services due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

The Postal Service has so far experienced only minor operational impacts in the United States as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We do continue to have a temporary suspension of the guarantee on Priority Mail Express International destined for China and Hong Kong, which has been effective since Monday, Feb. 10, 2020, due to widespread airline cancellations and restrictions into this area. In addition, customers may see delays in mail and packages destined to China as well as from China, as well as to and from European countries subject to restricted passenger airline travel. The Postal Service is undertaking all reasonable measures to minimize the impact to our customers.

The following countries have suspended some or all mail services:

Cayman Islands: Cayman Islands Postal Service has advised that the government has suspended all international flights. Therefore, the processing of all letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items will be suspended from March 20, 2020, through April 12, 2020.

French Polynesia: OPT PF – FARE RATA has advised that it is currently unable to accept letter-post, parcel-post or EMS items until March 31, 2020.

Lebanon: LibanPost has advised that all passenger flights to and from Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport have been suspended until March 29, 2020. Owing to this situation, LibanPost will be unable to offer outbound mail services (letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items) to international destinations.

Maldives: Maldives Post has advised that it is suspending the processing of all inbound and outbound letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items until March 28, 2020.

Mongolia: Mongol Post, has advised that all international flights to and from Ulaanbaatar are suspended until March 30, 2020, or later. Mongol Post is temporarily closing its international mail center until April 1, 2020.

Tunisia: La Poste Tunisienne has advised that all international flights in and out of Tunisia have been suspended. Therefore, the processing of all letter-post, parcel-post and Express Mail Service (EMS) items will be suspended until sufficient transport capacity becomes available.

As a convenience for our customers, the Postal Service will continue to accept and process mail destined for the aforementioned countries. This mail will be held within our network and will be delivered once mail service is restored.

Additionally, the following countries have announced service disruptions:

Chile: CorreosChile has advised that the following service changes are in affect for letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items:

1. Owing to a lack of international air transport capacity, international outbound mail has been suspended to all countries except Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Uruguay;
2. International inbound mail addressed to Easter Island will no longer be accepted;
3. There will be delays in the processing and delivery of international inbound mail;
4. Signature on delivery for international inbound mail will be suspended and replaced by delivery methods that limit direct physical contact.

Germany: Deutsche Post has announced changes for all letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items requiring signature on delivery. Beginning March 13, 2020, items that would ordinarily require the addressee’s signature can now be deposited in the addressee’s mailbox or in a secure location on their premises, with signature by the mail carrier on their portable device. In cases where items are delivered to the recipient in person, the mail carrier will likewise sign on the recipient’s behalf.

Honduras: Empresa de Correos de Honduras (Honducor) has advised that the entire territory of Honduras is under quarantine until at least March 21, 2020, or later. As a result, Honducor significantly reduced its workforce across the logistics chain the distribution of international mail will be subject to major delays until the situation returns to normal.

Jamaica: Jamaica Post has advised that from March 18, 2020, through March 24, 2020, Jamaica Post will be implementing a restructured operations program and will be unable to guarantee delivery standards for letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items, owing to adjusted operating hours of post offices and postal agencies. Customers should expect delays.

Philippines: Philippine Postal Corporation has advised that an enhanced community quarantine has been imposed in Metropolitan Manila and rest of Luzon island and several areas on Visayas and Mindanao islands, effective through April 12, 2020. Philippine Postal Corporation it will operate as follows during the community quarantine:

1. International mail processing centers will maintain a skeleton staff, in order to accept incoming mail until the total lockdown of international air and sea transport on March 20, 2020.
2. All post offices in areas placed under quarantine are closed.

Romania: Poșta Română has advised that new travel restrictions have led to massive cancellations of international flights. Owing to the suspension of air services to a number of international destinations, Poșta Română‎ is facing difficulties sending international postal items, and delays are to be expected for all types of inbound and outbound letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items.

On March 16, 2020, the Postal Service™ received notifications from various postal operators regarding changes in international mail services due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

Australia: Australia Post has advised that written proof of delivery is suspended, until further notice, for inbound items.

Austria: Austrian Post has advised that significant delays are to be expected in the delivery of all inbound mail until April 14, or until regulatory measures are lifted. As a result, customers should expect delivery delays for all letters and parcels.

Cyprus: Cyprus Post has advised that significant delays are to be expected in the delivery of all inbound letter-post, parcel-post and Express Mail Service (EMS) items. Postal items that would ordinarily require written proof of delivery may, with the addressee’s consent, be deposited in the addressee’s mailbox or in a secure location on the addressee’s premises, with signature by the mail carrier.

El Salvador: Correos de El Salvador has advised that it will need to reduce its workforce across the logistics chain. As a result, customers should expect delivery delays for all letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items.

Lithuania: Lithuania Post, has advised that all letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items requiring signature on delivery will be delivered to customers indirectly. Consequently, it will not be mandatory for mail carriers to collect and provide written proof of delivery.

Netherlands: PostNL has advised that all letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items requiring signature on delivery will no longer be signed at the time of delivery. For these items, the mail carrier will ask the recipient for the last three digits of the recipient’s ID reference number, and this information will be entered by the carrier in the signature field on their handheld device. This temporary measure will be effective until further notice.

Saudi Arabia: Saudi Post has advised that all letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items requiring signature on delivery will be delivered to customers indirectly. The mandatory written proof of delivery will be suspended and instead delivery will be based on a code sent to the addressee’s mobile phone.

The service disruptions affect Priority Mail Express International® (PMEI), Priority Mail International® (PMI), First-Class Mail International® (FCMI), First-Class Package International Service® (FCPIS®), International Priority Airmail® (IPA®), International Surface Air Lift® (ISAL®), and M-Bag® items.

Our International service continues to operate; however, we are seeing some delays with countries which have restrictions in place, we are continuing to work alongside our partners and will update when and if the situation changes.

Final Mile Changes

Yodel is working closely with other parcel delivery companies to ensure that a common and consistent process is introduced. Until advised otherwise the following processes will be put in place to adhere to government guidelines for maintaining social distancing:

For all parcels which do not require a Prood Of Delivery and can be left in a safe place, the current safe place policy will be adhered to. Throughout this interim process drivers and couriers are not required to knock on the customers door if the carding process has been followed.

If a customer has used our Inflight service to request a safe place, the process above will be followed.
If no safe place is available or a Proof Of Delivery is required, our drivers and couriers will place the parcel on the customers doorstep, ring or knock on the customers door and then where safe to do so, retreat 2 meters away from the door. Where the customer answers the door, they will explain that they are making a delivery and ask the customer for confirmation of their surname. We have created a new dropdown option “Unable to sign Covid-19”. This will be selected and then the driver or courier will enter the customers surname.
If the customer does not answer the door, we will attempt to deliver to a neighbour, we will follow the standard neighbour delivery process, asking for the house number and the recipient’s surname. We will then enter the surname into the device and sign it “Covid-19”. We are looking at a longer-term solution for delivery to neighbours and will update on this as soon as this has been developed.
If the customer no longer wants to accept their goods, we will then follow the standard refused process by returning the parcel to the Service Centre.

All drivers and couriers have been briefed that under no circumstances should any parcel be left on a doorstep or in public view.
We have also reiterated that a calling card must be used for all safe place and neighbour deliveries so that your customers are kept fully informed.

Operational update

We are processing parcels as normal with the above precautionary steps now in place.

We are working with all our suppliers to prepare for a potential drop in staffing levels to ensure continuity in service.

All our preferred cleaning suppliers have confirmed they have good levels of stock and we have products available in all our sites to maintain good levels of hygiene. We have also put preparations in place for potential deep cleaning should the need arise following government guidelines

• Due to the crucial role we play in moving supply chains and delivering critical relief, FedEx is considered an essential business and may continue to operate under state of emergency and shelter in place orders recently issued in the U.S.
• FedEx has suspended our money-back guarantee for all FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight and FedEx Office services effective immediately until further notice.
• We’ve suspended Signature Required.

Taking steps to ensure safety

As the world adjusts to the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19), first and foremost, we are being guided by the recommendations of the CDC, WHO and other leading health organizations.

We are applying these recommendations to the more than 475,000 FedEx team members around the world who power our network. As such, we have taken a variety of actions, including:

• Educating team members about the virus and sharing resources on how to keep the workplace clean
• Encouraging team members to use good hygiene practices, including frequent handwashing
• Reinforcing education and hygiene with regular workplace communications and reminders
• Extending our safety precautions to the point of delivery
• Temporarily suspending signature required for most deliveries in the U.S.
  • Except for shipments with adult signature required, physical signature not required for:
    • FedEx Express (U.S. and Canada)
    • FedEx Ground (U.S. and Canada)
    • FedEx Freight (U.S.)
    • FedEx Office in-store (U.S.)
    • FedEx SameDay City (U.S.)
    • FedEx Onsite Retail Locations (U.S.)
  • Regularly disinfecting the equipment used to make deliveries
• Encouraging team members to closely monitor their health and seek medical attention if they develop flu-like symptoms
  • Any team member who reports or displays flu-like symptoms will be asked to stay home
• In FedEx Office stores, including locations in hotels, campuses and other retail locations:
  • Common customer areas like door handles, self-service copiers and counters are cleaned every 2-4 hours using disinfecting wipes and other disinfectant cleaners on larger surfaces
  • Team member breakrooms and meeting rooms are cleaned frequently
  • Our restrooms are stocked with lotion cleaner for hand washing, and there are hand sanitizing stations at print and shipping areas behind our counters

Following the recent outbreak of Covid-19 in the UK we’ve put in place a number of measures to protect our customers as well as our parcel people, so we can make sure that our business is as prepared as possible.

We would like to reassure you that we’re actively following all government guidelines as health and safety remains the top priority across our business to protect our customers and our people.

Public Health England has advised that people receiving parcels are not at increased risk of contracting the virus as it doesn’t survive long on non-metallic surfaces.

There is currently no impact on our parcel delivery services but you will see some differences in how your courier will go about delivering your parcel from now on as we reduce physical contact.

Protecting our customers

There’s a lot that is still unknown about the Coronavirus but we know it’s best to minimise physical contact to stop the virus spreading. Because of this, we’re encouraging all of our customers to choose their preferred safe place for deliveries by following the Track & Divert link in the parcel notifications we send.

If a safe place hasn’t been chosen but there is somewhere safe to deliver the parcel, we’ll leave it there, even if there’s someone in the property – we’ll take a photo which will be included in the delivery notification email.

If no safe place is available or a signature is required, we’ll knock on the door and step aside making sure the parcel is delivered safely. For those parcels requiring a signature, couriers have temporarily been given approval to confirm receipt on behalf of a customer; but only when that customer has answered the door and given them permission to do so. This has been put in place to minimise contact. If there is no answer, the parcel will be returned to our depot and we will re-attempt delivery 3 times.

As a preventative measure, we will not be handing over our hand-held devices to customers to capture signatures.

We’re encouraging our couriers to follow all government guidelines and take extra precautions by frequently wiping down regularly touched items such as handheld devices, mobile phones, handles and steering wheels.

Protecting our couriers

We’ve made a choice to do the right thing and have made a £1 million pound fund available for our self-employed couriers, to help support them if they need to self-isolate. We will also support them in finding someone to deliver on their behalf if they do not have a substitute and guarantee that their rounds will be kept open for them for when they return.

We’ve also advised our couriers to limit any personal contact such as handshakes, so please don’t take it personally.

Protecting our people

We’re communicating with all our parcel people regularly to update them of government guidelines, best practice handwashing and high standards of hygiene.

A dedicated mailbox for specific questions from our people has also been set up. We’ve also provided all our sites with additional hand washing equipment and sanitisers and we’re following government guidelines in relation to sick pay and self-isolation.

We will continue to do everything we can to support our customers and people so we can carry on delivering parcels.

Steps we are taking for a contact free delivery:

Divert your parcel to a safe place

We’re encouraging all of our customers to choose their preferred safe place for deliveries. If you have a tracking number for your parcel, you can go to the tracking section, choose ‘divert’ and select a safe place. This can also be done through our My Places app.

Automatic delivery to a safe place

If a safe place hasn’t been chosen but there is somewhere safe to deliver the parcel, we’ll leave it there – even if there’s someone in the property. We’ll take a photo, which will be included in the delivery notification email.

Steps our couriers are taking to avoid contact

If no safe place is available or a signature is required, we’ll knock on the door and step aside making sure the parcel is delivered safely. If there is no answer, we will return the parcel to the depot and re-attempt delivery on another day.

For those parcels requiring a signature, couriers have been temporarily given approval to confirm receipt on behalf of a customer; but only when that customer has answered the door and given them permission to do so.