As of Saturday, April 4, 30 postcode areas are experiencing delays to their mail. This follows a day with no Royal Mail service in England, Wales and Northern Ireland due to it being Good Friday. There will also be no deliveries or collections of mail made in the UK on Monday, April 6, as it is Easter Monday.
Royal Mail said: “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 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.”
It added: “We’re sorry for any inconvenience and thank you for your understanding.” Currently, there are delays in areas such as Birmingham, Grimsby, Lichfield and Pontyclun.
Despite it being Easter weekend, Royal Mail’s usual weekend delivery and collection services are taking place today. Its Customer Service Points are open so people can collect items.
On Easter Sunday, Royal Mail says its Sunday parcel deliveries are expected to take place. Just last week, its owner Daniel Kretinsky addressed MPs regarding Royal Mail’s delays. He said: “Of course I am deeply sorry for any letters that arrive late.”
However, he refuted claims that Royal Mail’s record for late letter arrivals was worsening. Speaking to the Commons Business select committee, Mr Kretinsky said: “It is not perfect, but it is not catastrophic.”
Customers have been encouraged to stock up on stamps this weekend before the price increase on April 7. First Class stamps will rise to £1.80 and Second Class to 91p. The cost of a First Class stamp in 2020 was 76p.
- Royal Mail’s usual weekend delivery and collection services are expected to take place Customer Service Points are open.
Sunday, April 5 (Easter Sunday)
- Sunday parcel deliveries are expected.
Monday, April 6 (Easter Monday)