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All airmail services – including Speedpost priority service – to the United Kingdom and destinations that transit via the UK have been suspended until further notice, due to the suspension of flights going there from Singapore, according to SingPost in an announcement last Wednesday.
Speedpost Express and Speedpost Economy are still available, as is surface mail service.
In response to queries by The Straits Times, a spokesman for SingPost said that Speedpost Express is fulfilled by a third-party courier service with a dedicated air transport network, and hence is not affected by the suspension of air services.
He said: “Airlines have gradually resumed service since the beginning of this week, which means that we will be resuming service to the UK very soon.
“However, customers should note that delays may be expected due to capacity constraints and local conditions in the UK.”
ST understands that affected SingPost services to the UK are expected to resume tomorrow.
Delivery of airmail takes three to 12 business days, while surface mail takes three to 17 weeks.
British postal service Royal Mail Group has also made changes to its delivery process since March last year, such as allowing an electronic acknowledgement of items in difficult circumstances as opposed to signature on delivery.
According to a service status update on the SingPost website, Royal Mail Group said it can “no longer guarantee service delivery standards, in view of the UK government introducing a series of measures, including self-isolation, social distancing, advising people to work from home and restricting travel with a view to minimising the spread of Covid-19”.
Speedpost is SingPost’s express delivery service, offering delivery of documents, parcels and freight within Singapore as well as internationally.
Deliveries by Speedpost Express take about one to three working days, while Speedpost Priority takes about two to 14 working days for delivery to major cities.
Speedpost Economy deliveries are shipped and take three to 15 working weeks.
The worsening coronavirus situation in the UK has led to bans and restrictions on travel from the UK.
Long-term pass holders and short-term visitors with recent travel history to the UK have been barred from entering Singapore since 11.59pm on Dec 23, following the discovery of a new highly infectious coronavirus strain in the UK.
According to SingPost’s website, postal services to other areas, such as Hong Kong and the United States, have also been disrupted due to the pandemic.
