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WE all rely on Royal Mail to keep the nation connected.
But do posties deliver our letters and parcels at the weekend?
1
Does Royal Mail deliver on a Saturday?
Royal Mail does make deliveries on Saturdays – but it depends on where you live and what kind of mail you are expecting.
The following are sent out on a Saturday:
- 1st Class Parcels
- 1st Class Signed For Parcels, Large Letters and Letters
- 2nd Class Parcels
- 2nd Class Signed For Parcels, Large Letters and Letters
- Royal Mail 24 Parcels and Large Letters
- Royal Mail Tracked 24 & 48 Parcels and Tracked Letterboxable formats
- Royal Mail Tracked Returns
- Special Delivery Guaranteed by 9am (all formats)
- Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm (all formats)
- International import tracked services (all formats)
Details on Saturday service locations can be found on the Royal Mail website.
However, Saturday letter deliveries – and signed-for parcels – are reportedly under threat as part of a major Royal Mail shake-up.
The plans are part of a review by the service’s new boss to compete against Amazon and a slump in demand for letters.
The six-month review aimed at cost-cutting will examine if customers want expensive tracked, signed-for and special deliveries.
A final decision is set to be made next year.
What time does Royal Mail deliver on a Saturday?
People living in towns and cities should receive their post by 3pm.
This extends to 4pm for those in more rural areas.
Does Royal Mail deliver on a Sunday?
Traditionally, Royal Mail offered no postal service on Sundays.
It piloted Sunday deliveries in 2014, but decided against rolling it out permanently.
However, in March 2021, it was announced that Royal Mail would re-trial the service in response to unprecedented pressure caused by Covid-19.
A whopping 496 million parcels were delivered by Royal Mail in the three months to December 27, 2020.
Nick Landon, chief commercial officer at Royal Mail, said: “The last year has reset so many customer expectations and the desire for even more convenience, and even more frequent parcel deliveries has certainly been one of them.”
It has not yet been confirmed whether this will be made permanent.
Royal Mail no service days
The postal service operates round the clock throughout most of the year.
But there are a handful of days when no delivery and collection services are offered:
- New Year’s Day
- Good Friday
- Easter Monday
- Early May Bank Holiday
- Spring Bank Holiday
- Summer Bank Holiday
- Christmas Day
- Boxing Day
- Christmas Day
- Boxing Day
What types of delivery services does Royal Mail offer?
Royal Mail offers a variety of UK, international and business services.
These include:
- Royal Mail Tracked 24 – best for items which need delivering urgently
- Royal Mail Tracked 48 – tracking for peace of mind
- Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed by 9am – for those on a tight schedule or posting valuable items
- Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm – people with a little more time
- Royal Mail Signed For 1st Class – signature on delivery
- Royal Mail Signed For 2nd Class – a slower signature on delivery service
- Royal Mail 1st Class – standard next-day service
- Royal Mail 2nd Class – for less pressing post
- Royal Mail Same Day – super-fast same-day service
- Parcelforce – for sending items up to 30kg
