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A BRIDGWATER company is subsiding courier fees to reduce the risk of late Christmas deliveries caused by Royal Mail workers going on strike.
Hippychick, which creates products for parents and children, says it is facing reputational damage and paying refunds over late deliveries.
Members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) will strike on December 14, 15, 23 and 24 in a dispute over pay.
Royal Mail has said it is trying to minimise disruption for customers and has contigency plans in place to reduce delivery delays.
The postal service has also encouraged customers to purchase Christmas presents early by bringing its latest recommended posting dates forward.
Hippychick is covering part of the cost of courier deliveries to protect customers’ Christmas plans and reduce the risk of getting negative reviews.
The business will charge customers a flat fee of £5 for all courier deliveries before Christmas, regardless of the size of the parcel.
A Hippychick spokesperson said: “Hippychick is a family business, utterly committed to offering our customers the best experience when they purchase from us.
“If delivery of their purchases are delayed, as they have been in recent weeks due to the Royal Mail strikes by more than two weeks, it reflects badly on us.
“The impact on the business is already manifesting itself in negative reviews and reputation damage, not to mention the hefty refunds for packages that fail to arrive.
“We therefore have no choice at this stage but to subsidise courier delivery charges for Christmas gifts.
“We can’t expect our customers to pay full whack courier charges in a cost-of-living crisis when it’s no fault of their own.
“We are going to pick up all surplus courier costs ourselves which will come straight off our bottom line.
“We are doing everything to help them, but who is stepping up to help small businesses like ours?”
If you’re sending items for Christmas, we have some latest recommended posting dates coming up. Please post as early as possible to ensure your Christmas letters and parcels reach their destination in good time.
For more info, visit: https://t.co/kdZ6jp6tlC pic.twitter.com/qjvPBktqQY
— Royal Mail (@RoyalMail) December 2, 2022
On strike days, Royal Mail will deliver as many Special Delivery and Tracked 24 parcels as possible and prioritise Covid test kits and medical prescriptions.
It will not be delivering letters (except those sent via Special Delivery) or Door to Door marketing material.
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We are doing all we can to deliver Christmas for our customers and minimise the impact of damaging industrial action.
“The CWU is striking at our busiest time, holding Christmas to ransom for our customers, businesses and families across the country.
“We have well developed contingency plans in place to minimise delays and keep people, businesses and the country connected.
“However, we cannot fully replace the daily efforts of our frontline workforce on days the CWU are taking strike action.
“We apologise to our customers and strongly urge them to post early for Christmas.
“In this regard we have recently brought forward our latest recommended posting dates to keep mail moving.”
