CHRISTMAS shoppers in several Essex towns have been warned to expect delays to deliveries due to Covid and high demand.

Royal Mail says it may not be possible to commit to some of its scheduled deliveries in the affected areas but insists it is doing what it can to tackle delays.

A spokesman said: “In a small number of local offices this may temporarily not be possible due to local issues such as COVID-related self isolation, 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.

“We're sorry for any inconvenience and thank you for your understanding.”

The Essex towns and postcodes affected are:

  • Burnham on Crouch (CM0 8)
  • Chelmsford (CM1 to CM3)
  • Rayleigh (SS6)
  • Upminster (RM14)

Royal Mail says all of its other Essex offices are running as normal and it will continue to deliver post six days a week.

Bosses say the latest delivery dates for Christmas are: 2nd class – December 18 1st class – December 21 Special Delivery – December 23 Further information can be found on the Royal Mail website.