The Earplugs Files – News from Snorestore

Just a v quick reminder that this week sees some important last posting dates if you want to get your Snorestore stuff before Christmas.

1) Second Class post is now no longer an option as the deadline for posting Second Class Royal Mail items was Saturday 17th December

2) First Class and First Class recorded orders must be placed by 2pm on Tuesday 20th December

3) Next Working Day (Special Delivery) orders must be placed by 2pm on Thursday 22nd December

4) If you’re taking things down to the wire, then if you use the Saturday delivery option and we receive your order by 2pm on Friday 22nd December, then your item(s) will arrive on Saturday 23rd.

5) Airmail: it’s too late now to guarantee that any items sent to Europe or beyond will arrive by Christmas. Sorry. You can still order of course, just please don’t expect your stuff to be with you by 25th December.

6) Er that’s it.

Now we’re into December, it feels we can legitimately remind you that there are only a set number of days left before Christmas a) to order your Snorestore stuff and b) to get it delivered. Don’t miss out – order sooner rather than later and keep your stress levels down.

Snorestore will be dispatching every day before Christmas up to and including Friday 23rd December. After Christmas, we will not be able to send anything until Wednesday 28th December as the two preceding days are Bank Holidays in England.

Anyway, here are the last posting dates as published by Royal Mail:

UK
Sat 17th December: Second Class and Second Class Recorded Signed For™
Tue 20th December: First Class and First Class Recorded Signed For™
Thu 22nd December: Special Delivery™
Fri 23rd December: Special Delivery™ with Saturday Guarantee

Airmail
Mon 5th December: South & Central America, Caribbean, Africa, Middle East, Asia, Far East (including Japan), Australia and New Zealand
Fri 9th December: Eastern Europe, USA and Canada
Mon 12th December: Western Europe

British Forces Post Office (BFPO)
Fri 2nd December: Airmail to Operational BFPOs
Thu 15th December: Airmail to Static BFPOs

While Snorestore staff work on Bank Holidays, a lot of Britain’s infrastructure doesn’t. This isn’t only trains and tubes (forget trying to go anywhere by public transport on a Bank Holiday), it also means couriers and Royal Mail.

So, if you order something from us on a Bank Holiday, even if you choose “Next Working Day” delivery, you’re not going to get it the next day. Just can’t happen.

At Easter it’s even worse: you have two Bank Holidays straddling the Easter weekend*. So, any orders received by us from about 2 o’clock on Maundy Thursday, can’t get into the Royal Mail system until the following Tuesday. With an earliest possible arrival day on your doormat of Wednesday.

Confused? We’re not, and we hope you’re not either.

*in England. Scotland is different again.

You see? No sooner did we post that there was a glimmer of hope in the postal strikes than the union calls off tomorrow and Monday’s action. The power, the power …

A glimmer of hope has appeared in the gloom that is the Royal Mail v. CWU postal dispute. Could a deal be on the table? To be honest, we’re not counting our chickens as we have been here before. But it’s nice to dream.