Belgium
As a result of the implementation of a more restrictive lockdown this week, the volumes that Belgium Post (Bpost) is handling in their sorting centers have drastically surpassed the forecast and they are currently facing some delays.
Their team is doing the upmost necessary to address and improve the situation and will keep informed of the progress.
Czech Republic
The designated operator of the Czech Republic, Česká Pošta s.p., wishes to inform that the Czech Republic has been hit with the second wave of the coronavirus. A 30-day state of emergency for the entire country was officially declared on 5 October 2020 by the Government of the Czech Republic. On Friday, 30 October, this state of emergency was extended to 20 November.
Wide-ranging restrictions have come into force, including the mandatory closure of shops and establishments of providers of selected services. Česká Pošta is continuing to provide postal services to the extent possible; however, given the worsening situation in the country, quality of service for all types of inbound and outbound mail (letter post, parcel post and EMS) cannot be guaranteed.
The impact is expected to last until the end of the epidemic. For this reason, a situation of force majeure remains in place with respect to quality of service.
Greece
Hellenic Post ELTA (GR) wishes to share the following:
as of tomorrow morning, Saturday 07/11/2020 the whole Greece territory will enter in a lockdown situation due to Covid-19.
This will have direct effects on both domestic and international mail collection and delivery.
Hellenic Post ELTA will do their best in order to minimize these effects and will keep informed on the situation.
Italy
The designated operator of Italy, Poste Italiane, wishes to inform that, based on the new measures put in force by the Italian Government to minimize the spread of COVID-19, Poste Italiane has restored the addressee’s signature upon delivery of parcels and registered and insured items whenever the addressee’s condition is fully compliant with the preventive measures in place.
Poste Italiane is committed to adopting different delivery procedures, agreed with the addressee, in the event of specific situations related to the current health emergency. With regard to legal acts, if the addressee’s condition does not allow safe delivery, a notice of delivery with instructions for item collection will be placed in the addressee’s mailbox. Quality standards for all products will continue to be affected by this force majeure until further notice.
Moreover, owing to the new wave of the pandemic, certain business categories have been closed or are operating with limited opening hours, and restrictions may be applied to postal service in critical areas. Poste Italiane is constantly monitoring the situation and timely updating the dedicated section of its website, available at www.poste.it/emergenza-
Maldives
The designated operator of the Maldives, Maldives Post, informs that the processing of all inbound mail (letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items) is now back to normal as of 1 November 2020, although the country has not yet been declared free of COVID-19.
However, acceptance of outbound mail (letter-post, parcel-post and EMS) for some countries is still temporarily suspended, in cases where the designated operators concerned are still not accepting inbound international postal items, or where flights from the Maldives are limited or cancelled.
Thailand
The designated operator of Thailand, Thailand Post, would like to inform that, as capacity remains limited owing to the reduced number of outbound flights, transit services (both open and closed) for all categories of mail (letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items) remain suspended.