Merry Christmas! While post offices and federal offices are closed on Christmas Day (but not Christmas Eve), what about other forms of mail delivery? Are FedEx, Amazon, and UPS delivering on Christmas Eve and Day, 2020? Read on for more details.
UPS on Christmas Eve
UPS is delivering on Christmas Eve but not on Christmas Day. According to the website, on Christmas Eve all delivery services are available. However, there is no ground service pickup, and air and international air pickup is only available if prearranged by December 18.
UPS Freight is closed on Christmas Eve and delivery is only available if scheduled in advance.
Some UPS stores may have modified business hours for the holiday, so you’ll want to check in advance. If you want to know if your UPS store is open, then you’ll need to call. You can use the store locator here to find a store near you.
UPS Express Critical is available.
UPS on Christmas Day
UPS is not delivering on Christmas Day. According to the website, all UPS Store locations are closed and there is no pickup or delivery service. UPS Freight is also closed and delivery is only available if scheduled in advance.
UPS Express Critical is available. What is UPS Express Critical? According to UPS, the service provides “a broad range of urgent transportation options ranging from lightweight to heavyweight shipments around the world.” So this is specifically for time-sensitive shipments delivered by air, surface, charter, hand carry, international, secure, inside precision (white glove services), and value-added services with specialized equipment.
The holidays where UPS is typically closed (except for UPS Express Critical) include Easter, New Year’s, Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.
FedEx on Christmas Eve
According to their holiday schedule, FedEx Express has modified services on Christmas Eve and FedEx Offices have modified hours. So you’ll want to check first before heading over to make sure your local store is open. Check your local store’s hours here.
Delivery services, however, are open and running as normal. FedEx Freight is closed.
FedEx on Christmas Day
According to their holiday schedule, all of FedEx’s services except FedEx Custom Critical are closed on Christmas Day.
Amazon on Christmas Eve & Christmas Day
Amazon can deliver for Christmas Eve. The site is offering same-day delivery in some locations on Christmas Eve, so you’ll need to check the website for what’s available in your region. (Amazon doesn’t typically deliver on Christmas Day, although there might be exceptions depending on what options a third-party seller offered.) Amazon’s blog post notes that you can shop “millions of items with delivery until Christmas Eve.” The blog also notes: “Members in thousands of cities and towns across 47 major metropolitan areas can shop for millions of items on Christmas Eve and receive them the same day with Prime Free Same-Day Delivery.”
Unfortunately, mail delivery has been delayed all over the country because of increased demand and many employees being out sick from COVID-19, so if your Amazon delivery is dependent on USPS, it might be delayed. The U.S. Postal Service’s website says it’s experiencing delays due to “unprecedented volume increases and limited employee availability due to the impacts of COVID-19. We appreciate your patience and remain committed to delivering the holidays to you.”
On December 21, The Washington Post warned that millions of packages might arrive late because 19,000 postal workers were out of work due to the pandemic. So if your package hasn’t arrived yet and it’s Christmas Day, it doesn’t mean it was lost. The USPS is doing the best it can right now, but many packages and Christmas gifts might be arriving after Christmas.
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Do FedEx, Amazon & UPS Deliver on Christmas Eve & Day 2020?