LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Now that Thanksgiving is over, people will turn their attention to the Christmas season. That includes sending gifts and cards to loved ones in the mail.
Thanksgiving to Christmas is always peak season for delivery companies, but with the spike in online shopping due to COVID-19, USPS is expecting a busy month.
The Postal Service suggests you get your cards and packages to the mailbox with plenty of time before Christmas.
“We always encourage customers to mail early, but with a significant increase it becomes more important,” Kentuckiana District Postal Service Spokesperson Susan Wright said.
USPS is preparing for a higher volume of mail this year. But these workers are ready, and have been getting ready for a while.
“The Postal Service starts preparing for the holiday season the day after the holiday, we start preparing for the next year,” Wright said.
USPS hires additional employees and even does some Sunday deliveries during this peak season. To make sure your packages and letters make it to the recipient by Christmas, there are a few dates to remember.
All First-Class Mail like letters should be mailed by Dec. 18.
Mail your packages and Priority Mail by Dec. 19.
You can mail your Priority Mail with Express Service by December 23, but it will come with some additional costs.
“We have all hands on deck as we do every peak season every year,” Wright said.
Depending on where your package is going, FedEx recommends sending packages by Dec. 9. There are options for 2-day delivery and overnight, which can of course be sent by Dec. 22 and Dec. 23, respectively.
UPS says packages should be sent by Dec. 15 to arrive by Christmas. Similar to the other companies, UPS offers 3-day, 2-day and next day delivery. Those delivery options do cost more, and increases in shipping demand could always alter the schedule.
USPS is also hiring about 100 city carrier assistants in Louisville. If you’d like to apply you can visit this link.
Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the WHAS11 News app now. For Apple or Android users