Royal Mail has warned of 22 delivery offices in the UK that are experiencing disruption in the run-up to Christmas.
The postal service says it is working to minimise delays to the delivery of presents and cards - but admits it may not be able to offer a full service in some places.
Royal Mail said the disruption is being caused by “ COVID -related self isolation, high levels of sick absence, resourcing, or other local factors”.
It comes after the BBC reported that absence levels at the postal giant are almost double those seen in 2018.
A source said the internal situation is "horrific" and claimed: "It's much worse than a normal Christmas."
Royal Mail updates its website with the latest delays so you can see if there are any issues in your area.
We've also listed all the affected places in the list below.
Royal Mail disruption - is your town affected?
Royal Mail confirmed it is experiencing disruption in the following places on Monday, December 20:
- Belfast West DO (BT10 - BT12 and BT17)
- Bredbury DO (SK6)
- Burnham On Crouch DO (CM0 8)
- Chelmsford DO (CM1 to CM3)
- East Dulwich (SE22)
- Finsbury Park DO (N4 and N15)
- Gerrards Cross DO (SL9)
- Harold Hill DO (RM3)
- Havant DO (PO9-10)
- Henfield DO (BN5 and BN44)
- Hornsey DO (N8)
- Longton DO (ST3 and ST11)
- Northwich DO (CW8 to CW9)
- Rayleigh DO (SS6)
- Shrewsbury DO (SY1 to SY5)
- South Croydon DO (CR2)
- St. Helens DO (WA9 to WA11)
- Sydenham DO (SE26)
- Upminster DO (RM14)
- Upton DO (CH30 and CH49)
- Warrington DO (WA1 to WA2 and WA4 to WA5)
- Willesden DO (NW10 and NW26)
The postal service has 1,200 offices, so most of its operations remain unaffected by the disruption.
Have you been caught out by last Royal Mail delivery dates? Let us know in the comments below.
A notice on the Royal Mail website reads: “Deliveries are operating as normal across most of the country.
"We aim to deliver to all addresses we have mail for, six days a week.
"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.”
Regardless of any disruption, you'll want to make sure you get your presents and cards sent out before the last Royal Mail postage dates.
To make sure your presents turn up to your loved ones in time, it is worth getting them in the post early - especially if they are going overseas.
Earlier this month, The Mirror reported that Britain’s parcel delivery firms are failing on standards with Hermes falling bottom of the table according to a new report.
