Get holiday mail out the door soon, says Canada Post

All those holiday gifts need somebody to deliver them and chances are it’s Canada Post getting them to their destination.

“We see volumes increase drastically this time of year,” Bob Vibert, the manager of mail operations for Canada Post in Regina, said on the Greg Morgan Morning Show. “Black Friday and Cyber Monday certainly add to the excitement.”

Locally, Vibert said workers are delivering about 6,000 parcels every day. It’s a task that can be complicated by the winter weather.

“We haven’t had much snow, but it’s that freezing and thawing and that ice that creates the big hazard for us nowadays,” he said.

Vibert offered some tips on making sure holiday mail reaches its destination.

Because some people worry about having parcels stolen off their doorsteps, Vibert says Canada Post offers FlexDelivery for people who won’t be home. The service allows packages to be sent to a post office of the customer’s choice.

To make sure gifts reach the intended recipient by Christmas, Vibert urges people to mail them as soon as possible.

“You can send parcels as late as Dec. 20, but that would be premium service and (would) cost you a little more,” Vibert said. “We encourage people to mail early – the sooner, the better. There’s a lot of product in the network right now and (mailing early is) for that ease of mind.

“We will get it there, but I think who you’re sending it to will feel a lot better if it’s there a little early too.”

Canada Post is also running its program in which children can write letters to Santa Claus at the North Pole.

Vibert said those letters need to be mailed by Dec. 12 so there’s enough time to get a response in time for Christmas.