Shoppers warned to order Christmas presents early or face delivery chaos
SHOPPERS are being urged to order Christmas presents early this year to avoid delivery backlogs.
Retail experts are predicting that more people will be ordering gifts online this year due to coronavirus.
To avoid overwhelming retailers, shoppers have been asked to start their Christmas shopping now instead of leaving it all until December.
The IMRG, the industry body for online retailers, warned that shops could face a 30% increase in online sales during the festive season.
If physical stores have to close, this increase could go as high as 50%.
However, the IMRG stresses that there's no evidence of stores running out of stock, or that there's a need for Brits to start panic buying - it's more a case of beating the rush.
Can I return a Christmas order that arrives late?
IT can be really frustrating if you order a Christmas present and it doesn't arrive on time.
If you want to return your gift, for example, because you had to buy something else, we explain your rights.
For presents ordered by the store's last delivery date - the one it advertises online - you will be entitled to your money back if you no longer want the item.
You'll need to have proof of when you placed your order, such as an email confirmation.
The retailer will also expect you to return the item. According to , the store you purchased the product from will usually be responsible for covering return costs, but this does depend on its terms and conditions, so read carefully.
If you want to keep the gift, you may be able to claim back some cash from the delivery costs. Contact the retailer to see what it can offer you.
If you paid extra for specific-day delivery, and it arrived after this date, the retailer should off you money back on the delivery cost.
Or at the very least, you'll get the difference in price between its standard delivery and premium delivery.
Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed online shopping sales in August were up 46.8% compared to February's pre-pandemic level - although online sales were 2.5% down from July.
Andy Mulcahy from the IMRG told the : "We think the volumes are going to be really very excessive this year.
"If you can spread out your shopping and do quite a lot of it in November, maybe even a bit of it now, then that would really help."
Last year, retailers including Amazon and Argos had last Christmas order dates of December 22 and December 23.
Other retailers, such as Ernest Jones, New Look and H Samuel, allowed customers to order Christmas presents up until December 20.
Last Christmas order dates for 2020 haven't been revealed by big retailers yet, although IMRG reckons we could see some stores bring forward their last order dates.
Andy told The Sun: "They will be keen to accept orders for as long as possible, but the key is to try to pull as much away from Christmas."
Online price tracker PriceSpy also told The Sun that retailers may take a "better safe than sorry" approach, and change their last delivery dates to cope with any increase in demand.
Ossie Bayram, commercial director at PriceSpy, said: "Retailers have increased their delivery service capacity in line with the events of recent months.
"There are still three months to go and spreading shopping over this time, will ensure both the best deals and a stress-free festive season."
Andy also reckons that most Black Friday sales will be online this year, although he stressed it's too early to say how many discounts will be online-only.
He said: "Just how big the growth will be depends on what happens with coronavirus.
"We could see a situation where stores are forced to close again, or where they can stay open but infection rates are high and people aren’t comfortable going out much."
Black Friday is the last major shopping even before Christmas - we've rounded up the predictions for when shops will start their sales.
It falls on November 27 this year, although retailers are expected to start sales up to three weeks earlier.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, agreed that it was wise for shoppers to start planning ahead.
She said: "Coronavirus is changing our daily life, and Christmas shopping will be no exception.
"The last-minute charge to the shops is simply not viable if social distancing is to be maintained, and online deliveries are likely to be running at capacity in the run up to Christmas."
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Shoppers are also being told there's no need to panic buy in supermarkets after reports claimed retailers were running out of stock.
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Supermarkets have been reassuring customers that there is plenty of stock, as well as online delivery slots.
In March, panic buyers stripped shelves of toilet rolls, pasta, eggs and flour and struggled to book delivery slots for online shopping.