DELIVERY STATUS

Palletforce Statement 06/05/2021 (Pallet Delivery Service)

Over the last 12 months, as a company and an industry, we have risen and managed the many challenges created by the pandemic. As the country starts to open and return to normality the upsurge in instant demand through the retail, hospitality and a wide range of other sectors has placed a demand on distribution companies that far exceeds anything that has been experienced in recent times. Whilst this demand varies in different areas of the country it is widespread throughout the UK and through multiple distribution companies.

This upsurge in demand is likely to impact your delivery times and we advise you to take this into consideration when requesting your delivery date. Please be assured that we are doing all that we can to deliver your order as you have requested and appreciate your patience and understanding as we work together, to minimise any disruption to your delivery.

Freight Haulage Delivery Update 06/05/21

Every palletised order that we send out travels through one of the UK’s freight haulage networks, this is the most reliable, economic and safest way to effectively deliver tiles on a pallet, and a system employed by all UK tile suppliers.

In recent weeks there have been an unprecedented set of circumstances which has led to periods of delays in the network system. This has led to delays of up to 48hrs for orders to be received by customers, these issues are;

• A spike in demand across all delivery systems that has been driven by the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Further exasperation of the network's capacity in recent weeks due to bank holidays.
• A well publicised shortage of HGV drivers, driven by European drivers returning home post Brexit and the introduction of the IR35 legislation which restricts the use of agency drivers.
• A lack of new vehicle availability or HGV vehicle hire facilities caused by a parts shortage, even if enough drivers could be located.

Here at Total Tiles we are working very closely with our delivery partners and have added extra capacity to our support teams in order to manage the situation. However, we do expect some delays in the coming months as the transport companies address these issues.

We would ask our customers, where possible, that you allow a little bit of extra time in receiving your tiles and that if they are required urgently then you book a next day service as these services are less affected than the economy 2,3 or 4 day services.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and are working tirelessly to ensure the minimum of customers are affected during this period.

TPN Statement (Pallet Delivery Services)

As part of prevention measures against the risk of potential infection from the coronavirus, I am contacting you today to explain the action we have taken as a business and also to ask for your support in helping our efforts to minimise the potential risk from COVID-19.

In terms of our business, we are following the guidance for employers and business published by government and the health authorities. We are monitoring the advice on a daily basis and sending out regular updates to all our employees in line with any new advice or guidance issued by the authorities.

We have taken the necessary steps through communication and awareness to inform our employees of the general precautions for preventing people catching or spreading COVID-19 at work.

However, we also have to consider our duty of care to LGV drivers and the general public in minimising the risk of infection when delivering or collecting freight from yourselves and delivering to customers premises.

In this regard, therefore, we have taken the additional precaution of issuing all our LGV drivers with either anti-bacterial wipes or disposable gloves to use when on site. The advice also extends to the use of handheld e-pod devices, including mobile phones, as well as paper documents. We believe these additional prevention measures are in all of our best interests and can greatly help to reduce the risk of the spread of infection from COVID-19.

At the same time, we rely on you, our customers, to inform us of any special arrangements or restrictions on collection/delivery - a number of our customers have already advised us of the introduction of specific requirements for visitors, including our drivers, when coming on site.

In order to maximise the effectiveness of our prevention measures as well as minimise the disruption to normal operations, we would urge all customers to check when booking deliveries and advise us immediately of any restrictions or special arrangements brought in as a result of the coronavirus and which could impact our ability to complete the delivery or the health of our employees health.

We will continue to take all necessary precautions in line with government guidance in maintaining normal services to all our customers and provide further updates as necessary.

DPD Statement (Parcel Delivery Services)

At the point of delivery we are no longer asking customers to sign our handheld units and instead our drivers will sign it on their behalf. We will record the consignees name and a 'Delivered on Authority' message in the signature section of the unit.

With this new process you will still get your full track and trace functionality, giving you complete visibility of all your parcels.

This now forms our proof of delivery process for all deliveries until further notice.

We are doing everything possible to support our customers and our people so that we can minimise any disruption and continue giving you and your customers the best possible delivery experience.

Communication at this time is of critical importance and we will issue an update to this when required.

DPD, working hard to keep your business moving.

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