When to mail gifts, cards for Christmas Day arrival

‘Tis the gift-giving season and Canada Post wants to ensure you remember to ship your parcels off on time.

Alice Lafferty, general manager of domestic parcels and customer experience with Canada Post, said the company is delivering packages within Canada right up to Dec. 23.

However, if you’re sending a parcel abroad, the deadline is Dec. 12.

“You can send a priority right up to Dec. 20, but you’re going to pay more to send that out,” Lafferty told the 980 CJME Morning Show.

Dec. 18 is the last day for Christmas cards being sent within Canada, and Dec. 12 for cards going abroad.

Christmas is a busy time for Canada Post, with about 3,000 additional workers hired to help during the holiday season.

“We’ve got millions of packages we are delivering every day, 1.3 million a day, and thousands of tractor-trailers pulling up to retailers across the country.”

Online shopping tips

Lafferty said they’ve noticed many people are shopping online.

“People are looking for the great price, but they also have to pay attention to where that item is coming from and take a look at some of the shipping details.”

She said one of the most important things is to know the retailer, know if the item is in stock, if there is a set delivery date and if there is a delivery guarantee.

“You do not want to be stuck on Christmas Eve, you want peace of mind to know that item is coming to you.”

She also warned to pay extra attention if someone is placing an order from somewhere overseas.