We are now all feeling the impact of COVID-19 and here at Shiply we just wanted to assure our customers, the transport providers and our employees that your safety and wellbeing is, and always will be, our top priority. We have created this short guide to answer some of your most frequent questions about our service during this time.
Is it still safe to carry out and receive deliveries?
Following the Government’s recent announcements, the service we provide has been classed as essential and advice from Public Health England is that deliveries are still safe as the virus cannot survive for long on non-metallic surfaces. For these reasons we have made the decision to stay open as usual in this trying period.
We know that many people rely on our services both to find work and to have their items moved around the country. We feel that with the right precautions taken we can still help facilitate safe transport and delivery around the UK at a time when many need it more than ever.
You can read the official Government guidance page here.
How can risk be minimised when carrying out and receiving deliveries?
Whilst the virus itself cannot be carried by the items being delivered, there are still precautions and measures to consider when carrying out or receiving a delivery:
Request ‘no contact’ where possible. Whilst we acknowledge that many items delivered through our site are not possible to deliver with no contact, we do ask that if the goods are small enough to allow for this that you and the delivery driver arrange this through our messaging system.
Wash your hands before and after the delivery. You should be washing your hands before and after carrying out a delivery. If the item does require two people to move it, try and keep your distance as much as possible.
Do not carry out or receive any deliveries if you are a risk. If you or anyone you live with is displaying symptoms or has been in direct contact with someone who has Coronavirus then you must not carry out deliveries until your two-week isolation period is over. You should also not receive deliveries unless they are ABSOLUTELY essential (e.g. food and water). This is when we are most at risk of spreading and you should be minimising all forms of physical contact if you are self-isolating.
You can read the full NHS advice guidelines (including advice on how to properly wash your hands after deliveries) here.
What are Shiply doing to help?
We have been following the advice of the Government and as such our entire office has been working from home since 16/3/2020. You can rest assured however that we are all hard at work keeping the service running and support lines will still be operating from 9am-6pm Monday to Friday should you have any queries or concerns. Details to contact us can be found at https://www.shiply.com/contact.
We are also taking part in the ‘Help NHS Heroes’ scheme and are waiving fees on these deliveries for NHS purposes so that food and supplies can be delivered to those helping in the hospitals who need it most.
Please note that we are following all Government advice and guidelines closely and will update this page as soon as any new developments occur.
Stay safe, from all of us here at Shiply.