Published Date:
28-Dec-2010
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Many are struggling to cope with a backlog of deliveries, as a result.

Couriers including Parcel Force and Home Delivery Network have also been affected, as well as Boots and M&S.

Christmas is the busiest time of the year for online shopping, with an estimated £6.4bn spent over the festive period.

The Tesco Direct website has stopped taking orders from customers in Scotland, saying it could not guarantee Christmas deliveries, while Sainsbury's suspended deliveries for Scotland.

Tesco said its priority was to deliver goods which had already been ordered. Grocery deliveries are not affected.

Asda Direct warned it was unable to deliver large items, such as furniture, before Christmas, and said it had stopped taking orders for in-store collection in the run up to 25 December.

The online shopping sites Amazon and Firebox are suffering similar problems, with Firebox saying next-day delivery was not currently guaranteed.

Boots has also suspended its next day service, although the chain's store collection and standard home delivery services are still available.

And Marks & Spencer are not accepting any home delivery orders for Scotland, due to a week-long backlog.

A statement on the Tesco Direct website reads: "We apologise for any inconvenience, but unfortunately we are currently unable to take any new orders in Scotland and the Scottish Isles.

"This is due to the adverse weather conditions causing a build-up of orders. However, if you have already placed an order we will do our very best to deliver your items as soon as possible."

Tesco took the decision as the courier company Yodel battled to clear a 14-day backlog of parcels.

Sainsbury's website said: "We have temporarily suspended Standard Delivery for Scotland and some parts of North-East England."

In a statement on the Parcel Force website over the weekend, the delivery company said it would not be accepting any parcels for delivery in its Glasgow, Edinburgh, Perth and Aberdeen centres, until it was "confident" it could honour Christmas deliveries.

"Whilst we will continue to deliver as many parcels each day as we possibly can, if we accept more parcels for the affected areas it will make recovery from the current position exceedingly difficult," said the company.