On the 4th January, a new national lockdown was announced. Stores classed as food retailers, corner shops, newsagents and off-licenses should remain open. If you are a food retailer, corner shop, newsagents or off-license, you have been identified as providing a key service. Now we're in the winter months, vulnerable people within your community need you more than ever so that they can continue to pay their bills and top up their gas and electricity.
Face-coverings are now mandatory in all shops across England, Wales and Scotland. This applies to both retailers and customers and is considered a legal requirement. Failure to comply could result in fines of up to £10,000.
Here is some guidance:
Essential retail stores that remain open must operate with social distancing and hygiene measures in place to protect staff, customers and the community.
Retailers should consider vulnerable people who are shielding as they will still need to pay bills and top-up cards. Additional services that retailers have been offering during the peak of the pandemic will still provide a lifeline to many as we approach the winter months.
If you're struggling to get to the bank because they've reduced their opening hours, remember that you can also do your banking with the Post Office.
The Post Office can accept all payments for a vast majority of banks and they are are still open as they have been identified as a key service.
You can find your nearest Post Office and take a look at their opening hours by using their Branch Finder.
In the meantime, we’d advise you to follow the guidelines given by the NHS and Public Health England in relation to maintaining hygiene standards in your store.
If you’ve re-opened your store, please get in touch by calling us on 01606 566 566 or email us at tellus@pzbp.co.uk.
This is so we can update our store locator and let your customers know that you’re back open for business.
Equally, if you have to close your store due to coronavirus, even if it’s just a temporary measure, then let us know.
That way, customers can see you are closed and find another store nearby. It may also be useful to hang a notice in the window for customers who cannot access the internet.
You can find a ‘sorry we are closed’ sign in our downloadable resources section below. When your store has reopened, let us know and we will add it back to the Store Locator.
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, many of you have told us that you’ve been struggling to find affordable PPE equipment. We are pleased to announce that you can now buy PPE bundles straight from SHOPSAFE...with Payzone.
SHOPSAFE...with Payzone is a new online shop that we will be launching over the coming weeks. Our website isn’t up and running yet but you can still place your order by calling our Helpdesk on 01606 566 566.
We hope that our new service will help to keep you, your staff members and your customers safe.
Find out more about the PPE equipment we have available by reading our blog.
Please click the link below the graphic to access and download each of the PDF files.
Adopting stringent hygiene measures in your store can help to protect you, your staff and your customers from Covid-19 and limit the chances of spreading the virus.
As an independent retailer during this period of uncertainty, you may be worried about the financial impact this could have on your business.
We've partnered with the ACS to provide our retailers with the most up to date advice and resources.
We update our Store Locator daily so that it reflects any store closures in the area. So, customers can still use our Store Locator to find their nearest Payzone retailer or Post Office. If your store closes due to the Covid-19 outbreak, please email us at tellus@pzbp.co.uk.
In the event of a local lockdown, food retailers, corner shops, newsagents and off-licences can remain open but all non-essential retailers will be ordered to close. If you close your store, please let us know by emailing us at tellus@pzbp.co.uk. If you remain open but make changes to your opening hours, get in touch so we can update our Store Locator.
Social distancing and hygiene measures should still be implemented in all shops. These include:
- Encouraging staff and customers to wash their hands frequently
- Stay 1 meter apart or more
- The use of PPE (face masks, gloves and protective till screens) for staff members is advised
- In England, Wales and Scotland, face coverings are mandatory for both retailers and customers
Yes. Our Helpdesk is still open 7 days a week as normal. So, if you need to place an order, please call 01606 566566 and we'll get them sent out to you.