Attention online shoppers: UPS is planning a move that could make buying presents around the holidays a little pricier this year.
The delivery company announced that for the first time ever, it will charge an extra fee to deliver packages during certain weeks in November and December.
Ground shipping will cost an extra 27 cents the week before and the week after Thanksgiving — just in time for all those Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.
And procrastinators, take note — the surcharge will apply once again the week before Christmas.
During that last week rush period, UPS will also charge an 81-cent additional fee for next-day air delivery and a 97-cent fee for two- or three-day air shipping.
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The company says these price bumps will help it pay for the extra planes, trucks and employees it needs to deliver millions of packages during the holiday season.
But it could be a big headache for online retailers that depend on UPS to handle their holiday shipments.
As The Wall Street Journal points out, these retailers have three choices — raise their shipping prices, increase their product prices or take on the extra costs themselves.
During the peak holiday season, UPS ships about 30 million packages a day.
