Locksmithing, home appliance servicing to be allowed as of Friday in Czech Republic

Prague, March 26 (CTK) – The ban on retail sales and services in Czechia over the coronavirus epidemic will no longer apply to locksmithing as well as repairs, servicing and installation of machines and domestic appliances as of 06.00 on Friday, under an updated measure released on the Health Ministry’s website today.

The operation of car wash shops will not be restricted either.

Since the beginning, the closure has not applied to food stores, drugstores, pharmacies and petrol stations.

The restrictive measures are to be valid until 06:00 on April 1 at least.

The ministry has also ordered the grocery operators to provide free single-use gloves or other hand protection for customers at the entrance.

The government adopted the original regulation on March 14 when it banned the operation of all restaurants, bars, retail shops and services, such as hairdresser’s and cosmetic studios, except for groceries, drugstores, pharmacies, opticians selling spectacles and contact lenses, petrol stations, tobacconists, shops with electronics and pet shops. Later it issued an exemption for car repair workshops, gardening and florist shops, but closed shops with electronics.

The government also banned the sales of accommodation services, with some exceptions, as well as the operation of driving schools and unlicensed taxi services as well as self-service launderettes and dry cleaners. Construction material shops remain open to professionals only who need to shop there for their work.

Government also lifted the closure of fabric and haberdashery stores so that people can buy material to make face masks as of March 17, aand allowed funeral services, real estate mediation and accounting and tax consultancy.

The operators of the opened shops and services are not entitled to state support to kurzarbeit and employees’ wages due to the restrictions.