It's frustrating when a letter either arrives late or doesn't arrive at all. More and more Germans are angry about it. In September alone, almost 5,000 postal complaints go to the Federal Network Agency. Criticism has also come from politicians.
Billions of letters are sent to Germany's consumers every year. It's frustrating when they arrive late or not at all. Many people at the Federal Network Agency are venting their anger. In September, almost 5,000 postal complaints were received, the Bonn authority said on request. There were thus a total of around 11,500 in the third quarter. The number is unusually high, as a comparison with earlier, longer periods shows: In the first half of 2022 there were around 8,900 complaints and 15,100 in the whole of the previous year.
The vast majority of complaints this summer related to letters and only a few cases to parcels. From the point of view of the Federal Network Agency, the grievance was so blatant that the authority initiated 12 tests in September. These all related to letters and none to parcels. In August, the Federal Network Agency had already initiated 14 such checks, 13 on letters and one on packages.
In the end, these exams are just a written warning. The regulatory authority cannot impose sanctions; there is no real means of pressure here. The possibility for consumers to complain relates to the entire domestic postal and parcel industry. The criticism can therefore not only mean Deutsche Post, but also its competitors. However, since this summer it was mainly about letters and not about parcels, it is obvious that the vast majority of complaints are directed at Deutsche Post: The yellow giant has a market share of around 85 percent in the German letter segment.
In mid-September, the Bonn-based group spoke of "irregularities in delivery" in the summer months of July and August, citing a high level of sick leave due to corona and the shortage of skilled workers. A company spokeswoman said at the time that the operational situation was now "stable again". However, the September figures now available allow the assumption that the problems with mail delivery have still not been resolved. The Post did not want to comment on the September level of complaints, which is significantly higher than in July and August.
In view of the high number of complaints, criticism of the Post also came from politics. The FDP member of the Bundestag Reinhard Houben called on the company to finally tackle the problem with determination. "The staffing level is obviously far too thin, Swiss Post urgently needs to change that and hire more employees as quickly as possible," said the Liberal.
Around a billion letters are sent in Germany every month. If you put this amount in relation to the current complaints, the number is negligible. However, the significant increase can certainly be understood as an indicator that something is amiss. Especially since probably only a small part of the people who wait a long time or even in vain for a letter bother to contact the Federal Network Agency.
