Problem with the [Swiss] Post

Daily Life, Swiss News and General Topics
1
Hello everybody,

I have an issue with Swiss post. Within the past few weeks, I bought a pair of shoes and a new iphone 5C through internet.

The items were delivered by Swiss post and the seller has provided the following two tracking numbers for them:

99.42.121613.00003365

99.00.640300.04683377

If you check the delivery status, both of the parcels were delivered on 20th of December at 11:19 and 11:20 respectively. For iphone it says delivery to letter box and for the shoes it says delivered by!

The problem is that I have not received anything. At first I thought that a theft has happened, but then the point that both of the parcels could not be accommodated in a small letter box drew my attention. The postman either put them outside of the box or returned them to the post office without noticing me. I have sent an email to the post yesterday but received no reply yet.

What is your suggestion? Should I go to the Police or wait for the post reply? I did not go to Post office since I only know Englsih and it makes communicating difficult.

Thank you in advance,

SMHH

2
They were closed yesterday, so I'm guessing they haven't seen your mail yet.

Can't a friend or a neighbour who speaks the local language go with you to the post office? Your parcels are probably there.

I'd suggest a visit to the post office before thinking about involving the police

3

Are you sure a neighbour hasn’t taken them in for you? It’s not that usual with SwissPost, but they may have given them to a neighbour.

They’re usually pretty good about notifying you if they couldn’t deliver something. Did you get an orange headed slip in your post from that day? It would say that they couldn’t deliver and that you could collect the package from such and such a day.

4
Thank you both. I live in a building with close to 50 apartments and literally do not know any neighbor. As I said, I only know English and, therefore, can not communicate with the neighbors.

I expected to have some orange notice, but there is nothing. I was careful to check everyday for these notices since I knew they should arrive soon, but there was nothing, no parcel no notice.

5
Perhaps some generous soul in the forum would volunteer to serve as an interpreter?

Sorry, wrong side of the röstigraben

6
I will go to the post office tomorrow. Maybe somebody could speak English. The problem is that Renens is a small city and I had Language problems before. I will post the result.

7
It is not a police matter unless you see someone wearing the shoes you bought. Not sure how you will know if someone is using your new phone.

I cannot understand why sellers send packages containing expensive items without requiring a signature. It costs an extra few francs to ensure someone signs for the packages.

Of course with the tracking numbers you should definitely go the local post office. While there you can call the main number to the post office and ask for someone who speaks English and is willing to translate the situation to the local post office person.

Also, packages are insured up to chf 500. It is up to the seller to make a claim for non delivery. If you paid by credit card for the two items, you should contact the credit card company and inform them that you have not received the items.

Good luck !

8
Hello:

I'm in Lausanne, and speak French, and would be happy to help.

Send me a pm and I'll give you my phone number, and maybe even visit the post office with you if necessary.

You may well find, though, that someone at the post office will also speak English.

Good luck

9
Hello,

Thank you for comments, tips and very generous offer to help. I went to Renen's post office today and found a lady who could barely speak English. She did not quite understand me and suggested to go to the police at the end!

I then called the Swiss Post's customer center and asked for somebody who could speak English. Fortunately, he was a very nice and well informed man. He agreed that the letter box is too small for both of the parcels according to their recorded dimensions. He attributed two reference numbers to the items and asked few questions regarding the price, seller information, etc. He then told me to wait for post's decision on my case, because it is very probable that the post pays for at least the shoes (which are much less expensive than iPhone).

If the post did not pay iPhone's price, he suggested to ask my apartment's insurance for compensation. Because in his idea, letter box is a part of apartment and should be covered by this insurance. They might ask for an statement from Police, which in this case I have to report a theft to the Police and then refer to them again.

I will keep you posted once I receive the decision from post. Thanks again.

SMHH

10
I am confused. If the letterbox was too small, were the parcels put in the larger box below the letterbox (it does not lock). In German we call it what translates to milkbox. Or were they too large for that as well? If so, then it seems to me the post office was negligent by not leaving you a delivery notice for you to collect the goods at the post office.

I have trouble imagining a pair of shoes fitting in the large part of the mailbox. But the iPhone, perhaps it would have. But I am also surprised the sender of the iPhone did not send it requiring a signature.

I think you may find your house insurance does not cover theft if something was not locked.

I would ask the sender of both items to make a claim with the post office. I imagine that both these sellers are large customers of the post office and probably have experience with problems like this.

11
Sorry for confusion. By letter box, I meant the small open compartment below the locked one. Of course, stuff like iphone and shoes do not fit into the locked space.

In case of insurance, I can not comment since I am not an expert and do not know the terms. But it is meant to be unlocked. It is not like the door of the apartment that if I forgot to lock, then the blame is on me. I will ask the insurance company if I get a negative response from post.

In case of claim, I think post will ask the sellers to submit it. Since the guy on the phone asked me about their address, name, and phone and said they are going to contact them. I believe that if the post wants to pay me anything, it would come from parcels' insurance, not from their own budget.

12
Just as Mrs. Doolittle says, I think the post were somewhat negligent in simply leaving the parcels who knows where?

The post in my apartment is delivered by a van, left in the front hall in a hessian sack, and then opened and put into individual boxes by a postman who comes sometimes hours later.

I'm not too impressed with this system, but no one else seems 'bovvered'

and I don't pack much clout as I'm just a stupid foreigner!

OP, as I said earlier, I'd be only too happy to help if you want me to.

13
We had a package go missing in our building and the police did get involved.

The postman came and delivered 2 packages, one for me and another one for someone else. I signed (I assumed for mine but afterwards I was in doubt as to whether it was maybe for the other package) and the postman asked to leave the other package inside the door. Later I heard a package had gone missing and the police had been called. They did not ask to speak to me and I never found out if it was *that* package that went missing.

14
I don't know whether smhh could resolve his problem but I would generally say, as a warning to newbies in Switzerland, that the swiss post and it's related services are not as good as you would expect from a swiss institution.

Coming from Germany I was expecting the Swiss to be even better than the Germans because that's what most Germans think of Switzerland but in fact they can be a real disaster.

My experience has been rather negative with them. I was once sent my laptop but the post employee had just put teh package somewhere in the postbox area.

I had another bad encounter with them that's why I was expecting trouble from them so I came back from work at around 10 am just to make sure they don't screw my laptop as well after my new one was stolen at a tram station. Hmm I thout Switzerland is pretty secure with all their 1000 laws and regulations.

So I was lucky that I was apparently the first person to see the package after the post had left it there.

I also once had my mail being sent to Postlagernd but they couldn't manage that as well. Sometimes they would tell me there is no mail for me.

Then I had to go and get a new number and go to another counter just to find out that I did have mail!

I once wanted to send some money to a german account in 2012. A lady told me that since 01.01.2012 there were new laws which prohibit doing a cash payment to an account outside Switzerland.

As I told her that I have done that just 1 week earlier she started to talk nonsense and had to do it anyway because her colleagues started to hear what she was telling me.

The same has been true with their Postfinance. Totally incompetent. I have never seen a bank in Germany being so incapable of doing their job.

I mean Switzerland is known for being the experts in banking and finances but it is funny that those workers don't seem to be able to use their software to enter something. I see them regularly calling other colleagues to come and help!

Those guys have made so many mistakes and wasted so many hours of my time but I have never heard them saying "sorry".

I have lived in UK but there they were at least very friendly and "apologizing quickly for any inconvenience" if something went wrong.

Not with the Swiss.

A swiss bank had frozen my account a week before Christmas until a few days ago allegedly because of a wrong address.

I had changed my address last July already but they denied that until I showed them 2 copies of their own confirmation.

But even then they didn't apologize or activated my account immediately, saying that it must be done by another department but they are not working because of the whole holidays, bla bla....

So I would advise newbies reading this forum not to believe all that is said about swiss precision just like their watches etc.

I do have to say though that every time I had to do with the tax office or the Gemeinde or some other official authority they have been very nice and polite, way better than what I have experienced in Germany.

So I wonder whether state workers are the better ones than those in the private sector?

Although you would hear many people demanding privatizing public services because "state organizations were so inefficient" etc.

15

Why blame the post office when it’s the company sending you the laptop without making it recorded/registered delivery which needs a signature who’s to blame. Swiss post delivered it, if the package was too big for your mail slot, again that’s not their fault.

16
Actually no, if the package is too big for the mail box they should have left a collection notice for you to pick it up at the post office. As for the company you uses sending an iphone without needing a signiature, well thats just crazy

17
Thank you guys again for the comments. I should confess that my expectations were also way too higher from Switzerland. I come from a third world country to study here, but I should confess that during my life in my home country, I had only one or two issues with our post company.

The funny thing is that I had ordered two other big parcels delivered to my address. I received the collection note last week and I went to the post office this Saturday to get them. THEY COULD NOT find them!!! Thus, four missing parcels in just twenty days!

Fortunately, this time I had their note. So, they could not tell me they have been delivered. They made a copy of the note and told me they will do a search and contact me asap. No apologies, you are right "swiss_blues".

As for the iphone and the shoes, I have not heard from the post yet.

18
Hello everybody,

I just want to let you know that yesterday, I received the iphone in my letter box and got a collection note which was for the shoes! I did not receive any explanation or whatsoever from the post regarding this incident.

When I went to collect the shoes today, I asked for the other two items which went missing later. They found them and handed them to me too! The lady was angry that why you are coming now! I told her that I came before and your colleague could not find it and she said we will call you once we found them. She shrugged her shoulder then and that's it!

BTW, I am happy that I got all my stuff finally and once again, thank you for your help.

SMHH

19

Great news smhh! Better late than never. Wonder where they’ve been hiding all this time?

20
Unfortunately your story is very believable, I am pleased you received all 4 items after such a long wait.

The Swiss post is a 'holy' institution here, people do not believe things can go wrong!

About 2 years ago I ordered about CHF 500 in foreign cash from Post Finance. It arrived by normal post into my 'Locked' letter box, in an envelope with large letters "Swiss Bankers prepaid services" on the outside. I complained to my local post office, and he muttered that he would "ask around". Since then I have always given my address as "Postlagernd" or "Post Restante" and collected the cash envelope at the post office counter. It does now at least come in a second plain envelope!

DHL are the worst, and items from German Post always come with DHL delivery in Switzerland. They dump the box in front of the outside house door, & do not even ring the door bell. I now also always give my address as "Postlagernd" or "Post Restante" to be sure to receive my parcel. 3 years ago I arrived home to find a parcel for my son had been left outside on top of the letter boxes, by DHL again! On the outside of the box was a declaration stating that Fr 82,-- in Swiss taxes & charges had still to be paid on this very expensive camera lens. Luckily the address was wrong on the parcel: the DHL operator had found our correct address, and presumably never told anyone, as we never received another demand for the tax.