Shipping: How long can Deutsche Post take to send a letter (standard €0.85) by registered mail? Is 13 days allowed?
Hello community!
As I wrote above, I wanted to ask here whether anyone has/had experience with such a situation at Deutsche Post.
What about a registered letter (with signature) for €3.50? Because here you're paying for an extra service…
- My situation was as follows:
I delivered/sent a very important letter with documents, including documents with deadlines/legal proceedings, to the recipient at the branch on August 21, 2024, by registered mail (€3.50). Within Germany.
Despite the extra service of registered mail, this letter hasn't moved until August 25, 2024. There was no information in the tracking information. Despite being dropped off at the branch on August 21,
It wasn't until August 26th that I received a message saying that the letter was in a distribution center and was being processed… but it still hadn't been delivered.
August 26th: First call to the DP to ask why the letter still hadn't been delivered. I was told that it can sometimes take longer, and that they couldn't investigate yet because the letter had to be in circulation for seven days. Okay, I waited one day.
Not delivered on August 27th – called DP again – again no help available. No one knows what's going on with the €3.50 letter??!
September 28th. Still not delivered, no change. I called DP again. Nothing.
September 29th. Again, nothing on the tracking number, so I called DP again, but they said an investigation wasn't possible because the letter had been moved yesterday and would only be forwarded to a different address at the recipient's request. Customer service said they couldn't do anything further because the letter was still in circulation.
Unbelievable but true… they've been circulating for several days now, haven't been submitted, and my documents, which are also subject to deadlines, will now be delayed. Since these documents are very important, with legal proceedings ongoing in the background, my documents and I are behind schedule due to the actions of the DP. I submitted everything on time.
The registered letter was not delivered on Friday or Saturday, no!
So on Tuesday, September 3rd, 2024, the letter was finally delivered by registered mail after 13-14 days!
My documents therefore arrived completely late, and the deadline was not met due to the post office's incorrect actions.
Of course, I complained to the DP employee. But the DP didn't really care about my complaint, and I had to deal with about four incompetent employees, none of whom could help me. When I asked for compensation, I was at least getting a goodwill credit note, since sending a simple registered letter for €3.50 took a full 13-14 days! All they said was: "The letter was delivered, the German Post Office did its job, and you won't get a refund or goodwill. That's unacceptable. You paid for a service that was performed. No matter how long it took, the DP doesn't guarantee the delivery time. If you don't understand that, we can't help you. Read the terms and conditions."
When I explained that it had taken longer than seven days to even move the letter, and that according to the terms and conditions, the letter should have been delivered within that time, I was given a very rude response: "No, can you read? Check the terms and conditions," and then hung up.
It's all very cheeky and impertinent from this "customer service," if that's what it even is. Calling it that is definitely too much.
I contacted customer service: When I asked them whether they could at least issue a letter/confirmation that the DP itself had made mistakes and needed 13-14 days to deliver a letter from A to B within Germany, so that I would have this as documentation and proof (due to proceedings) – they said: no, they don't do that either.
I can file a complaint by phone, but no one answers. What good does that do me? It's a joke, right? What kind of customer service? The complaint was filed anyway.
I have now suffered enormous damage due to the behavior of Deutsche Post with the very slow delivery of the letter + registered mail, because of the documents and the deadlines.
Now after the detailed description I would like to refer to my original question,
Is the DP even allowed to send a letter by registered mail in Germany until it is delivered 13-14 days later?
And is there a way to get back the €3.50 I overpaid for a service I didn't actually receive, and also to claim the damages I incurred as a result of this to the DP?
Is there a law that already regulates something like this: these terms… of 13-14 days…
That shouldn’t be allowed within Germany…
I am grateful for any tips or advice… 🙂
(3 votes)
Loading...
After all – but probably as a enrollment/RS. Because…
…this is the rule, for example, in the case of a transfer message with post mail. And it’ll take a week longer. This will confirm every DP branch. And then personal delivery and counter-drawing is absolutely necessary for a registration/RS, which is hardly ever possible in the summer holidays at the end of August (sention is kept in store for collection). You would have gotten that faster with a letter of inscription – because the access would also be documented.
I guess you gave up the registration at a DHL branch somewhere in a supermarket or the like. They are often only rarely approached, or remain closed when the shop operator is ill. Then, however, nothing will be transported and the shipments will remain until the next successful pick-up attempt has taken place. This would explain the delay in delivery (Wednesday until Monday of the following week). Whether there is a need for a significant liability of the respective operator, it would be legally to be examined. I don’t think so. If you add the regular running time of 2AT and the extra week for the post forwarding, this is quite accurate.
This is also correct.
That’s wrong. 95% of all consignments must be delivered in mail within 2 AT; that regulates the Post Act (from 2025 3 AT). This does not mean, however, that there would be a claim to adherence to this rule in a specific consignment.
Yeah, up to 32 AT mMs.
Yes, you did. The temporary delivery was not part of the contract. To do this, you should have booked an additional service (curlers or the like).
No.
No. It is your duty to ensure the delivery of fixed-term documents (e.g. by sending by fax, courier or the like). There can therefore not be any liability for a not guaranteed delivery agent; at best (if my above assumption is correct) a breach of duty would be considered by the shop operator. But even that would not touch the consequences of a failure.
For such urgent documents there are service providers with guaranteed delivery agent.
(DHL Express document shipment)
Report to the recipient regarding the deadline and show that the letter was sent to Day X and you have kept you to the deadline.
The post has legal requirements as to how much % of the letters must have arrived after so many days. At the end, however, 5% letters remain, the speed of which is not regulated.
(95% of the letters have to be delivered after 2 days, the last 5% can take forever, and it is legal)
You chose the cheap version. The so-called entry letter only documents the secure delivery to the mailbox of the receiver. This guarantees no urgency or even appointment.
Thanks for the feedback. I have actually chosen the normal registration, standard with signature of the recipient and consignment number, not the entry letter as you say.
But can a letter, no matter what it is, really need 14 days within Germany to be delivered? I do not think that is compliant.
Two weeks are significantly more than the Deutsche Post aims for a letter within Germany itself. However, the postal service does not guarantee a certain period of time when registered. That’s why, unfortunately, you have bad cards.
In the case of the transfer registration, it is added that the recipient must be at home to acknowledge the transfer. Otherwise, the letter goes to the branch and can be there for days until it is finally picked up (or sent back after the storage period expires).
Did these documents have to be sent in the original in order to maintain the deadline?
When communicating with authorities, it is still possible to send a fax. You will receive a transmission report with a copy of the content and confirmation of the counterparty that the fax has been received. For this, there are various online providers where you can simply upload and send a PDF.
The letter should be delivered in a few days.
No, only 95% of the letters must be there within 2 days, the remaining 5% have no deadline.
Read my answer exactly :
Should not, 95% have to, the rest has no to, no duty and no rules, have been on the phone with the mail since an hour in 2022, which sometimes need letters 2-3 weeks. They also said 95% have a duty, the rest has no intention and sometimes lasts 2 weeks.