Good news for people who send parcels: Deutsche Post is withdrawing the price increases from early January after massive criticism, DHL parcels will then cost as much again as they did at the end of 2019.
Especially people who send parcels frequently can look forward to May 1st: After criticism from the Federal Network Agency about a price increase for private customer packages at the turn of the year, Deutsche Post has reversed the change.
Swiss Post already announced in February that it wanted to avoid a lengthy legal dispute with the Federal Network Agency and to provide customers with clarity about the parcel and parcel charges. As a federal authority, the Federal Network Agency monitors the post, among other things.
But what exactly had happened? And how expensive will the packages be from May? t-online.de clarifies the most important questions:
What happened?
Deutsche Post DHL had increased parcel and package prices for private customers by an average of three percent at the turn of the year (see below). At that time, the company cited “significant cost increases in personnel and transport and extensive investments in quality and service improvements” as the reason for this. The company already informed the Federal Network Agency about the planned price increases in autumn 2019.
However, the regulator took the view that the new package prices were inflated and therefore initiated proceedings against DHL at the end of January. The network agency suspected that the price adjustments would permanently lead to significantly higher earnings than the company estimated.
The Post said it did not share this rating. Nevertheless, “in view of an otherwise expected lengthy legal dispute with an uncertain outcome, the adjustments will be withdrawn”. This has now happened.
Why are prices only being withdrawn now?
From May 1, the prices apply until December 31, 2019 (see below). According to the post office, the fact that prices did not drop earlier is due to the “necessary adjustments to IT systems and customer information “.
According to a press release from Deutsche Post, these would have to be “physically kept” at the more than 24,000 acceptance points. In plain language: Swiss Post had to reprint and redistribute its signs and price notices in the branches. And that took a while.
How expensive will the packages be from May?
The new prices can be found in this overview, prices up to April 30 are in brackets:
| Prices in euros | Branch price | Online price |
|---|---|---|
| Parcel S | 3.79 | 3.79 |
| Parcel M | 4.5 (4.79) | 4.39 (4.49) |
| Package up to 2 kg | n / A. | 4.99 (5.49) |
| Package up to 5 kg | 7.49 | 5.99 (6.49) |
| Package up to 10 kg | 9.49 (10.49) | 8.49 (9.49) |
| Package up to 31.5 kg | 16.49 (18.49) | 16.49 (17.49) |
Deutsche Post has also withdrawn the price increases for cash on delivery (6.9 instead of 7.9 euros), insurance up to 2,500 euros (6 instead of 7 euros) and plus parcels (5.99 instead of 6.99 euros). The exact maximum dimensions of the packages can be found on the homepage of Deutsche Post or in a post office.
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