Swiss Post prohibits postage stamping of parcels, recommends using apps and online
No time right now?
DHL does not want you to frank your parcels with postage stamps and prohibits this procedure from January 1, 2021. You can still use the app or the way to the (virtual) post office.
When the author of these lines had to postage a parcel today and therefore tried the Internet to research the correct method of doing so, he noticed a change that not everyone should like.
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So you can no longer frank parcels
With effect from January 1, 2021, your parcels are no longer allowed to postage stamps. The stamps previously available for this purpose with an imprint of 3.79 euros are taken out of sale been.
The current price list of Deutsche Post (PDF) becomes accordingly clear on their page 69. “Franking with postage stamps is not permitted for parcels,” it says there. There is no indication whatsoever that it was different so far. There is no explanation either.
So what do people do who have stocked up on the appropriate stamps? The price list has no answer to this. On Twitter, however, a user managed to get a statement from the official DHL account. According to this, any existing postage stamps should still be allowed to be used for franking parcels in a transition period until June 30, 2021, provided that they are then posted in a branch. Posting via the mailbox is not permitted.
The statement is not entirely correct. In the branches, parcels with postage stamps with postage values of EUR 3.79 and EUR 4.50 will continue to be accepted in a transition period until June 30, 2021. ^ SE
– DHL Paket (@DHLPaket) January 2, 2021
So you have to frank parcels from now on
So if you want to send parcels, you have two digital and one analog methods. The analogous way is to go to a post office with the parcel, fill out a shipping slip there by hand and hand the parcel to the counter.
The first digital way is in the browser online franking and to text your way through the forms in order to receive a shipping slip in PDF format at the end, which must be printed out and stuck on. For a handful more you can have the shipment picked up from you. Otherwise you have the way to the next post office in front of you.
The second digital way is to use the “Post & DHL App” (Android | iOS) that we recently introduced to you in connection with the new option to buy mobile stamps with it. Unfortunately, when it comes to parcels, the app is not much more convenient than franking online.
So you buy the appropriate package format in the app, pay by PayPal, credit card or direct debit and – exactly – print out the corresponding sticker. Then you make your way to the branch or have booked a pick-up for a few euros more.
Semi-convenient – with the app you have the option of doing the printout yourself in the post office. The app has a QR code that identifies your shipment. It is scanned in the branch and the stamp is printed out accordingly on site. Incidentally, the DHL courier also has the option of printing out the stamp when you pick it up.
Save costs by giving it away with delivery
A little tip: the DHL deliverer will take your parcel with you without a dedicated registration and at no additional cost, if he comes to you anyway because he has something to deliver. In this case, however, the deliverer can refuse to take them along – for example if there is no space in the delivery vehicle. You have no claim to the performance. However, it should be provided if possible.
