The company has made its ideas more concrete when it comes to the possibility of delivering letters at two speeds, which Deutsche Post has long wanted.
“There could be a priority letter that reaches the addressee the day after the letter is posted and a standard letter that only arrives after three days,” said postal manager Nikola Hagleitner to “Welt am Sonntag”. Hagleitner is responsible for the mail and parcel business on the postal board’s board.
Traffic light coalition wants to change the postal law
A regulation currently stipulates that, on an annual average, at least 80 percent of letters in Germany must be delivered on the following working day, and 95 percent must arrive after two working days. The traffic light coalition wants to change and modernize the postal law. The Federal Ministry of Economics also wants to adjust the current term specifications, as can be seen from the key points for the amendment presented at the beginning of 2023.
“The priority letter would have to be higher than the current postage, but we are not talking about doubling the price,” Hagleitner continued. She demanded that the Federal Network Agency also have to “reset the pricing procedure upwards” for the future standard letter. She justified this with significantly higher costs.
Post expects a decline in letter volumes
In August, the network agency rejected an application from the post office to increase letter postage early in 2024. The regulatory authority stated that the postal service had not adequately proven the cost increases cited.
The postal service does not want to change the number of delivery days. “We have no interest in changing anything about the six-day delivery,” Hagleitner told “Welt am Sonntag”. The postal service wants to maintain letter delivery in Germany and continue to fulfill the statutory universal postal service.
“But for this we need a new fee regulation that gives us a profit margin from which we can invest around one billion euros in delivery every year,” said Hagleitner. This year, the postal service expects a decline in letter volumes of six percent.
