Spain's Correos summer hours: mornings only, no Saturdays and mandatory label printing
Spain's postal service Correos opens mornings only in summer, closes Saturdays and requires printed return labels. The summer crunch is hitting all courier services. Is there an alternative?
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Summer at Correos: mornings only, no Saturdays and the endless nightmare of the printed label
Anyone who has had to return an Amazon package this summer has run into the same old story: Correos (Spain's public postal service) only opens in the mornings, don't even bother on Saturdays, and on top of that you have to bring the label printed, because the public service won't stoop to printing it for you. A combination that turns a five-minute errand into a logistical odyssey.
The recurring complaint is that while Amazon offers drop-off points where they print the label for you, Correos forces users to hunt for a printer or, failing that, a copy shop. Some people have discovered that Correos has a returns portal where a QR code is generated to show at the counter, avoiding paper. But ignorance of this option and the lack of promotion of the service leave many in the same predicament: getting up early to reach the office before the morning closing time.
It's not just Correos: the summer delivery crunch
The problem goes beyond the public company. People who ship packages daily point out that all courier companies are stretched to the limit in summer. With the heat, saturation and staff shortages, delays pile up. A delivery that should arrive in 24 hours stretches to several days, and delivery drivers show up sweaty and at odd hours, because with 50 packages a day no schedule works.
Behind the complaint lies a labor reality: the parcel sector has deteriorated. Thirty years ago, a self-employed delivery driver could earn a good income. Today, nobody wants to work as a delivery driver. It's precarious, poorly paid work, with endless shifts and no prospects. The result is a service that gets worse every summer, in both the public and private sectors.
The user's dilemma: print or get up early?
As long as Correos keeps its reduced hours and doesn't make label printing a standard antiestéticature, returning packages will remain a headache. The QR code alternative is a stopgap that doesn't address the underlying issue: a public company that seems determined to give citizens the worst possible experience, while the private ones aren't exactly shining either. In the end, it's the user who loses time.
Anyone who has had to return an Amazon package this summer has run into the same old story: Correos (Spain's public postal service) only opens in the mornings, don't even bother on Saturdays, and on top of that you have to bring the label printed, because the public service won't stoop to printing it for you. A combination that turns a five-minute errand into a logistical odyssey.
The recurring complaint is that while Amazon offers drop-off points where they print the label for you, Correos forces users to hunt for a printer or, failing that, a copy shop. Some people have discovered that Correos has a returns portal where a QR code is generated to show at the counter, avoiding paper. But ignorance of this option and the lack of promotion of the service leave many in the same predicament: getting up early to reach the office before the morning closing time.
It's not just Correos: the summer delivery crunch
The problem goes beyond the public company. People who ship packages daily point out that all courier companies are stretched to the limit in summer. With the heat, saturation and staff shortages, delays pile up. A delivery that should arrive in 24 hours stretches to several days, and delivery drivers show up sweaty and at odd hours, because with 50 packages a day no schedule works.
Behind the complaint lies a labor reality: the parcel sector has deteriorated. Thirty years ago, a self-employed delivery driver could earn a good income. Today, nobody wants to work as a delivery driver. It's precarious, poorly paid work, with endless shifts and no prospects. The result is a service that gets worse every summer, in both the public and private sectors.
The user's dilemma: print or get up early?
As long as Correos keeps its reduced hours and doesn't make label printing a standard antiestéticature, returning packages will remain a headache. The QR code alternative is a stopgap that doesn't address the underlying issue: a public company that seems determined to give citizens the worst possible experience, while the private ones aren't exactly shining either. In the end, it's the user who loses time.
Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (15 replies).
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