While numerous international students are left scratching their heads wondering where their packages from home have gone, the Swedish post seems unaware of any problem.
With the typical early autumn chill settling into Lund, German student Rachel Schweitzer began wondering where her shipment of extra clothes from home had gone. Her mother having sent a box several weeks earlier, Rachel decided to investigate the matter.
–There was no mailbox notification about my package’s location, and the tracking number was unhelpful. I had to make numerous phone calls to Posten, she said.
Rachel’s is not the only complaint about the Swedish post office’s handling of international packages. Similar stories have reached the Lundagard International edition. Their shared grievance is not receiving their packages on time, a problem that can cost not only time but hundreds of kronor as well. Often, these occurrences send students hunting for their belongings.
Sometimes the effort can feel fruitless. For Rachel, the frustration only intensified when she managed to locate her package.
— It already took a lot of work figuring out where my package had gone. Then, for some reason, it was sent back to Germany. My mother had to pay once more to send it to me, and this time we used my Swedish aunt’s address just in case.
Queried about this problem, a Posten employee (who asked not to be named) at one of Lund’s package distribution centers reiterated the package retrieval process to Lundagard.
— The recipient of a package should receive a notification in their mailbox which says that their package has arrived at a specified Posten location. The pickup spot should be near where the person lives, she explained.
Both receiving a notification and locating the correct pickup spot, however, have been issues for most of the students.
— I received no notification, and was forced to call them directly. After being bounced between multiple Posten offices, they told me my package had already been sitting in a depot for more than a week, said Rebecca Kress, a student also from Germany.
Over several days, Lundagard tried to contact someone responsible for international packages within Posten, but the attempts were ultimately unsuccessful. Other employees Lundagard spoke to did not have much to contribute.
— I am afraid I am not aware of any problem with international packages being delivered to Lund, said Peter Forsberg, supervisor of a package collection depot in Malmö.
In any case, most students eventually find their things, just not without some perspiration. Rachel has gotten her clothes after lots of trouble, but her business with Posten is not quite finished.
–I took a train to my aunt’s place outside of town to fetch my package, which was both costly and tiresome. In total, getting this shipment has cost my family way more than it should have, and I am seeking reimbursement from Posten for these unnecessary costs.
