In Spain, when you’re not at home, the delivery driver calls a neighbour, leaves it with the post office, or sends you a message to arrange another time. In Switzerland, they leave a note in your letterbox – an ‘avis de passage’ – telling you that your parcel is waiting for you at the post office or at a collection point. You have seven working days to collect it. If you don’t, it’s returned to the sender.
What many people don’t realise at first is that La Poste branches have opening hours that don’t always fit in with a normal working day. Many close at 5 pm or 6 pm, and on Saturdays they’re open until midday at best. The alternative is collection points at Coop, Migros or some newsagents, which have longer opening hours. You can also use the tracking portal to redirect your parcel to another collection point before the postman arrives, if you realise you won’t be able to be there. That’s what you need to know before the first delivery notice arrives.
The usual problem arises when the ‘avis de passage’ arrives just before a long weekend, a bank holiday weekend or a holiday. The seven days fly by faster than you might think, and by the time you realise, the parcel has already been returned to Germany or Spain. You then have to contact the sender to ask them to resend it – if they’re willing to do so without charging for another delivery. Many people realise this far too late.