Russian Post Hits a New Low
I've been reading all the complaints about Russian Post lately, and I'm now fully on board with them.
My interactions with Russian Post have been pretty limited over the past few years - just sending Avito orders via their service. Until yesterday, I didn't have any major issues. Sure, sometimes I'd wait in line for 30-40 minutes or witness some drama at the office, but those were just isolated incidents. For the most part, my visits were pretty smooth and friendly.
The staff used to be professional and efficient, working quickly to handle any queues that formed. But after the mass layoffs, when a new team took over the Moscow office 125481, things started to change.
My visit to that office yesterday was a disaster. So, yesterday evening, I got a new Avito order. I had to send it through Russian Post. The buyer politely asked me to send it ASAP, which was weird, especially since she needed it urgently. I wasn't sure why she chose this delivery method, but I guess you never know.
This type of delivery is my least favorite, but fortunately, my buyers don't use it often. My husband and I were planning to go for a walk, so why not send the order while we're at it? Plus, the Moscow office 125481 is open until 9 PM.
We arrived at 7:40 PM and figured I'd have enough time to send the order within an hour and 20 minutes, no problem. But out of the 7 checkout counters available, only 3 were working, and there were already about 20 people in line. But I wasn't about to leave just because of that, especially since I'd already arrived.
One staff member would usually handle receiving and handing out packages, including Avito orders that didn't require payment or a ton of paperwork. This meant that customers with Avito orders could essentially take their place in line without having to wait - it was super convenient.
But now, post office 125481 has apparently decided to do things differently. For example, at exactly 8:00 PM, one of the staff members loudly announced that her shift was over and she wouldn't be serving anyone else.
What's the point of that? There were still an hour of work left! Some of the customers reminded her of this, but she just got defensive and started sorting through papers on her desk, ignoring everyone who came up to her with a request to receive or hand out an order - there were still plenty of people waiting, and time was running out. But nope, total ignore.
I guess there's another staff member, but unfortunately, she was completely busy handing out packages from WB.
For those who don't know, there have been some changes at Russian Post recently: they've added a new feature that allows customers to receive packages from WB and Ozon at their post offices.
I can only imagine how much time this employee must spend serving one customer: they need to check the item, then the customer tries it on (if it's clothing), and if needed, they need to process a return - just like a post office in a marketplace, no fuss.
And another cool feature: customers of WB and Ozon get priority service, so they don't need to take a ticket or wait in line with us. What kind of privilege is that? Are we not people too?
So, this Russian Post employee was a total loss for us. Luckily, we're not giving up yet, because we still have a third specialist to deal with. But even here, things got complicated: the employee seemed to think that after 20:00, she would only serve customers who came to pick up their packages, while those who came to send packages would be ignored.
Russian Post, are you serious? What kind of selective service is this? We're the ones who came for your services, after all! What made you decide on this weird schedule?
My husband decided to look into this and tried calling Russian Post's hotline, but the conversation with the bot went nowhere. No matter how many times he asked to be connected to a manager, nothing happened.
Then he tried asking the same question in the Russian Post app's chat, but that question still hasn't been answered to this day.
It's clear that Russian Post is going out of its way to avoid answering uncomfortable questions.
It's really frustrating to wait in line for an hour, only to have someone who came from the street to pick up their package get called in ahead of you. You can wait forever...
When there were only 20 minutes left before the end of the working day, many people had lost hope and left.
As you can see from the display, my number A38 was second in line for service.
By this time, there were only two of us left in the office.
Luckily, there were no more packages to deliver, and the employee kindly agreed to start serving those who were sending packages.
Guess I managed to send my package? Think again! The girl in front of us got all tangled up with some complicated shipping form that required filling out a hundred forms and paying for postage, which took up the rest of the time.
They finished at 8:58 PM, and then the postal employee just stood up and said she wouldn't be accepting anything else and basically told us we weren't even there.
My requests to explain that shipping an Avito package would only take a couple of minutes from my previous visits fell on deaf ears. Nope - that was it. The complaints of another woman who had been trying to send a package for two days because she worked and couldn't come to the post office earlier were also ignored.
One hour and twenty minutes of wasted time. Russian Post's customer service is below par.
I'd like to feel sorry for the postal employees for their tough and negativity-filled daily grind, but I just can't. They didn't care about us, the people waiting in line for over an hour. We were told it was our problem: if we didn't want to wait, we shouldn't have come. Or better yet, go to a different post office, because this one isn't treating you with honey.
But the cherry on top was not that. It was how the postal employee who had unilaterally ended the customer service session at 8:00 PM stood up, walked to the door, opened it, and rudely told us to get out: 'GET OUT!' Yes, exactly those words!
Is this how Russian Post normally talks to customers? Is this even written in the postal code of ethics?
This is something they're taught, to give customers a kick instead of serving them? I'm just appalled.
I've had it with Russian Post. I'm not going back, and if I'm selling something on Avito, I'll make sure to specify that I only use other delivery services. It's just not worth the hassle and the negative feedback for a few extra kopecks. And to be honest, I'm not willing to pay top dollar for the privilege of dealing with their subpar service.
I've tried to be patient and understanding, but it's clear that Russian Post has no interest in providing good customer service. They're more concerned with their own convenience and priorities than with serving their customers.
As a result, I've lost trust in Russian Post and will be taking my business elsewhere. I hope that others will learn from my experience and avoid using their services.
It's time for Russian Post to take a hard look at their customer service and make some serious changes. Until then, I'll be taking my business (and my patience) elsewhere.
It's not just about me, though. I've seen so many people waiting in line, frustrated and annoyed, and I know I'm not the only one who's had a terrible experience with Russian Post. It's time for them to step up their game and provide the kind of service that their customers deserve.
I'm not asking for much. Just basic human decency and respect would be nice. But I guess that's too much to ask from Russian Post.
So, to all my fellow Avito sellers out there, let this be a warning: stay away from Russian Post. Trust me, you won't regret it.