Brainteaser! USPS

[Skie_M]

On a happier note ...


Package received today, contains everything I ordered and arrived only 3 days after placing the order. It did contain something that I did not order, but I have no evidence of this left, as it has been gratuitously consumed post-haste ...

I'm gonna love turning these opal blanks!

 

[ElMostro]

Sorry guys!!

After running my own business for the past 40 years, I have learned that calling large entities to report things is a waste of time. Some poor employee will have to listen to me complain, then they will want reams of paperwork and I can receive the $50 the item is insured for.

My time is worth more than that, to me.

I am currently working on a much larger problem--international, several hundred dollars should have gone to Italy, went to Israel in late June. EVERY phone call takes 15 minutes, and each step of the process requires 15-30 days for everyone to get a chance to reply. No one does, but the overall will still be 90 days, at best and maybe recover $100.

The post office delivers nearly every package, flawlessly. But, their process for finding lost packages is painstaking for the customer and only the SHIPPER can make the claim. So, I save that for the "can't avoid" situations.

Ed, I have shipped several thousand packages through USPS over the past 8 years and for the most part they arrive where they are supposed to. For the ones that don't make it (I can recall at least 4; Italy, Spain, South Africa and USA) after attempting the first claim I figured that from a business perspective it is more cost efficient to just write it off even if it is insured. The time and hassle of TRYING to make a claim through USPS is just so cumbersome and slow that it's not worth it...and if it was going overseas it adds another layer of bureaucracy. When they are one of a kind items that you can't just pull from stock it adds another level of frustration for you AND the customer. So I guess my point is that, they are fairly dependable and fast but when they do screw up I have never been able to get anything out of them.

 

[Smitty37]

It is relatively easy to open a SFRB without destroying the label. And once open it is fairly easy to reseal and tape the package making it look like it has never been opened (DAMHIKT). My opinion is that there is a dishonest postal employee who knows what you ship (or what your customer orders) and took a guess that the package had something valuable in it - opened it replaced the contents and sent it on its way. I think occam's razor applies here.

 

[PR_Princess]

Perhaps Smitty. But after I saw your post I went and Googled the brand new locks that were in the customer's package. Turns out that those locks are of a slightly higher dollar value than the original contents (of kits and blanks).

So personally,.... I'm back to favouring Mike Redburns Star Trek transporter theory....:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin::tongue:

 

[Smitty37]

Perhaps Smitty. But after I saw your post I went and Googled the brand new locks that were in the customer's package. Turns out that those locks are of a slightly higher dollar value than the original contents (of kits and blanks).

So personally,.... I'm back to favouring Mike Redburns Star Trek transporter theory....:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin::tongue:

There is another possibility if you use either PayPal or the USPS web site to print your labels. And that is a glitch at the website you use. I have strange things happen sometimes at the post office site, an example is being allowed to enter the site where it thinks I am logged in but I'm not. I don't use the PayPal site very often to print postage but given other things I do use it for, glitches there are not uncommon either.

 

[workinforwood]

Over the years I have shipped thousands and only recently have I begun to have issues. Ed/dawn already know, since I lost a $1500 box that showed up completely empty and then only 2 months later lost a few hundred dollars from another $1500 box that also got opened but fortunately this time the employee tried to return the items.
Because I am a postal employee, I have a unique inside view on how things happen.
The biggest thing first off is the consolidation of distribution centers. In the past, I would drop off a box, it goes to Lansing mi, is sorted and then straight to oak creek Wisconsin. Lansing was a smaller sorting facility without huge overhead conveyors and millions of boxes smashing into each other. Now my box still goes to Lansing but only as a drop point, it then gets tossed in a huge cage full of boxes and goes to Grand Rapids. In Grand Rapids it goes on a huge conveyer, it must go up a ramp. If a box is 25 pounds or heavier, the angle of the ramp is to steep to beat gravity so the belt spins under the box until over time the belt eats the bottom of the box, the box now opens and dumps 200 pen blanks on the line which spill out through the entire building.
Now imagine you know absolutely nothing about pen turning. You clean up 200 plastic squares, 1"x5", they colors aren't so vibrant, they are dirty, have saw marks, scratch marks, you have no idea what it is. Just looks like some kinda cheap arts and crafts recyclable. Your duty is to decide, is it worth $25 plus?? If your decision is no, the compactor is its new home.
I am not saying I agree because I sure don't, but I am telling you a fact of how it is. And if you have $1500 in acrylics, the profit margin after material costs is really pathetic, so you just lost at minimum $1000 plus your time making them.

Now, going to the mystery, this all relates. Lets say the opened item is deamed $25. Now a person will make an attempt to return it to its home. Put it back in box and re seal it. There's a small risk it goes into the wrong box if more than one box is opened. Ed says it was never opened and re sealed, so I don't know, but I know what I say happens.

As far as how you must fight for $50, and to buy real insurance costs a fortune, and several other customer service issues how they deal with things I could rant a novel!

Ps, Dawn, next time I have a box ready look for Buster Brown. (UPS)

 

[Smitty37]

Over the years I have shipped thousands and only recently have I begun to have issues. Ed/dawn already know, since I lost a $1500 box that showed up completely empty and then only 2 months later lost a few hundred dollars from another $1500 box that also got opened but fortunately this time the employee tried to return the items.
Because I am a postal employee, I have a unique inside view on how things happen.
The biggest thing first off is the consolidation of distribution centers. In the past, I would drop off a box, it goes to Lansing mi, is sorted and then straight to oak creek Wisconsin. Lansing was a smaller sorting facility without huge overhead conveyors and millions of boxes smashing into each other. Now my box still goes to Lansing but only as a drop point, it then gets tossed in a huge cage full of boxes and goes to Grand Rapids. In Grand Rapids it goes on a huge conveyer, it must go up a ramp. If a box is 25 pounds or heavier, the angle of the ramp is to steep to beat gravity so the belt spins under the box until over time the belt eats the bottom of the box, the box now opens and dumps 200 pen blanks on the line which spill out through the entire building.
Now imagine you know absolutely nothing about pen turning. You clean up 200 plastic squares, 1"x5", they colors aren't so vibrant, they are dirty, have saw marks, scratch marks, you have no idea what it is. Just looks like some kinda cheap arts and crafts recyclable. Your duty is to decide, is it worth $25 plus?? If your decision is no, the compactor is its new home.
I am not saying I agree because I sure don't, but I am telling you a fact of how it is. And if you have $1500 in acrylics, the profit margin after material costs is really pathetic, so you just lost at minimum $1000 plus your time making them.

Now, going to the mystery, this all relates. Lets say the opened item is deamed $25. Now a person will make an attempt to return it to its home. Put it back in box and re seal it. There's a small risk it goes into the wrong box if more than one box is opened. Ed says it was never opened and re sealed, so I don't know, but I know what I say happens.

As far as how you must fight for $50, and to buy real insurance costs a fortune, and several other customer service issues how they deal with things I could rant a novel!

Ps, Dawn, next time I have a box ready look for Buster Brown. (UPS)

Jeff re insurance - you can get it a lot cheaper than USPS and it is a lot easier to file a claim if you use a 3d party insurer. Endicia offers it and their underwriter is U-PIC. I think Stamps.com also offers it and also use U-PIC. I used U-PIC directly for a couple of years and claims were processed very quickly.

 

[brownsfn2]

Ps, Dawn, next time I have a box ready look for Buster Brown. (UPS)

I just sent in a lot of blanks and used UPS this time with full insurance. I was thinking of all the time I spent making them.

 

[Quality Pen]

Over the years I have shipped thousands and only recently have I begun to have issues. Ed/dawn already know, since I lost a $1500 box that showed up completely empty and then only 2 months later lost a few hundred dollars from another $1500 box that also got opened but fortunately this time the employee tried to return the items.
Because I am a postal employee, I have a unique inside view on how things happen.
The biggest thing first off is the consolidation of distribution centers. In the past, I would drop off a box, it goes to Lansing mi, is sorted and then straight to oak creek Wisconsin. Lansing was a smaller sorting facility without huge overhead conveyors and millions of boxes smashing into each other. Now my box still goes to Lansing but only as a drop point, it then gets tossed in a huge cage full of boxes and goes to Grand Rapids. In Grand Rapids it goes on a huge conveyer, it must go up a ramp. If a box is 25 pounds or heavier, the angle of the ramp is to steep to beat gravity so the belt spins under the box until over time the belt eats the bottom of the box, the box now opens and dumps 200 pen blanks on the line which spill out through the entire building.
Now imagine you know absolutely nothing about pen turning. You clean up 200 plastic squares, 1"x5", they colors aren't so vibrant, they are dirty, have saw marks, scratch marks, you have no idea what it is. Just looks like some kinda cheap arts and crafts recyclable. Your duty is to decide, is it worth $25 plus?? If your decision is no, the compactor is its new home.
I am not saying I agree because I sure don't, but I am telling you a fact of how it is. And if you have $1500 in acrylics, the profit margin after material costs is really pathetic, so you just lost at minimum $1000 plus your time making them.

Now, going to the mystery, this all relates. Lets say the opened item is deamed $25. Now a person will make an attempt to return it to its home. Put it back in box and re seal it. There's a small risk it goes into the wrong box if more than one box is opened. Ed says it was never opened and re sealed, so I don't know, but I know what I say happens.

As far as how you must fight for $50, and to buy real insurance costs a fortune, and several other customer service issues how they deal with things I could rant a novel!

Ps, Dawn, next time I have a box ready look for Buster Brown. (UPS)

Jeff re insurance - you can get it a lot cheaper than USPS and it is a lot easier to file a claim if you use a 3d party insurer. Endicia offers it and their underwriter is U-PIC. I think Stamps.com also offers it and also use U-PIC. I used U-PIC directly for a couple of years and claims were processed very quickly.

I've heard bad things about USPS insurance. Is that your experience?

 

[Smitty37]

Over the years I have shipped thousands and only recently have I begun to have issues. Ed/dawn already know, since I lost a $1500 box that showed up completely empty and then only 2 months later lost a few hundred dollars from another $1500 box that also got opened but fortunately this time the employee tried to return the items.
Because I am a postal employee, I have a unique inside view on how things happen.
The biggest thing first off is the consolidation of distribution centers. In the past, I would drop off a box, it goes to Lansing mi, is sorted and then straight to oak creek Wisconsin. Lansing was a smaller sorting facility without huge overhead conveyors and millions of boxes smashing into each other. Now my box still goes to Lansing but only as a drop point, it then gets tossed in a huge cage full of boxes and goes to Grand Rapids. In Grand Rapids it goes on a huge conveyer, it must go up a ramp. If a box is 25 pounds or heavier, the angle of the ramp is to steep to beat gravity so the belt spins under the box until over time the belt eats the bottom of the box, the box now opens and dumps 200 pen blanks on the line which spill out through the entire building.
Now imagine you know absolutely nothing about pen turning. You clean up 200 plastic squares, 1"x5", they colors aren't so vibrant, they are dirty, have saw marks, scratch marks, you have no idea what it is. Just looks like some kinda cheap arts and crafts recyclable. Your duty is to decide, is it worth $25 plus?? If your decision is no, the compactor is its new home.
I am not saying I agree because I sure don't, but I am telling you a fact of how it is. And if you have $1500 in acrylics, the profit margin after material costs is really pathetic, so you just lost at minimum $1000 plus your time making them.

Now, going to the mystery, this all relates. Lets say the opened item is deamed $25. Now a person will make an attempt to return it to its home. Put it back in box and re seal it. There's a small risk it goes into the wrong box if more than one box is opened. Ed says it was never opened and re sealed, so I don't know, but I know what I say happens.

As far as how you must fight for $50, and to buy real insurance costs a fortune, and several other customer service issues how they deal with things I could rant a novel!

Ps, Dawn, next time I have a box ready look for Buster Brown. (UPS)

Jeff re insurance - you can get it a lot cheaper than USPS and it is a lot easier to file a claim if you use a 3d party insurer. Endicia offers it and their underwriter is U-PIC. I think Stamps.com also offers it and also use U-PIC. I used U-PIC directly for a couple of years and claims were processed very quickly.

I've heard bad things about USPS insurance. Is that your experience?

I've used third party or self insurance for so long I have virtually no experience with USPS claims.