View Full Version : Postal tips
I did this a while ago but it is long gone so I figured I would give it another go.
I work at the post office as a clerk, doing just about every job a clerk could possibly do so I have learned a lot of random tips that can help you with your toy purchases and sales.
1. Insurance - These days it is VERY hard to get the USPS to pay out on any insurance claim over $50. Under $50 and they can make an in-office decision. If it is over, then the decision is out of the local PO's hands. In addition to this they almost never pay out on collectibles. They officially do NOT accept eBay printouts as proof of payment or value.
So my suggestion is if you buy something expensive and get it insured, ask for a receipt from the seller to be included with the item that says the price paid, date, etc. Also if the package comes smashed, keep it. They will want to see the package when you try to make an insurance claim.
Another note about insurance is DO NOT round the number off. Give the actual value. On the days I work the window I get tons of people when I ask if they want insurance go with $50 because that is the first price point before insurance goes up. Well guess what, if it gets damaged and they put in a claim and it was really worth say $35 they are not getting their money back. If it is worth $35 make sure you tell the clerk so.
2. Delivery Confirmation - It is a confirmation of delivery, but that is it. It is not proof of anything really and is not signed for. Anybody can accept that package. I put delivery confirmation on things I sell or trade just to make the buyer feel better, but after learning the rules about it, if it doesn't get there you really have no recourse.
3. Parcel Post - Parcel Post is the bane of anything fragile. You are much better off paying a little more and shipping something priority mail than parcel post. PP mail is treated like total crap. It is stuff in bags. The bags are thrown around. THey don't care whether the heavy stuff is on top or bottom. 95% of all smashed open packages I see are either Parcel Post or Media Mail (which is treated the same way and I will get to next).
4. Media Mail - They are cracking down on people sending stuff Media Mail that isn't really. We can now ask you to open a package if we think you may be mailing something Media Mail that isn't. If you refuse, we can refuse to mail the package. It is also treated as badly as Parcel Post. Actually usually worse, since Media Mail is often heavy books, they tear through boxes when thrown around.
5. Fragile stuff - If you have something that is fragile, please ask the clerk to stamp it as such. It DOES make a difference. Packages are literally thrown around when sorted. In fact they postal lingo for sorting packages is throwing or tossing parcels. The clerk will often stand near the container with the parcels in it throwing them into buggies that are assigned to each route. These buggies in my office can be anywhere from 2 to 15 or so feet from the clerk tossing the parcels. Fragile stuff (at least in my office) is taken out of the regular mail and carried by hand to the desk of the carrier who is to deliver it so it doesn't get smashed when tossed. Of course some carriers don't like this and go toss it themselves but there is nothing I can do about that.
6. Registered mail - This really only applies if you are mailing something super valuable (in the thousands of dollars) because it is expensive to use but registered mail is the most safe and secure mail we have. It is signed for at every stop, kept separate in its own bags, which are locked and sealed, and people are actually held accountable if something happens to it (trust me this is rare in the post office!). It also has built in insurance.
7. Dropping mail in boxes - First off, if you are mailing a package, do NOT just stick stamps on it and stick it in a mailbox. It WILL be mailed back to you due to new security measures. If you did it via meter mail that is fine, but actual stamps on packages must be handstamped by a clerk in the office. Packages over (I think) 14 ounces that have uncancelled stamps on them will be mailed back to the sender this is bad for another reason I will get to next. Also dropping big stuff in a mailbox is bad for 2 other reasons. The first one is if it is say priority mail and you stuck it in a mailbox, well mailboxes are for first class mail. If the clerk doesn't see it or doesn't bother to take it out, it gets sent to the first class sorting plant first and priority mail is done separate. This can cause delays in your mail. The second reason is it will just annoy the guy who empties the boxes. Hehe.
8. Return to sender. Try to make sure you have enough postage on everything. If you get something sent back to you for lack of postage it can take a long long time. Remember that oddly shaped, oversized, and square envelopes require $.49 not $.37. The reason you don't want to get packages sent back to you return to sender is a lot of clerks are either too lazy or just don't know proper procedures for sending stuff back. This results in mail that is supposed to go back to the sender bouncing from post office to post office. Sometimes it will have actually been in the post office of where you originally sent it to multiple times (along with several others) before it gets sent back to you. I recently had a package at work that was return to sender. This was the end of the September. The parcel was originally mailed April 28.
9. Don't send cash or anything else valuable in an envelope where they can easily tell what it is! There are a lot of thieves working for the USPS, despite the large penalties for stealing from mail. This is especially a problem at the large plants where mail is sorted. I have seen many torn open empty jewelry boxes and empty check envelopes in the mail. Also you cannot insure cash sent in the mail. Some people actually don't know this so I figured I would mention it.
10. Express mail - If you send something overnight and it has a stated delivery time (usually the next day by noon or 3pm) and it doesn't get there on time, you can easily get your money back. Be sure to check online every time you send something express to make sure it got there on time. If it didn't, take all your receipts to the post office and get your money back. Even if it is 1 minute late you can get your money back. A LOT of express mail is late so it is good to always check.
11. International mail - Never ever ever ever leave the country off international mail. Even if it is to a well known city like London you are taking a huge risk by not putting England on there. The above mentioned parcel that took 5 months to get back to the sender was a package to Australia on which the sender didn't put the country. As far as I could tell it never even made it out of the US and it still took 5 months to get back to the original sender.
12. Tipping your letter carrier on Christmas is a good thing - While it is officially against postal policy for carriers to accept money not only do they do it, they expect it. I have seen countless conversations among carriers about how certain people don't give them their "whiteys" which is postal slang for Christmas tips. As a clerk I could care less about this since I work in the post office itself and I get nothing, despite sorting more mail in a day than many carriers combined, but the carriers do care. If you happen to have an evil bastard of a carrier, I wouldn't be surprised is your mail is often delayed or late because they don't like you. They should and would be fired for things like this, but it is very hard to prove. I was told a former carrier at my work was accused by multiple people on her route of outright threatening them "If you complain about me your checks just might get lost" and they were never able to prove anything against her.
13. If you have a problem, the Postmaster is your friend...sort of. A lot of times you can ask to see or on the phone speak to the Postmaster of your city directly. Though the larger the city, the less likely you can see him. But in my experience PMs don't like complaints and are usually pretty good about trying to deal with them. The main reason is they are judged on complaints to the postal line so they generally want them dealt with before it gets to that point. Supervisors on the other hand, at least in my office, just want you to go away and leave them alone as quickly as possible.
14. If you are sending something like a comic or artwork to a PO box make sure you have the clerk put "do not bend" on it! PO boxes are pretty small and large envelopes are folded in half to fit in them. If you mark something that can be creased "do not bend" then it will not be put in the box. Instead the customer will get a card telling them to pick up their mail at the window.
15. Dogs - Carriers know if you have a dog. They keep track of customers that do. They also generally do not believe you even if you tell them your dog is friendly. So if your mail hasn't come yet, and you have a yard with access to your mailbox, make sure your dog is not outside when the mail comes or you run the risk of the carrier not delivering your mail that day. Despite the whole in rain and sleet etc. stuff, carriers are within their rights to not deliver mail to a house if they deem it a threat to themselves and dogs fall into this category.
16. Priority Mail - The post office pushes priority mail and with good reason. It is where they make the most profit, but it is also the best deal. It is quicker and treated better than Parcel Post or Media mail and the supplies are 100% free. You can get priority tape, boxes, and labels for free at the post office (though we never have rolls of tape to give out at my office) and you can even order the stuff from the usps website for free. I am always surprised how few people seem to know this. The USPS really should play up the free materials thing I would think but they have never been good at advertising.
17. Boxes - As I said above, Priority Mail boxes are free. This is important to remember if you need a box. Our office has a Postal Store that sells boxes, tape, and other things. These are very high priced items. I tell customers who try to buy either all of the time that it is almost always cheaper to send something priority mail with a free box, than buy a box and send it parcel post. Not to mention you also get to use the priority tape for free and get a free label to use. If you are not sure if it is cheaper, you can always ask the clerk to check. It doesn't take long with the new computer system.
That's it for now. I will continue to add stuff as I think of it.
getoninja
10-16-2003, 05:35 PM
u the same person that posted this back in 2002 (march/april) and was a sticky then it was deleted? anyways this should be sticky...like stuff like this
omegasupreme
10-16-2003, 05:45 PM
yes, i strongly agree, and thank you very much for posting this, I'm sure that it will benifit everyone. :thumb: and yes, it should be sticky.:)
Yeah, that was me. I've been a clerk for 2 years now and I have learned some more stuff so I figured it was time to do this again.
Originally posted by getoninja
u the same person that posted this back in 2002 (march/april) and was a sticky then it was deleted? anyways this should be sticky...like stuff like this
Obsidian
10-17-2003, 10:53 AM
Good tips, for dealing with ANY postal service. My last package from the US arrived crushed to nearly half its original size. Thankfully the person who shipped it packed it really well, but I was damned unimpressed at the condition it arrived it.
Thanks for the info - great post!
I used to get my NetFlix (DVD rentals through the mail) stolen all the time when I lived in the city. Now that I live in a small town, I have no problem. What's funny is that in the city I had a locked mail box and now it's just a box that anyone can open so it was obviously someone in the postal service.
I tipped my post person during the holidays last year, but I'd never thought about it before; I know my parents never did.
Elvin Pena
10-17-2003, 12:25 PM
This info is invaluable, thank you very much. :)
getoninja
10-17-2003, 12:34 PM
gots questions,
why does the post office have very few clerks/cashiers. I mean it gets really busy and sometimes only 1-2 people workn up front with a line out the door.
Media mail-thats mainly just for books, CDs, and why does it take so long, longer than parcel post.
can we turn priority mail boxes inside out to use them for parcel post or other shipping services?
think of more later
"why does the post office have very few clerks/cashiers. I mean it gets really busy and sometimes only 1-2 people workn up front with a line out the door."
This depends on a lot of things. They may have the extra clerks in the back sorting mail if it is a particularly heavy day or people may call out sick. Since all regular fulltime employees have specific jobs they do, only some of them may be trained to work the window or willing to do so. It could also just be that your Postmaster puts more emphasis on getting the mail in the back sorted and delivered than having people at the window. My office is the opposite. Our PM freaks out if there are more than 3 people on line. Hell I was once sent to work the window when there were already 3 clerks up there (we only have 3 windows and computers!) so I ended up just standing around doing nothing for a while. Or you could just have lazy window clerks who wander off when they are supposed to be working. We have 2 people like that in my office. At any given time they could be anywhere. Hell I've seen one of them leave to go to a nearby CVS in the middle of the day!
"Media mail-thats mainly just for books, CDs, and why does it take so long, longer than parcel post."
This one is a lot easier. Media mail takes longer because it is of very low priority. Mail is sorted in order of higher priority to lowest. Express mail is done first, then first class and priority, then 3rd class and parcel post, and then media mail (which is generally in with the parcel post so a lot of the time it is sorted at the same time). All 1st and 2nd class mail must be delivered the day it arrives. Media Mail is 3rd class and doesn't have to go immediately. So if they are shorthanded, they can and will just leave it sitting there for a day or 2 while they catch up on other stuff. I also suspect they intentionally leave it sitting around in the plant to encourage people to use the more expensive services.
"can we turn priority mail boxes inside out to use them for parcel post or other shipping services?"
Yes, but not if the clerk you are dealing with is a dumbass. There is no rule against it as long as none of the priority mail words or colors are showing. This is because then it could be mistaken for priority and you'd get priority service at cheaper prices (or just get it sent back to you when someone realizes the fee was lower than priority price). But some clerks are jerks about it and if they see you do it will refuse to accept it. I would just do it at home before I got to the PO. Also if the post office you use sells boxes (ah ha! this reminds me of something I need to add to the list) they are more likely to be annoyed with you for doing this since then you are not buying their hideously overpriced boxes.
KidDynamite
10-17-2003, 01:23 PM
Fantastic stuff here, I'd love to see this stickied.
Kranix2k
10-17-2003, 03:18 PM
Crow,
Do you have any information on the handling of international mail? What I mean is: how are packages handled going to other countries and what can a person do to make that kind of shipping run smoothly. Also, do you know how packages are handled in other countries? One of the postal clerks here in my town has said some things about countries like Italy and Great Britain that sound like a lot of complete slag to me.
Thank you, BTW, for all the great info you've already posted.
:ROCK
I can only give general advice on international mail. Unfortunately I have no experience with how they ship that. It is handled at a plant. Best I can do is say to print clear and make sure you put the country on there. Don't forget the customs form.
As for other countries, I have heard that we supposedly have the best postal system in the world. But if that is true then I don't want to see the post offices in other countries! Actually our system isn't too bad...just very inefficient. They spend a lot of money on needless steps and mail is often double or triple handled when it doesn't need to be.
Originally posted by Kranix2k
Crow,
Do you have any information on the handling of international mail? What I mean is: how are packages handled going to other countries and what can a person do to make that kind of shipping run smoothly. Also, do you know how packages are handled in other countries? One of the postal clerks here in my town has said some things about countries like Italy and Great Britain that sound like a lot of complete slag to me.
Thank you, BTW, for all the great info you've already posted.
:ROCK
getoninja
11-08-2003, 12:43 PM
got an important questioned.
how can one tell if a postal money order has been cashed or if there is a way to cancell it from being cashed. what can I do
(I went to the post office and they siad they couldnt find out till 60days, I just mailed a $75.00 postal money order this past tuesday to a ebay seller which might trying to rip me off)
Well if you have the number and such you could report it stolen. We do keepa list of stolen money orders. I think they are entered in the computer but I'm not 100% sure on that one. The problem with that though is if the guy does cash it and gets arrested and he was legit you could get in trouble. I suggest emailing this address to ask what you can do. This is the USPS email addy for money order questions.
HelpDesAccounting-St.LouisMO@email.usps.gov
Napjr
11-08-2003, 10:41 PM
This thread of course deserves being sticked :D
CharlesHaley
11-08-2003, 11:12 PM
Wow, these are great tips and its really considerate of you to answer all of these questions.
I just hope someone from `ahem` another board doesn't email the postmaster general and bitch about it :lol
JetBrawn
11-09-2003, 04:33 AM
Just wanted to add that I've been quite impressed with the postal service lately. It's amazing to me that you can send anything anywhere in a matter of days or less. I'm sure that working for the postal service, you rarely get any compliments, but I'm impressed. I wonder how it could be with the inefficiencies removed!
Thanks for posting this info :D
I always pack my stuff, super tight and lots of styrofoam and bubble wrap. then tape the thing shut, and wrap it so the bottem or top can't possibly come open. (go around the entire box like 10 times :P)
If I can stand on the box without it being crushed, it should survive the trip.
Thanks. Postal clerks do tend to get all of the grief and little credit since all the complaints come straight to the window clerks (flashback to a guy blaming me for the fact that he didn't put a stamp on his letter....twice, and a lady who got upset at us because she didn't pay her PO box fee for a year and it was closed and her credit card bills ended up being late), and the clerks who always work in the back are rarely seen by the customers if at all.
Choppaface
11-23-2003, 05:28 PM
wow, nice to hear some info from the inside :D :D
thanks man, you rock :D
DX7879
01-28-2004, 09:09 PM
If someone was to mail me a Reissue 6 Megatron from Hong Kong with registered 1st class mail with tracking, do you think that the Hong Kong/US post office would open up the package or anything?
The post office would not open it, but customs is not a part of the post office. It is unlikely they would open it unless they see something suspicous about the package, but always possible. I order things from Japan all the time and have never had customs open one.
Soundwave.ca
02-12-2004, 11:58 AM
I just wanted to add some tips for all you American's selling to Canada and Canadians importing from the USA. First of all I just recived a letter back from Canadain customs today and apparntly they will slap duty on packages that have been declared over $20. In pratace I have also found that it is essential for American sellers shipping to Canada to mark it as a gift otherwise the Canadian at the other end is definatly paying the price at the other end.
Soundwave.ca
shifty02
03-08-2004, 09:11 PM
WOW!! Great info!!
I just have one question (which you may not be able to answer). But why would at one point I get my mail at say around 10am, and then over the course of a year or so it now takes the carrier until around 6pm!
-Shifty
Actually I can probably answer that. It is like that in many places these days. Starting in 2001 the Post Office realized they were losing a LOT of money. They later tried to blame it on 9/11 but the truth is they were already losing in the hundreds of millions before that happened. But anyway this caused a hiring freeze. They are not hiring anybody now. The only way an office gets a new person these days is if they get an excess person to transfer from another office. On top of that, they recently had an early retirement session that a lot of people took (though they didn't get as many people to retire as they wanted I hear) and they didn't replace those that retired either. So offices all over are shorthanded in both clerks and carriers. Less clerks means the mail takes longer for the carriers to get their mail and get out of the office. And less carriers means sometimes that certain routes are done by carriers who do other routes, after they finish their own. That is the reason for late mail in many places these days.
I know all of this is the case in my office. When I started, during the busiest time of the day of mail sorting for a clerk in my office (5-8AM) we had 6-7 clerks every day. One transferred to another job, one retired, and another is out for a long period of time with surgery. Now we have 3-4 on any given day. The mail used to be done by 9am almost every day and the carriers would be out on the road shortly after. Now, there are days where the carriers don't get on the road until after 11am. In addition to this there are less carriers now too so when they do start delivering they have to split up the work between those who are there and it takes even longer.
That is what it probably is for you, but it could also be something more simple like they changed the carriers route, so that while you used to be in the beginning of his route, you are now at the end. But even then the lack of employees is probably coming into effect because most carriers would be on overtime by 6pm.
WOW!! Great info!!
I just have one question (which you may not be able to answer). But why would at one point I get my mail at say around 10am, and then over the course of a year or so it now takes the carrier until around 6pm!
-Shifty
shifty02
03-19-2004, 03:37 AM
Wow...good to know, Thanks :)
-Shifty
Razorclaw
03-29-2004, 06:51 AM
Maybe you can shed some light on my problem. I've sent a package to a board member who lives in USA 5 months ago, and the problem is the package still hasn't arrived.
3 months ago I filled a tracking request, and whenever I go to my local post office (I live in Serbia-Montenegro in Europe) the clerks say "You'll be notified". In the request I stated everything clearly, and the clerk told me when I did that that either I or the bloke I sent the stuff to will be notified if the package is found, he if they're able to send it to him or me if they are returning it to me. As I allready said, its been 3 months and still nothin'. Maybe the people at the post office is stalling, they know its lost but don't want to tell me, hoping to piss me off so I'll say "to hell with it", and stop bugging them for a year, because that's the deadline they give for international mail that's lost to be found, if after a year it isn't found they are bound to refund me the whole
shebang (shipping and value of the package). Anyway I just wanted to know is there a way to check with the USPS if the package has arrived and is delivered? Send them an email or something?
Thanx very much for looking this up.
Razorclaw
The only real way to see if it was delivered on the US end is if you had tracking of some sort. Registered, Insured (over $50), Express, and Delivery Confirmation would all be trackable to varying degrees. Certified is trackable too though that is generally used for letters. If none of those were on it they would probably tell you tough luck pretty much as then the only way you'd be able to tell if it came would be if a clerk happened to remember seeing a package for that particular person from you, which is highly unlikely.
If you had any of those on the package you should be able to look up the status online at www.usps.com, or call. I think the number is 1-800-call-usps.
One other thing you could try, though it is a longshot is to call the office it was supposed to be delivered to and ask to speak to the accountables mail clerk. He should be able to explain things far better than I.
Maybe you can shed some light on my problem. I've sent a package to a board member who lives in USA 5 months ago, and the problem is the package still hasn't arrived.
3 months ago I filled a tracking request, and whenever I go to my local post office (I live in Serbia-Montenegro in Europe) the clerks say "You'll be notified". In the request I stated everything clearly, and the clerk told me when I did that that either I or the bloke I sent the stuff to will be notified if the package is found, he if they're able to send it to him or me if they are returning it to me. As I allready said, its been 3 months and still nothin'. Maybe the people at the post office is stalling, they know its lost but don't want to tell me, hoping to piss me off so I'll say "to hell with it", and stop bugging them for a year, because that's the deadline they give for international mail that's lost to be found, if after a year it isn't found they are bound to refund me the whole
shebang (shipping and value of the package). Anyway I just wanted to know is there a way to check with the USPS if the package has arrived and is delivered? Send them an email or something?
Thanx very much for looking this up.
Razorclaw
rework
04-06-2004, 08:54 PM
Something I just leared from my post office:
If you are shipping by Prioriy Mail and use their on-line shipping label maker, you can get Delivery Confirmation added for free.
Everything I've shipped for the past month has now had DC at no extra charge... And amazingly, I've had no more delays (like shipping Prioriy from Virginia to Texas taking 26 days... Or Chicago taking even longer!)... Maybe just a coincidence...
Razorclaw
04-07-2004, 08:54 AM
Something I just leared from my post office:
If you are shipping by Prioriy Mail and use their on-line shipping label maker, you can get Delivery Confirmation added for free.
Everything I've shipped for the past month has now had DC at no extra charge... And amazingly, I've had no more delays (like shipping Prioriy from Virginia to Texas taking 26 days... Or Chicago taking even longer!)... Maybe just a coincidence...
I don't see what does that have to do with my case, since I live outside of USA. I just wanted to know if there is some kind of way to contact the postal service in USA to ask if the package arrived, because I have the felling the local post office is holdig back on me.
rework
04-07-2004, 11:08 AM
I don't see what does that have to do with my case, since I live outside of USA. I just wanted to know if there is some kind of way to contact the postal service in USA to ask if the package arrived, because I have the felling the local post office is holdig back on me.
Actually, this has nothing to do with your situation. This thread was started and stickied for general tips on postage.
You should probably start a new thread to get full attention paid to your issue. Someone may be able to help, but I don't think that many people read all the updated to this thread. It's kind of a reference guide.
Another new service we have is carrier pick-up. This is pretty convenient as you can schedule a pickup of any amount of packages for free. You do this 1 day ahead of time. At the beginning of the next day, your carrier is notified that you have x amount of packages scheduled for pickup. The key to this is that you have to have postage on the parcels already. So you would use either click-n-ship (to print your own postage) or if you are a business and have one, you could use a postal meter.
Here is the link to schedule a pick-up. You can find more info by following the links on the site.
https://carrierpickup.usps.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/CarrierPickup.woa
rework
04-07-2004, 05:56 PM
Another new service we have is carrier pick-up. This is pretty convenient as you can schedule a pickup of any amount of packages for free. You do this 1 day ahead of time. At the beginning of the next day, your carrier is notified that you have x amount of packages scheduled for pickup. The key to this is that you have to have postage on the parcels already. So you would use either click-n-ship (to print your own postage) or if you are a business and have one, you could use a postal meter.
Here is the link to schedule a pick-up. You can find more info by following the links on the site.
https://carrierpickup.usps.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/CarrierPickup.woa
I'd probably like to use this service, but since I work all day, I don't think it's practical. Even if they don't require someone to be there, I don't know that I'd be comfortable leaving the packages out on the porch all day.
Paul Grant
04-11-2004, 09:52 AM
http://www.canadapost.ca/personal/tools/rc/res/bin/rc_res-e.asp
Here is the Canada Post rate calculator, I use it to guess the cost of shipping ebay items, then quote the results to the buyers.
Chaos Muffin
04-29-2004, 07:05 PM
Now I just always choose the 5.99 shipping rate ( one step up from flat shipping rate) on normal sized items.
That way the mailman just leaves the box at your doorstep, no hassles.
but it takes around 2-5 days for delivery.
Here's something I recently learned that is useful to know. Media mail is treated as third class for UBBM purposes. UBBM mail is undeliverable mail that we do not attempt to return to sender.
What this means is that if we can't deliver it because the address is unreadable, doesn't exist, fell off, has the wrong house #, was eaten by evil elves, or whatever else caused it be undeliverable it is basically thrown out. Only 3rd class mail that doesn't have address correction gets thrown out. Or to be more specific, it gets recycled. We have a dumpster out behind my office that all this stuff gets chucked in.
If you have a P.O. Box (post office box) in the US, UPS will not deliver to it.
(I just discovered this after a big hassle with smallblueplanet.com)
Aberration
07-31-2004, 07:30 PM
Here's a question for you: I bought something from eBay from a user in Australia, who insisted on being paid cash.
Ok, let's get it over with, "MORON, you NEVER EVER send cash!!!" *flogs self 50 times*
With that out of the way, I sent the payment, then learned that it's "prohibited" to mail currency to Australia. So, what exactly happens if my envelope was to be discovered? I'd think it would be hard to tell what's in there, the bill is folded into fourths, wrapped inside a letter with details on the purchase, all inside a security envelope, but who knows what could happen?
It'll be 3 weeks this Tuesday since I've sent, and I'm a bit worried. The seller says mail between the US and Australia has been taking over 2 weeks though, so I dunno.
Any thoughts? Besides always use a money order from now on?
It varies by country I believe but most likely you'd never see it again. There is also the chance they might return it to sender but with cash I find it unlikely. But the odds are pretty good he scammed you and will just tell you that is what happened. As you said, never ever send anyone cash ESPECIALLY if they specifically ask for it.
Here's a question for you: I bought something from eBay from a user in Australia, who insisted on being paid cash.
Ok, let's get it over with, "MORON, you NEVER EVER send cash!!!" *flogs self 50 times*
With that out of the way, I sent the payment, then learned that it's "prohibited" to mail currency to Australia. So, what exactly happens if my envelope was to be discovered? I'd think it would be hard to tell what's in there, the bill is folded into fourths, wrapped inside a letter with details on the purchase, all inside a security envelope, but who knows what could happen?
It'll be 3 weeks this Tuesday since I've sent, and I'm a bit worried. The seller says mail between the US and Australia has been taking over 2 weeks though, so I dunno.
Any thoughts? Besides always use a money order from now on?
10incher
09-01-2004, 12:59 PM
Also, if you are in Canada never let anyone ship from the USA by Federal Express. They charge a $30 brokerage fee to clear the package with customs plus the duty charges based on the value of the package. Once I bought a $3 GI Joe vehicle off someone on Ebay which came to $8 with shipping. FedEx phoned me to say the package was in and it came to something like $40 in fees. You can get them to fax you the documents and goto customs to clear it yourself, but it is not worth all the effort.
I just wanted to add some tips for all you American's selling to Canada and Canadians importing from the USA. First of all I just recived a letter back from Canadain customs today and apparntly they will slap duty on packages that have been declared over $20. In pratace I have also found that it is essential for American sellers shipping to Canada to mark it as a gift otherwise the Canadian at the other end is definatly paying the price at the other end.
Soundwave.ca
Soundwave.ca
09-14-2004, 11:50 PM
Also, if you are in Canada never let anyone ship from the USA by Federal Express. They charge a $30 brokerage fee to clear the package with customs plus the duty charges based on the value of the package. Once I bought a $3 GI Joe vehicle off someone on Ebay which came to $8 with shipping. FedEx phoned me to say the package was in and it came to something like $40 in fees. You can get them to fax you the documents and goto customs to clear it yourself, but it is not worth all the effort.
Good Call same with UPS which I think is even higher then FedEx as I think its closer to 50 at a minimum and can go as high as a 100 depending on the item.
Gen. Magnus
10-10-2004, 07:14 AM
Good Call same with UPS which I think is even higher then FedEx as I think its closer to 50 at a minimum and can go as high as a 100 depending on the item.
FED EX and UPS are sick for international shipping or even US territory shipping. UPS wanted a min $28 to ship a tiny package to Puerto Rico. USPS is only costing me $5 and it will get there just as fast.
From now on, I am only shipping USPS for international and will likely stick with UPS to ship intranational.
Blueefficacy
11-05-2004, 01:44 AM
Hi, I work at UPS and I'll tell you a little bit about shipping through them.
First, if you live near a UPS hub/center, it's best to use the customer counter there.
If you have the driver pick it up, or go to the UPS store, they will charge an additional fee.
You get free tracking (great tracking!) and insurance up to $100 I think. Not really free (built into the price!) but nice to have anyway.
Make sure you package things very well. The handling process can be quite rough. "Fragile" indications are like a big bullseye.
Here are the service levels:
Ground:
The cheapest service level, a package shipped will be delivered in 1-6 business days, depending on the geography between shipper and receiver. Only in rare instances will it be 5 or 6 days. Guaranteed. Most people don't know this but even Ground is guaranteed to be delivered that day.
3 Day select:
A combination of ground and air service which is guaranteed to be delivered in three days. Only practical if you're shipping it to somewhere Ground takes more than 3 days. It seems to be among the least commonly used UPS services.
Second day air:
Guaranteed by Noon (i think) on the second business day after shipping.
Next day air:
The most expensive regular service level, by far. Guaranteed by 10 am next day most places. Unless it is absolutely critical to get it the next day, I would go with second day air if you're in a hurry to get something. Much, much cheaper.
Next day air EARLY AM:
This is a PREMIUM service level, and the price shows! Guaranteed by 8:30 AM in most places. Insanely expensive. We're talking like $50 as a minimum.
Please, don't make your own labels. Standard UPS labels are MUCH easier to read. They have the facility code, a four digit number, printed prominently on them. This is a great help to us people who need to sort boxes at a UPS hub. Another thing, MAKE SURE YOUR PRINTER HAS PLENTY OF INK if you print your own label off the UPS website. If there isn't enough ink, the barcode won't scan. In which case, the loader/driver/whoever is handling it has to key enter the tracking number. Many of us simply don't bother with that. So, as a result, you'll get incomplete tracking information.
Another thing about tracking: Sometimes, a loader will make a mistake, and his scanner is configured to say the packages are going to, say, New Jersey, when they are really loading packages going to Atlanta into an Atlanta trailer. Even though the package will still show up on time, if the tracking shows that it is going to the wrong destination, you can still get a refund.
Anybody have questions about UPS? I know an awful lot about how that place works. Ask away.
We are just entering the Christmas mailing season again so I figure I'll leave a few tips:
1. When you mail those extra large or square Christmas cards, be sure to put the proper postage on it! No matter how light or small it is, a square card is considered non-machineable, which translates to the USPS getting to charge you $0.49 instead of $0.37 for a letter. You don't need 2 stamps for a 1 ounce letter that is oversize or offsize, just $0.49. You can get smaller denomination stamps to make up the difference at the window or if you really want just toss 2 stamps on there. Every year we send back piles of Christmas cards that people just put 1 stamp on not realizing there is an extra charge for square cards. Or worse, we deliver them and charge the recipient the $0.12 difference. Nothing says Merry Christmas like someone sending you a Christmas card it costs you money to accept! ;)
2. If you see a mailbox is overflowing and you are able, call the PO in your town and let them know so they can send someone out to empty it. It varies, but I know in my office the boxes are only emptied twice a day. So if a box is overflowing in the middle of the day (and it does happen in the Christmas season) those letters could be blowing down the street instead of getting delivered.
3. Please please please don't ask the clerks why or when stamps are going up. You may have heard that the USPS is asking for another stamp increase from $0.37 to $0.41. Trust me, we don't know any more than you do. In fact we probably know less. They tell us absolutely nothing until it happens, so unless a clerk happens to notice it in the paper or on the news as I did we have no clue there is going to be a rate increase. We especially have no say in the matter, nor do postal workers get any kind of discount.
4. Yes, we might be out of Christmas stamps. Offices run out of Christmas stamps a LOT during this season (big surprise eh?). Some customers get extremely upset over this. Generally the clerk has no say in this matter either. One of the supervisors will be in charge of the stamp stock so if they didn't order enough (or the region office refuses to give what they ask for) there isn't much that can be done about it. You can always wait a few days and hope they get more in.
5. When mailing a package, please don't put the address on multiple sides. A lot of people do this figuring it will help us, but it is for your own good not to do this. The reason is a postal worker might pick it up and notice only the first side he sees. When he does this he probably also is seeing one of the sides of the package that does NOT have the postage on it. So there is then a good chance he sends your package right back to you. ANYTHING returned to sender via the USPS can take forever (our return to sender system is terrible) and if this happens it is very likely you will not be able to get the package to the intended recipient in time for Christmas.
6. In a pinch express mail is your friend. Sure it's expensive as hell, but it's also guaranteed. If you need to get something there overnight try express. If we don't do it in time we still deliver it, but even if it is 1 minute late you get your money back. This is not automatic. You have to go to the office and ask for it back but even 1 minute late and they HAVE TO give it to you. I know of some cities where express mail is late nearly 100% of the time so when I ship there I always use express hehehe.
7. I'm not sure if they are all like this but our stamp machines give those evil gold dollar coins for change. If you do not like them, don't use the stamp machine or pay in an amount that won't require you to get dollars back. A lot of people use them to avoid the lines but most people immediately afterward come to the window complaining about the dollar coins they get as change, or worse try to exchange them for regular dollars with the clerk. We don't like them either because then we have to give them to other customers as change who then get upset as well. (Though there was one time I gave about 9 dollar coins in change to a customer who was being extremely rude and nasty, claiming I had nothing else to give her. Bwahahaha!)
8. In the rain or snow you might want to mail your stuff in the actual office instead of in a box. All offices have indoor slots for mail (or you can just hand them to a clerk). I mention this because despite supposedly being protected from weather I still find puddles in the mailboxes all the time with totally soaked mail.
9. If a parcel is a Christmas gift it might be a good idea to mark it as so (or put some christmas wrapping over it. This is because many offices have a special parcel run leading up to and often including Christmas day. My office has one on Christmas day and we are told any parcel that "looks like a Christmas gift" is to be delivered. Now obviously nobody wants to be working Christmas day so they want to deliver as few parcels as possible so anything not clearly marked will be left for the day after.
I guess that's about it for now. As always I will answer any questions to the best of my ability.
Sonscreen
01-26-2005, 10:58 AM
I normally like to take packages to the shipping clerk, but the new Automated Postal Center machines are great when you're in a hurry (and when they work). Delivery confirmation and I believe insurance can also be tacked on to the shipping charges as well. The only thing that stinks is when your box doesn't fit in to the package slots.
Sweep
07-28-2005, 05:25 PM
Crow,
Is there a limit to the size of boxes provided for you if you get priorty mail?
Also can you ship something priorty mail to Hawaii or Alaska?
For HI and AK, yes you can send priority mail there.
Do you mean the boxes we provide? You can look at the dimensions and pics of the different priority boxes we have here:
http://shop.usps.com/cgi-bin/vsbv/postal_store_non_ssl/display_products/productCategory.jsp?prodCat=/Shipping+Supplies/Priority+Mail
But in actuality you can use ANY box for priority mail. Just when you mail it, if you use priority the clerk will put a priority sticker or tape on it. There is a size limit on boxes you can mail but that applies to any type of mail, not just priority. I think the limit is longest side + width has to be 130 inches or less. The weight limit on any package is 70 pounds.
If you were asking about the flat rate priority stuff you have to use our special flat rate boxes, which all are $7.70 now. There should be pics of them on the site I linked as well.
zap dragon
07-30-2005, 02:29 AM
I don't see what does that have to do with my case, since I live outside of USA. I just wanted to know if there is some kind of way to contact the postal service in USA to ask if the package arrived, because I have the felling the local post office is holdig back on me.
so if u used registered/tracking/delivery confimation, every postal or delivey service and each county has it's own web site for tracking, here are some
united states postal service
http://www.usps.com/shipping/trackandconfirm.htm?from=home&page=0035trackandconfirm
canada post
https://obc.canadapost.ca/emo/basicPin.do?language=en&?sblid=dc
hongkong post
http://www.hongkongpost.com/eng/main.htm
ups
http://www.ups.com/content/us/en/index.jsx
fedex
http://www.fedex.com/Tracking?cntry_code=us&
Sweep
09-10-2005, 01:35 PM
Hi, I got a problem. What if you put the wrong address on a package and ship it out?
Name, city, and zip is right, but the address number is different.
I've been waiting for this package for 2 weeks and I haven't recieved it yet.
The wrong street address? That's not good. Unless you are a business the clerks might recognize or a very small town it was likely sent back or delivered to the address that was on the package. If it was sent 3rd class such as media mail, then it's probably been tossed in the recycle bin by now. We don't send media mail back unless it's address or forwarding service requested and I don't think you can do that unless it is a bulk mailing, though I am not entirely certain.
Wrong zip will usually delay a package, but EVENTUALLY it will get there. Wrong city will sometimes get there if the zip is right. Wrong street address is the worst possible one.
Hi, I got a problem. What if you put the wrong address on a package and ship it out?
Name, city, and zip is right, but the address number is different.
I've been waiting for this package for 2 weeks and I haven't recieved it yet.
Sweep
09-11-2005, 09:00 AM
The wrong street address? That's not good. Unless you are a business the clerks might recognize or a very small town it was likely sent back or delivered to the address that was on the package. If it was sent 3rd class such as media mail, then it's probably been tossed in the recycle bin by now. We don't send media mail back unless it's address or forwarding service requested and I don't think you can do that unless it is a bulk mailing, though I am not entirely certain.
Wrong zip will usually delay a package, but EVENTUALLY it will get there. Wrong city will sometimes get there if the zip is right. Wrong street address is the worst possible one.
Is they're any way I can go to my local post office and see if they can try and find it?
Well you can certainly ask. Be sure to ask to talk to a delivery supervisor. But if it was delivered or sent back already there isn't much they can do. Tell them what happened and if you are lucky they have a backlog of return to sender stuff and haven't sent it back yet. It isn't high priority to send that kind of stuff out so it COULD still be there if they are shorthanded. They likely won't be of much help if you can't tell them the address it was sent to by accident though.
Is they're any way I can go to my local post office and see if they can try and find it?
Sweep
09-16-2005, 04:42 AM
I have ANOTHER problem, my TFC-20 that I ordered from JRSToys was returned to sender. Thing is, the address on the package was right! Why would this happen?! Now JRS wants another $5.99 to re-ship. Does the post office make mistakes like that alot? Can they resend my package free of charge because it was they're fault? I'd just like to know what my options are because I don't feel like I should pay for shipping again when it was the post offices screw up.
As far as I know we don't screw up in that fashion that often. We screw up plenty but rarely return something with a good address to sender. Now what I HAVE seen is the same piece of mail get sent back to the sender's PO 2 or 3 times before they finally send it to the correct address. But when it gets back to the original office it should be caught there and sent out again. This usually happens when the return address is either bigger or too close to the mailing address and some lazy person just isn't looking closely enough. When I see those I circle the delivery address and put it back into the mail stream. I certainly would not give it back to the sender!
Anyway for one thing it should say on the package why it was returned to sender. That would help a lot in determining exactly what happened. There could be a yellow RTS sticker on it, a red stamp with a reason checked off, or even seemingly random scribbles on the package might be notes from the carrier as to why it was sent back. For example NSS would be "no such street" while ANK (attempted not known) or a slew of other things the carriers use could mean they didn't recognize the name on the package. If the street and name were right that really shouldn't happen. Was it shipped in a way that required a signature? Did you get one of those pinkish cards? If you get one of those and take too long going to the post office to pick it up, it would eventually get sent back. But they are supposed to re-attempt delivery before they do that (The PO in my hometown almost never re-attempts delivery when I miss an express mail though, and I end up having to pick it up. Grr!)
You won't be able to ship it again for free. At least there is nothing you can do on your end. The only way it is getting shipped for free is if the sender goes to the PO, brings it, tells them the address IS valid and makes enough of a stink that a supervisor or the Postmaster tells the clerk to put it through for free. The window clerk cannot and will not ship something for free under any circumstances unless someone over him/her clears it first.
Also when they do ship again, make certain to tell the shipper to obliterate ALL barcodes on any side of the package as well as all of the return to sender markings, scribbles, stickers, etc. If they are not gone it will just get sent back to them again by the machines that sort the mail. The best route is to put it into an entirely new box and not risk it.
It sucks I know, but the PO is pretty unforgiving these days. We had a similar situation with a day sending out some bill he forgot to put a stamp on one time. I was working the window when he came up with it. He showed me the letter and, yelling in my face the entire time, demanded to know why he got it back. I told him because he didn't put enough postage. He showed me the remailed letter with the stamp and I pointed out that he did not cross out the big return to sender stamp on the letter. I told him that you need to cross out all RTS and barcode stuff and he got angrier accusing me of "passing the buck". I then called a supervisor to deal with him.
One last note, if you ever decide to be a customer like him it is best not to do it in your home office where they KNOW you and where you live and handle your mail every day. It is especially stupid to do so when you have a PO box in said office. We would surely never do such a thing but in that kind of situation people tend to not notice that "do not bend" stamp on something when they bend it in half to fit in a small PO box, like the one this guy coincidentally has. Fortunately for me I don't work the box section so I clearly could not do such a thing.
I have ANOTHER problem, my TFC-20 that I ordered from JRSToys was returned to sender. Thing is, the address on the package was right! Why would this happen?! Now JRS wants another $5.99 to re-ship. Does the post office make mistakes like that alot? Can they resend my package free of charge because it was they're fault? I'd just like to know what my options are because I don't feel like I should pay for shipping again when it was the post offices screw up.
I thought I would drop a few more comments in here since I just got out of 8 hours of "revenue protection" training this week that I shouldn't have even had to take since I don't work the window anymore. One guy there hadn't worked the window in 10 YEARS but since it was still in his job title they forced him to take it too. Anyway the PO is looking for any way to get money now. To do this they have developed some....less than friendly methods.
For example, at the training we were told to not even mention the cheaper stuff like parcel post and media mail until the customer specifically asks for something cheaper than priority mail. Now PP and MM SUCK as I have explained in the past, but to pretend they don't even exist is pretty evil. Actually the Post Office wants to abolish them completely but is forced to have them by the federal government.
Another example by the trainer was that even when that little old lady comes in counting her pennies and wanting to mail something to her grandson you should try to convince her to send it express mail, which would of course cost much more.
They also want us to push the Ready-Post line of boxes the USPS sells too because they make like 60% profit on each box they sell. Of course that is because they charge like 3 times what the same box would cost at a regular store plus $3 for a single roll of tape. When I was out there I would ALWAYS recommend the customer get priority mail (free box and unlimited use of priority tape) instead of paying like $6 for a box and tape from our store. Not only did it save them money but priority is much safer and faster.
Starting next month ALL post offices (except for VERY small ones that are exempt) will no longer open before 10AM. Nice, eh? Everyone, from clerks to carriers to supervisors and Postmasters knows this will be a miserable failure. But unfortunately someone at the top isn't listening. The customers are already pissed and calling daily to complain and it will get worse. They are going to lose a lot of money and everybody knows it, yet the plod on. *sigh* They insist we don't get a lot of customers before 10. But we get a lot of our business and regular customers before their business day starts. They are really not going to be happy.
Finally you probably know this but stamps ARE going up again and soon. They haven't announced it yet but it was in the papers that they asked permission a while ago. They got it and will be raising prices in the near future, probably in January. The USPS is going to cry about the 100 million they claim to have lost because of the hurricane and blame that on the price raise. But like 9/11, which they blamed the last price raise on, these price changes were planned BEFORE any of that happened. It just happens to make a convenient excuse for us to push on the public.
Ah the joy of working for the USPS.
Sweep
09-16-2005, 03:18 PM
I talked to Bill at JRS today.
He said the package had written on it "Unknown Addresse" but he went up there today and managed to get them to re-send it free of charge. (Thank GOD!)
Sent it priorty mail so hopefully I get it on Monday.
Empr Starscream
09-16-2005, 03:26 PM
All they did was put a sticker over the original address that said unknown addressee. I pulled that off and the label was fine. There was a little note of a rte 32 written on the label, yet the lady at the counter just scribbled that out and stamped the package with today's date.
I have a very good relationship with the post office I mail through so it wasn't a hassle at all. I was expecting some kind of problem, yet had none at all.
Hopefully everything will go through without a glitch this time. This was the first package in over a year sent back undeliverable and I ship about 200 a month through the post office.
Hmm. By any chance is your name different from the people who get most of the mail at that address? It is possible a new or part-time carrier saw a name he didn't recognize and not being the regular carrier stupidly just sent it back instead of waiting until the regular carrier came back (Assuming it was just his day off and not a vacation or something) and asking him, or at least asking a supervisor to check for him. If that wasn't it I have no idea how that could happen outside of an unfathomable screw-up. Good to hear that you got it re-sent for free though. At least some postal workers still know what customer service means. ;)
As a precaution Sweep, you should call or visit your own post office, let them know what happened and tell them another is on the way and please make sure it doesn't happen again. The supervisor (hopefully) will talk to the carrier who delivers to your street and prevent it from happening a second time.
As for the label, sounds like one of the yellow RTS stickers. That is what we are SUPPOSED to use, but I have seen many other ways. Pulling it off is fine. I'm not sure what RTE stands for, return something I am sure, but 32 is probably the route number. Not really useful information though. Unknown Addressee definitely means whoever sent it back thought Sweep did not live there though, for whatever reason.
getoninja
10-31-2005, 06:49 PM
I have a question about Measurments for International shipping for Airmail Letter Post.
I know when you mail a package under 4 pounds it can be sent Armail Letter post (which is cheaper than Parcel Post) but the box has to within the certain measurments to be sent Letter Post. What are the measurments they go by to be sent Letter Post.
I ask this cause latly certian Clerks at the post office say some of my packs are too large for Letter Post. I been this for many years and I know some packs are under the measurments, cause some clerks that use to work there before would measure the boxes and they would say the boxes are fine. And I dont want to challege the clerks cause I can be wrong.
Sorry I took so long to answer, I didn't know and had to ask someone at work. The limit is length + width + height must be under 36 inches.
I have a question about Measurments for International shipping for Airmail Letter Post.
I know when you mail a package under 4 pounds it can be sent Armail Letter post (which is cheaper than Parcel Post) but the box has to within the certain measurments to be sent Letter Post. What are the measurments they go by to be sent Letter Post.
I ask this cause latly certian Clerks at the post office say some of my packs are too large for Letter Post. I been this for many years and I know some packs are under the measurments, cause some clerks that use to work there before would measure the boxes and they would say the boxes are fine. And I dont want to challege the clerks cause I can be wrong.
Sweep
02-09-2006, 06:57 PM
Hey Crow,
Can you send a package letter post? Or are packages strictly parcel post?
Also, what if you go to your local post office to get an estimate and they tell you one price and the usps website tells you another?
JunkionExchange
02-09-2006, 07:11 PM
Never do the USps website Unless you do a flat rate box they are always higher Online
You can send a parcel letter post. The limit is 4 pounds I believe and it can't be all that big either but I forget the dimension limits.
And as for totals always go with the office estimate since they have the computer and scale right there.
jedi bobs
02-21-2006, 09:25 PM
I just got a pick up letter in my mailbox for a pacage. I was home. no one knocked at my door or anything. now I have to goto the inconvenance of going to the po to get my stuff. I live on the second floor. I talked to the teller and they said all the postman has to do is honk there horn. I live in the back of the appartment and can't hear it. what can i do help this from happing agian?
I have never heard about the horn honking thing. In my office the carriers are required to ring the bell, not that they always do. The best thing you can do is send a letter to the postmaster of your town complaining or even show up and ask to talk to the postmaster or a delivery supervisor. They will yell at the carrier most likely. The carrier will be mock upset about it, and may or may not listen.
I just got a pick up letter in my mailbox for a pacage. I was home. no one knocked at my door or anything. now I have to goto the inconvenance of going to the po to get my stuff. I live on the second floor. I talked to the teller and they said all the postman has to do is honk there horn. I live in the back of the appartment and can't hear it. what can i do help this from happing agian?
thor20
10-05-2006, 10:02 PM
What do they do to find lost packages? I lost a package about a month ago and am still waiting.
Tech Spec
10-12-2006, 06:48 AM
Just a heads up, when shipping to Canada stick with USPS. UPS is a total rip off with their handling fees and such. Honestly alot of Canadians that buy TF's from the US are aware of customs charges and are fine with it.
Also I had a package sent out 2 weeks a go via UPS it was supposed to arrive on Oct 2nd. I thought customs was holding it to figure out the customs charge. But when I called on Tuesday morning they needed me to clear the package and ensure it was a toy in the package. So the operator cleared it and I paid the customs charge (which there wasn't supposed to be because the value was under $20) and their stupid handling fees (isn't that why we pay them to ship a package in the first place?) and said it would be delivered on Wednesday.... No delivery yesterday. So I just called them 10 minutes ago asking where my package is and the operator said that it's still in the wharehouse waiting to be cleared by customs.
I don't know why UPS is so difficult to deal with. It's obvious that "brown" can't even deliver a package.
Peace, Love, & Chicken Feet
TILALLR1
10-12-2006, 04:40 PM
Totally agreed. UPS sucks and really expensive (For what? I will never know). USPS is the best and most affordable. US guys please us this for us Canuks. Thanks.
Just a heads up, when shipping to Canada stick with USPS. UPS is a total rip off with their handling fees and such. Honestly alot of Canadians that buy TF's from the US are aware of customs charges and are fine with it.
Also I had a package sent out 2 weeks a go via UPS it was supposed to arrive on Oct 2nd. I thought customs was holding it to figure out the customs charge. But when I called on Tuesday morning they needed me to clear the package and ensure it was a toy in the package. So the operator cleared it and I paid the customs charge (which there wasn't supposed to be because the value was under $20) and their stupid handling fees (isn't that why we pay them to ship a package in the first place?) and said it would be delivered on Wednesday.... No delivery yesterday. So I just called them 10 minutes ago asking where my package is and the operator said that it's still in the wharehouse waiting to be cleared by customs.
I don't know why UPS is so difficult to deal with. It's obvious that "brown" can't even deliver a package.
Peace, Love, & Chicken Feet
Tech Spec
03-09-2007, 03:38 PM
For US Sellers shipping internationally, when you ship out items the customs form has a barcode with a number starting with LC that can be used as a soucre of tracking.
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h167/souldrunk/random%20pics/DSC00162.jpg
You can track this once the item has reached the destination country. Every little bit helps :thumb
spadesss
04-19-2007, 11:09 AM
question/confusion: i ship via USPS.
using the online USPS calculator is great when estimating shipping fees and options in the US.
but outside of the US, even to Canada is a bit different. since shipping outside of US, i have to fill out the customs form so i tend to get postage and insurance from the post office (as i have to wait in line and all). the options and fees are quite different at the post office than what is available online through their website.
can anyone shed some light on this?
TheToyAddict
04-19-2007, 12:26 PM
First off there are 4 major ways to ship a package internationaly using USPS.
***This covers airmail only. I would never recommend sending anything economy mail (surface/by ship), as it takes forever and there is good chance the package will get really beat up since it sits in a ships hold for 4 to 8 weeks.
****Contrary to other posts, the rates quoted on the USPS website are dead accurate. Make sure your home/office scales are calibrated accurately.
1. LETTER POST- This used to be called small package and they changed the name a few years back and it seems to confuse people. This is usually the cheapest way to send a package international. Letter post covers small packages as well, and here are the rules.
a. Package must weight 4lbs or less.
b. Package can not exceed 36 inches when you add together length, width, and height.
c. You can NOT insure letter post packages unless you send them REGISTERED which will include insurance up to about $44. You can NOT buy additional insurance, but registered mail has to be signed for every time it changes hands, and is kept under lock and key the whole time the USPS has it (and theoreticly under lock and key at the receiving country as well). Registered usually costs between $7.50 and $7.90 and that cost is IN ADDITION to regular shipping cost.
d. You have to use the small green and white customs form. It is a single sheet with no copies.
e. Unless you get registered there is NO way to ever track down this package. Once it is gone, it is gone forever.
2.PARCEL POST
a.Just about any size and weight is covered. Each receiving country has different limits, but unless you are sending something absolutey huge, it won't be a problem.
b.They don't advertise it, but there is some insurance included to most countries. The amount of insurance coverage seems to be determined by weight and country it is going to. Just ask your clerk how much coverage there would be if you didn't buy any additional insurance. You will be surprised that most of the time, the included insurance will cover whatever you are sending. Once again, you have to ask, because they want you buy insurance if they can get you to. You can also purchase additional insurance to cover whatever is not included if your item is high value.
c. you have to use the large white customs form that contains about 4 copies, so press hard when you write so it goes all the way through.
d. Once again, they do not advertise it, but they CAN track down this package should it get lost.
e. The main problem with parcel post air is that for small packages it is quite a bit more expensive then letter post. For example a 2lb. package to Canada costs $6.70 for letter post, or $14.30 for parcel post. Yes, you get insurance, but that is over double the cost.
3.GLOBAL PRIORITY
a. Basicly same rules as letter post , except you can not send it registered, and it CAN be tracked down if it goes missing (in theory).
b. Cost is usually between letter post and parcel post rates. a 2lb. package to Canada costs $11.50
c. they say it is faster then letter post or parcel post, but in my experience it is at most 1 to 2 days faster then letter post.
4. INTERNATIONAL EXPRESS (EMS)
a. covers just about any size package (see parcel post above for package size limits)
b. Includes a tracking number that you can look at online anytime.
c. Includes insurance up to $100.00. Additional insurance can be purchased.
d.Must use the large customs form
e. By far the most expensive way to ship, but and usually much faster (but not always) then any of the others.
f. For many countries there are guaranteed delivery dates, and if it doesn't get there by that date, you get your shipping fees back (not including any additional insurance). I have been able to get my money back on this deal several times.
****There is a guaranteed interantional shipping service called GXM that will get the packages delivered in 1 to 3 days to most countries, but the costs are astronomical, so I have never used it.
Hope this helps some of you who are new to international shipping.
asderiphel
05-14-2007, 01:54 AM
Don't know if this is the right place, but just to remind everybody:
As of 5/14/07, postal rates increased considerably. BBTS has stopped offering Priority Mail shipping as it has doubled and in some cases tripled shipping costs. I've checked some of the rates and they are noticeably more expensive. So be sure to check your shipping quote before you ship anything out Priority.
Soundblaster1
06-16-2007, 06:00 PM
I figure I should ask here before bitching to any and all postmaters that will listen (and are local)...
Simply put:
Why the hell does it take 4+(usually 5-6) business days to get something sent parcel post from a town that is ~45 minutes away? (Specifically HasbroToyShop.com)
rikkomba
06-16-2007, 06:08 PM
I figure I should ask here before bitching to any and all postmaters that will listen (and are local)...
Simply put:
Why the hell does it take 4+(usually 5-6) business days to get something sent parcel post from a town that is ~45 minutes away? (Specifically HasbroToyShop.com)
Because before covering 20 miles by truck, you parcel will first cover 40 miles within their offices and warehouses.
Soundblaster1
06-16-2007, 06:46 PM
Because before covering 20 miles by truck, you parcel will first cover 40 miles within their offices and warehouses. I'm finding that a bit hard to believe... It still shouldn't take 5-6 business days to go 20 or so miles...
zap dragon
06-24-2007, 12:51 AM
new usps rates blow ,
on larger packages rates have dubbled or 3x
checked rates and for larger packegs fed-ex is cheapest at this point
and the new usps intrenational is wacked
PrimulArchangel
06-25-2007, 11:02 PM
I do everything in house these days .. The only time i go to the postoffice is to mail the stuff... I bought a Digital package scale on ebay for about 17$ total (95cents for the scale and $15 and change shipping ) .. It can weigh up to a 76 pound package, the scales the post office sell can only weigh up to a 10 pound package and they cost 40$ so if you are looking for a scale , go on ebay and get one.. Mine works great and is dead on with the post office scale ( i took it to the post office and compared them ;) ) ..
I use the online shipping and lable printer on the USPS site, that works great and saves tons of time.. and I also ordered all my boxes from the USPS site.. I got everything from small VHS size to the large priorty mail boxes.. All my forms like for insurance and customs forms for international shipping i also got.. My local postal clerk told me all about this stuff and it saves tons of time .. And they are not lying about it being all free , i didnt pay a dime for anything i ordered, you dont even pay shipping .. I probably ordered at least 25 of each box for a total of about 175 boxes, they come folded and boxed.. I stuff them in my closet and they are there when i need them.. SO for me everything is pretty much all done inhouse ..
Only time i need to buy a box is when i ship international.. I NEVER EVER ship anything international in a brown box .. i ALWAYS use the white "READY POST" .. I have friends that have sent overseas in brown boxes and they either got lost or took forever to reach there destination.. But all my white boxes have gotten there in about 8 to 9 days no matter were i mail too.. For the past 5 years I have sent packages to Romania on a regular basis to a friend there and never had one lost or show up late and i think its because i send everything in the white readt post boxes...
Anyways Sellers and Traders check out the USPS Store and order all your stuff online , it saves a ton of time for those of us that work all the time and dont get a chance to get to the postoffice all the time :)
Thats my two cents on it all :)
getoninja
06-26-2007, 01:48 PM
new usps rates blow ,
on larger packages rates have dubbled or 3x
checked rates and for larger packegs fed-ex is cheapest at this point
and the new usps intrenational is wacked
yeap, new rates suck, depending where your sending and how much the package weighs the prices went up drastically. Before the new rates this past may 14th, a pack weighing about 2 pounds from Cal to new york would be $6.05, with new rates its now $7.50.
I do everything in house these days .. The only time i go to the postoffice is to mail the stuff... I bought a Digital package scale on ebay for about 17$ total (95cents for the scale and $15 and change shipping ) .. It can weigh up to a 76 pound package, the scales the post office sell can only weigh up to a 10 pound package and they cost 40$ so if you are looking for a scale , go on ebay and get one.. Mine works great and is dead on with the post office scale ( i took it to the post office and compared them ;) ) ..
cool, do you mind me asking what seller bought yours from or what brand?
cause I been wanting to get one off Ebay for a long while but was kinda iffy if they worked well since they cost really cheap.
PrimulArchangel
06-26-2007, 02:56 PM
There name was " haddaways2 " .. this is a link to the same one i bought
http://cgi.ebay.com/76-LB-POSTAGE-SCALES-DIGITAL-SHIPPING-POSTAL-SCALE-GRY_W0QQitemZ160131721693QQihZ006QQcategoryZ109753QQcmdZViewItem
after i won the auction for mine, i was looking around there website and noticed that they sold the same scale on there site for 30$, so i guess they buy so many in bulk that they can afford to sell them so cheap... But yeah it works great, and you can run it off a 9volt battery or plug it in to the outlet with the power pack that comes with it ..
You cant beat the price compared to what the post office wants for there 10 pound scales, and these ones will weigh up to a 76 pound package lol .. and they are small too about the same size as the ones the post office sells if you ever seen them ..
thats about it :) good luck with it .
-Curt
Sweep
07-21-2007, 07:43 AM
I think I might of forgot to put the mailing address on a letter I just dropped in the mailbox. Its a mail in payment for Amazon.com and I know I wrote Amazon.com Billing Department on the envelope but I think I forgot to write the rest. I was doing 3 things at once at the time and I don't remember if I wrote the address down or not. How soon will the post office return to sender or will they be able to mail it because I did write the name down? I mean I'm sure they send mail to Amazon all the time. Will the post office know where to mail it or will they not even fool with it and just send it back to me?
Soundblaster1
08-02-2007, 08:10 PM
I think I might of forgot to put the mailing address on a letter I just dropped in the mailbox. Its a mail in payment for Amazon.com and I know I wrote Amazon.com Billing Department on the envelope but I think I forgot to write the rest. I was doing 3 things at once at the time and I don't remember if I wrote the address down or not. How soon will the post office return to sender or will they be able to mail it because I did write the name down? I mean I'm sure they send mail to Amazon all the time. Will the post office know where to mail it or will they not even fool with it and just send it back to me?
You can expect it back fairly soon.
PrimulArchangel
10-22-2007, 09:09 PM
I just wanted to post something that i found ut today.. The US Postal Service no longer does ground shipping to Canada, They only do Airmail from now on.. So people may want to keep this in mind now when buying from the US or trading with Canada..
This just happened within the last week... I know because last week i mailed a package to Canada and i shipped it with ground and then today i shipped another package to canada and wanted to ship by gground and i was told i could no longer do so..
I dont know if they will work something out with lowering the cost a bit or keep them the same jacked up prices .. This sucks big time cause i sell and trade to Canada a lot and i usually let people choose the shipping to there but now it looks like we have no choice.
Just wanted to give you all a heads up on this if you havent found out yet .
domientius
12-13-2007, 05:06 PM
In my personal experience, package something as if it will be bumped around like the main character in a Lifetime original movie. Leaving room in a box for things to rattle around invites damage. Plastic store bags make good things to wrap toys in.
Soundblaster1
12-13-2007, 05:14 PM
In my personal experience, package something as if it will be bumped around like the main character in a Lifetime original movie. Leaving room in a box for things to rattle around invites damage. Plastic store bags make good things to wrap toys in.
QFT (nice metaphor, btw)
I have this thing called the "Shake Test"- If I can shake it fairly violently without hearing the contents move, then it is packed well enough to send.
Also, don't forget to pad the bottom of the box. I've recieved a few things lately where the item was thrown in and padding was put ON TOP of the item. Doesn't help at all if it gets damaged on the bottom.
Peale
12-30-2007, 02:13 PM
Regulations/postage have changed in the last year, perhaps this should be updated?
Soundblaster1
12-31-2007, 12:33 PM
Regulations/postage have changed in the last year, perhaps this should be updated?
Most of it still holds true... I don't see the point in fixing what isn't broken. Yes, stamp values have changed. That's about it.
Maximum Burn
01-26-2008, 07:21 PM
This may sound ridiculous, but I have never, ever mailed anyone anything. After reading this I got some concerns. All I remember from grade school was to print good, then your info on the left hand top of the envelope and the address you are mailing it to in the center, get a stamp and in the box. First, how much does it cost to mail a letter to Canada? I remember all the fee was a postage stamp. Two, do they really scan and steal from letters?
Soundblaster1
01-30-2008, 12:47 PM
MB, I'm sorry no one got to your questions sooner. I'll try to answer them to the best of my abilities.
1) I sent 3 minibot tires in a standard letter envelope for $.70 or so. I'd imagine it's more than a postage stamp for a regular letter, but not much more.
2) Some people do, some people don't. It is illegal, but so is murder and murder still happens. Exaggerated metaphor aside, I haven't had it happen to me, but I hardly send just letters. If you plan on sending $$$ or a check/money order, wrap it in a piece of paper first just to be safe.
Maximum Burn
02-07-2008, 09:53 PM
Thanks. I think I'll be okay since there shouldn't be much than a letter.
Here's some info on letter formats though if anyone is interested.
Basic letter format
http://www.ehow.com/how_1332_address-envelope.html
Canadian letter format (and how to address from Canada international)
http://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/manual/PGaddress-e.asp#1383594
Other international places
http://bitboost.com/ref/international-address-formats.html#Formats
Abbreviations for states and various districts in US, Mexico, and Canada
http://www.acronymfinder.com/stateabbreviations.asp
skyrinkfusion
07-21-2008, 01:12 AM
Hi, I was wondering if anyone could shed some light as to how USPS General delivery service works?
for instance, if I live in Canada and bought something from the US....can I have the item shipped to a post office in the US, and than on rare occasions I travel down to pick up the package to avoid international shipping rates.
can general delivery work in this situation?
and on another note, if I live in Canada and I travel down to the US to ship something to a US address, can I still put my Canadian address as a return address?
any help would appreciated, thanks.
FCatCH76
07-21-2008, 07:53 PM
Hi, I was wondering if anyone could shed some light as to how USPS General delivery service works?
for instance, if I live in Canada and bought something from the US....can I have the item shipped to a post office in the US, and than on rare occasions I travel down to pick up the package to avoid international shipping rates.
can general delivery work in this situation?
and on another note, if I live in Canada and I travel down to the US to ship something to a US address, can I still put my Canadian address as a return address?
any help would appreciated, thanks.
1)I would assume if you had a PO Box in the USA, 2) no, because the shipping label would have the info of where it was purchased and would not allow the item to go over the border (especially since no customs form was filled out).
Thats my two pennies, hope it helps and if I'm wrong someone jump in please
skyrinkfusion
07-23-2008, 11:01 AM
1)I would assume if you had a PO Box in the USA, 2) no, because the shipping label would have the info of where it was purchased and would not allow the item to go over the border (especially since no customs form was filled out).
Thats my two pennies, hope it helps and if I'm wrong someone jump in please
yikes, i may have to put a mail forwarding location in the US close to Canada as the return address so I could travel there to see what the problem is or for pick up.
also, the first post says that "parcel post" is the worst shipping method....but what if theres insurance on it, would the handlers be more careful than? cause a large package like a Sky Lynx, jumps up $20 from parcel to priority
PrimulArchangel
07-23-2008, 12:52 PM
i sold to a guy in canada that had a PO box in the US and he just drove to the post office to pick up his stuff. I dont know how he went about doing it though . I gues he had a friend in the US in that area that let him use his address in order to get a PO box..
Parcel Post sucks , things always arrive banged up.. I seen a show on the how the US Postal service works and they showed how parcel post gets thrown into huge net bags and priority gets neatly packed into large containers. I always ship priority unless the erson wants it shipped parcel. Isurance on parcel post wont really matter , Its only there so you gcan get your mone back or a replacement if the figure arrives broken..
FCatCH76
07-23-2008, 01:03 PM
Parcel is slower and like they say, the longer the item is in transit, the more chance you have of damage.
Wingsbr
08-08-2008, 09:16 PM
I have a question. Has anyone received a package from Hong Kong and how long did it take? I ask because the usps website has shown this for 5 days...It got from HK to the USA in 3 days, but it has been in NY for a while. I thought it would be here by now and this is my first overseas order.
Status: Processed
Your item was processed and left our JAMAICA, NY 11405 facility on August 4, 2008. Information, if available, is updated every evening. Please check again later.
Soundblaster1
08-08-2008, 09:23 PM
I have a question. Has anyone received a package from Hong Kong and how long did it take? I ask because the usps website has shown this for 5 days...It got from HK to the USA in 3 days, but it has been in NY for a while. I thought it would be here by now and this is my first overseas order.
Status: Processed
Your item was processed and left our JAMAICA, NY 11405 facility on August 4, 2008. Information, if available, is updated every evening. Please check again later.
I live in a town that's a few days behind everyone else, postal wise... Mine usually take 4-5 days after they leave Jamaica. Jamaica is around JFK, where they enter the country at. From there, they go pretty much directly to your PO... With a lot of stops and such in between.
Wingsbr
08-08-2008, 11:52 PM
I live in a town that's a few days behind everyone else, postal wise... Mine usually take 4-5 days after they leave Jamaica. Jamaica is around JFK, where they enter the country at. From there, they go pretty much directly to your PO... With a lot of stops and such in between.
Thanks for the info, maybe my crystal convoy will be here tomorrow. IM TIRED OF WAITING...... ;)
Orion_Prime48
08-09-2008, 10:48 PM
ok I did a trade with a friend of mine he had his dad send it for him and it ended up being sent parcel post with delivery confirmation and heres what it says:
Status: Acceptance
The U.S. Postal Service has received electronic notification from our Automated Postal Center (APC) in LAKE CITY, FL 32055 on August 4, 2008 to expect your shipment for mailing.
it has been under acceptance since it was shipped anyone ever have this problem cause its kinda frustrating
Wingsbr
08-09-2008, 11:19 PM
ok I did a trade with a friend of mine he had his dad send it for him and it ended up being sent parcel post with delivery confirmation and heres what it says:
Status: Acceptance
The U.S. Postal Service has received electronic notification from our Automated Postal Center (APC) in LAKE CITY, FL 32055 on August 4, 2008 to expect your shipment for mailing.
it has been under acceptance since it was shipped anyone ever have this problem cause its kinda frustrating
This usually means that they paid for shipping online and haven't dropped your product off at the USPS to be sent out. I would contact them and ask what's going on. You should have your package by now if it was shipped parcel post. Lake City, FL is about 30 minutes from where I live and I got a parcel post package from NY in 5 days. East Coast shipping is pretty fast...
Metal Chaos
08-10-2008, 12:28 AM
This usually means that they paid for shipping online and haven't dropped your product off at the USPS to be sent out. I would contact them and ask what's going on. You should have your package by now if it was shipped parcel post. Lake City, FL is about 30 minutes from where I live and I got a parcel post package from NY in 5 days. East Coast shipping is pretty fast...
lol I'm that friend, my dad sent it for me cuz he need 10 bucks for lunch that week and all I had was a 20 and he drives my truck during the day and I only have it during the night and the USPS office is closed by then. He sent it via one of those package boxes where you pay for it and drop it in or something, for some reason he didn't use the Post Office itself. I'm hoping it arrives soon for both our sakes.
Orion_Prime48
08-11-2008, 12:05 AM
**Update** to my previous post
looks like right after I posted that it changed locations and should be here Monday or at the latest Tuesday so I guess it can be atributed to slow mail
Icetron
08-22-2008, 06:10 PM
17. Boxes - As I said above, Priority Mail boxes are free. This is important to remember if you need a box. Our office has a Postal Store that sells boxes, tape, and other things. These are very high priced items. I tell customers who try to buy either all of the time that it is almost always cheaper to send something priority mail with a free box, than buy a box and send it parcel post. Not to mention you also get to use the priority tape for free and get a free label to use. If you are not sure if it is cheaper, you can always ask the clerk to check. It doesn't take long with the new computer system.
Regarding this, does anyone know if boxes are still free? The first post was made years ago so I'd like to know if it's still the same.
Soundblaster1
08-22-2008, 06:18 PM
Yeah, most boxes are still free. Ready Post are the only ones that you have to pay for.
tamo536
08-22-2008, 06:24 PM
Yeah, most boxes are still free. Ready Post are the only ones that you have to pay for.
Between flat rate and reg priority mail i have 8 different sizes that i got for free off usps.com.Cases of 20-25 with about 3 day delivery time.
PrimulArchangel
08-22-2008, 08:42 PM
never got mine in 3 days , i always had to wait almost 2 weeks to get the boxes i order.. Whats also messed up is i just ordered a case of dvd boxes . i order 1 case and someone screwed up and sent me 20 cases , i couldnt open my front door to get them lol.. lucky for me the post office took 17 cases of them lol.. But ordering online is the best way to go though because the post office can not get some one the boxes that are on the usps site.. The post master actually asked me if i could order some for them :))
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