A “USPS” scam, sort of, unnecessary pain

rrrgcy

rrrgcy

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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Aug 21, 2005
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Angry. Tangential to knives, but relating to a knife shipment. I picked up a used Oz Rosie XL here on the forums (yes, it’s a lot of $) and expected its arrival yesterday via USPS. Tracking showed expected by 700PM. At 630PM, I waited w bated-breath seated on a chair in the bed of my pickup parked in the driveway facing the mailbox. Around 700PM, a new driver pulls up, never seen this guy, ever, and I say I’ve got packages and one to sign for. He hands me six boxes/packages and is a little befuddled when I say I’ve got one to sign for; I ask him to sign for me since my hands were now full streetside. He fiddles with the device complains it’s problematic, but apparently does so after giving him my last name.

I get inside and start opening packages - none are the knife. I check tracking and shows the Oz is now “out for delivery” before 900PM. Hmm, I guess a different driver is yet to come, but that’s unusual. In ten minutes, the tracking now shows the package at 7:04PM is “ALERT UNDELIVERABLE, NO SUCH NUMBER, Your item was returned to Sender (today) because of an incorrect address.” Weird. I’m a little concerned and it’s a lot of $. Immediately contact seller who sends me a copy of the shipping label - and it’s my correct address…

Ahh, so either the driver 1. Fake-scanned my item to steal it (no, likely not, may not make sense, he’d have just made it “Delivered”); 2. Intentionally didn’t give it to me and will subsequently steal it, using the undeliverable excuse, and pull a fast one back at the terminal where the box “disappears”; 3. Missed finding the package in the USPS van and since it’s so late, he may get in trouble if he heads back to my home to deliver it since he’ll be so late on his route returning to terminal. Either way, I know the knife is likely with the driver who’s heading back to postal.

I figure the solution is not tomorrow but tonight. I drive to the Closed USPS distribution terminal (in a bit of a fit since I expect it’s 3). Go through the “Unauthorized Employess-Only” back gated parking lot, park, walk up to the swinging doors and knock hard. Get a manager, then see the driver walk by us. I say Stop. The guy remembers me then admits, “Okay, I missed it in the van, it was a small box. I was already on the other side of the development what could I do.” I was pissed. This expensive package was going to be resent to the sender, across the country, over laziness and a lie, the guy entered false information for his convenience! (Or really - WAS he going to steal it and I got there just in time?) he walks back to the van and gives me my package. (Why was it STILL in the van?!) I gave it to both of them - neither apologized once and said sorry - they were more concerned to get rid of me and to get back to their work. Mind you, my home, his route (this huge development) and this terminal are all in a two mile radius!!

Inexcusable and terminatable IMO. Today I will go to a different terminal ask to put in a complaint with two levels of higher-ups of that manager and at minimum request that driver be re-assigned not my route (in case he’s become outer regular delivery person).

Beware if you receive such a notice on tracking that the item is undeliverable - possible it’s a lazy driver who forgot to deliver it and can’t be bothered and merely rescans it return-to-sender to rid himself of the issue.
 
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Yeah, happens all the time. Always comes the second day. My deliverers are very nice and do the best they can, sometimes run out of time. NBD for me
 
I have had this happen twice and although I understand you're frustration, I doubt that the postman was trying to scam you. Sometimes a package gets missed and will be delivered the next day.

I'm not a postman so I don't know for sure, but the way I understand it they have to enter something in the system with everything being automated. You would think there would be a simple option of "missed package" but who knows.

I do think far too many people these days overreact too quickly and jump to think the worst. Most of the time a little patience and calmness goes a long way to solve problems.
 
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I feel for you, OP.

I use a PO Box for all USPS deliveries, so they can't claim that anything is "undeliverable" to me but I've had a variety of recent USPS adventures recently.

All of my pkgs have been delivered but I still have one pkg wandering around in the wilderness. 🤷‍♂️

--------------------------------

PS: I recently received an XL Rosie too. ☺️
 
FedEx is my bane. They are 0 for 2 in dramaless deliveries. Fortunately the USPS is much better for me.
 
I see stuff much like this all the time with my usps. usps is a deal where if you have good management and employees for your branch, ya got no complaints.

if ya dont, its a daily nightmare...of undelivered mail, stolen/lost packages, your neighbors mail delivered to you and yours to them, and numerous other issues that aren't easily dealt with as they dont answer the phone locally
..not even sure why branches have a phone since they dont answer it.......and a national call center that uses a worthless Ai that can accomplish nothing and when you finally get to a person they cant do much either.
 
My local office answers their phone, or at least did when I called them a few years back. But your point is valid, good PO management is critical.
 
It is most often that #3 excuse and what ends up happening about 99% of the time (when delivery address is absolutely verifiable and also there is safe access to the delivery address) it will magically get re-scanned for the following day's delivery.

That said, I do not wish to diminish the OP's justified angst and vexing over this issue. I would be in the exact same state of mind over this kind of scenario.
 
Glad you got the knife, but you need to chill. This sort of thing happens all the time with USPS, but they usually get it to you eventually.
 
JJ_Colt45 said:
I have had this happen twice and although I understand you're frustration, I doubt that the postman was trying to scam you. Sometimes a package gets missed and will be delivered the next day.

I'm not a postman so I don't know for sure, but the way I understand it they have to enter something in the system with everything being automated. You would think there would be a simple option of "missed package" but who knows.

I do think far too many people these days overreact too quickly and jump to think the worst. Most of the time a little patience and calmness goes a long way to solve problems.
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I don’t know about this. I don’t think anybody is overreacting here. I’ve had package delivery dates delayed, and all that changes on their status is the delivery date. This postman intentionally marked it as being returned to the sender due to an invalid address - I’d find it hard to believe that this kind of status update could happen by accident. This plus the fact that the package was still on the truck and not in the office being prepared for a return would raise all kinds of flags with me. I think the OP is well justified in thinking something fishy is going on.
 
SharpBits said:
My local office answers their phone, or at least did when I called them a few years back. But your point is valid, good PO management is critical.
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try again....I know that post office and the manager. real piece of work......i could tell ya stories.....
 
My local P.O. "used to" answer the phone. Now it rings, rings, and then disconnects.
 
Look how this was delivered. Seller sent me a pic with box and him at post office and it was “NOT” dropped off like this. Contrary to the green sticker USPS put on it.

USPS literally sucks and people are just taking an unnecessary risk using them.

IMG_6944.jpeg
IMG_6945.jpeg
 
adluginb said:
Look how this was delivered. Seller sent me a pic with box and him at post office and it was “NOT” dropped off like this. Contrary to the green sticker USPS put on it.

USPS literally sucks and people are just taking an unnecessary risk using them.

View attachment 3109979
View attachment 3109980
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If you saw the sort process at any shipper, you'd wonder why more packages don't look like that. Literally tons of packages moving at a fair clip, and if there is a hiccup, something will get crushed.
 
IMG_6693.png
Still waiting on this delivery
IMG_6694.png Hoping my Protech TR3, in tracking above, didn't end up like this.
 
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