USPS Blues. Undelivered package

I don't know what it would take, (in terms of value or other considerations), to get the Postal Inspectors involved. I've only worked with them in the past on narcotics cases or domestic terrorist cases where they had access to information that other law enforcement agencies could not obtain otherwise.
They were always helpful back then in these matters...though I imagine their manpower is somewhat constrained. (That is a guess on my part.)

I often forego the insurance anymore on USPS packages and just take my chances that the item will get there...otherwise sucking it up knowing I'll have to refund the money to the buyer if it isn't delivered. The horror stories are legion...but I have also heard from folks here who have successfully been remunerated. So, I dunno, it's a crap shoot at best, I figure.
 
Hate that happened to you and for your client. I stopped using the PO long ago. PO is 5 mins away and nearest UPS/Fedex is over 30mins, but its what i use. I wish we would just get rid of them and privatize mail delivery. PO loses something like $10B annually for years. While thats a drop in the bucket for our govt, still a horrible way to run things. On top of that, its an oh well business. Paid for 2 day deliver and its not there 3wks later? Oh well, sorry. Nothing we can do. Packaged torn up? Oh well, nothing we can do. How often do you see employees hiding in the shade for hours cuz they finished deliveries and have no other work to do? A for profit company will at least have a reason to please customers and hopefully fire bad employees. End rant.
 
CWendling said:
I wish we would just get rid of them and privatize mail delivery.
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Can’t say I agree with that. My mother lives in a rural area that UPS and FedEx flat out refuse to deliver to because it’s not profitable enough. Without the USPS my mom wouldn’t have access to the meds she needs to survive. I’m sure there are plenty of others in that boat.

You’d also see some pretty massive changes to how I, and others handle shipping costs on their site. Right now because of my volume and USPS pricing, I am able to offer $5 flat rate shipping on all orders, or free shipping on orders over $90. Get rid of the USPS option and I’d start charging you guys a minimum of $10 for UPS or FedEx shipping and no free shipping option.

As far as insurance goes…. Look into using a third party shipper for USPS like pirate ship. Their insurance covers the full value of the item and all they require is the receipts/paypal payment. None of that just covering materials BS.
 
Fixall said:
Can’t say I agree with that. My mother lives in a rural area that UPS and FedEx flat out refuse to deliver to because it’s not profitable enough. Without the USPS my mom wouldn’t have access to the meds she needs to survive. I’m sure there are plenty of others in that boat.

You’d also see some pretty massive changes to how I, and others handle shipping costs on their site. Right now because of my volume and USPS pricing, I am able to offer $5 flat rate shipping on all orders, or free shipping on orders over $90. Get rid of the USPS option and I’d start charging you guys a minimum of $10 for UPS or FedEx shipping and no free shipping option.

As far as insurance goes…. Look into using a third party shipper for USPS like pirate ship. Their insurance covers the full value of the item and all they require is the receipts/paypal payment. None of that just covering materials BS.
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I used to use third party insurance (not pirate ship) but I had a fairly large claim and it took several weeks to finally get about 35% of the insurance money out of them. The package wasn't lost but badly damaged. They wouldn't give the full amount unless they had possession of the item. In this instance, due to time restraints and a customer involved, it made more sense to repair the item than to send it to them. So I would imagine if someone shipped a $1000 knife and it was badly damaged in shipping you would have to give up the knife in order to get your insurance money.

Just another thought/scenario. I know a lot of people use private shipping insurance and get along fine. I still think it's best to be self insured if possible.
 
Contender Machine said:
I used to use third party insurance (not pirate ship) but I had a fairly large claim and it took several weeks to finally get about 35% of the insurance money out of them. The package wasn't lost but badly damaged. They wouldn't give the full amount unless they had possession of the item. In this instance, due to time restraints and a customer involved, it made more sense to repair the item than to send it to them. So I would imagine if someone shipped a $1000 knife and it was badly damaged in shipping you would have to give up the knife in order to get your insurance money.

Just another thought/scenario. I know a lot of people use private shipping insurance and get along fine. I still think it's best to be self insured if possible.
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Yep. That’s been my experience too. To get the full amount, they require the item (or proof of a lost in transit package).

Personally, I privately insure also…. But with my own bank account. 😂 After doing the math, it just didn’t make sense to pay for insurance. I think I’ve only lost a few packages in the mail over the last few years…. And while one of them was a rather high value item, I am positive I still came out ahead by eating that loss, rather than paying insurance on every package.

The only time I insure now is when I send something like my wife’s jewelry out for repair, which I use USPS registered mail which is basically under lock and key during the entire route.
 
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Fixall said:
Yep. That’s been my experience too. To get the full amount, they require the item (or proof of a lost in transit package).

Personally, I privately insure also…. But with my own bank account. 😂 After doing the math, it must didn’t make sense to pay for insurance. I think I’ve only lost a few packages in the mail over the last few years…. And while one of them was a rather high value item, I am positive I still came out ahead by eating that loss, rather than paying insurance on every package.

The only time I insure now is when I send something like my wife’s jewelry out for repair, which I use USPS registered mail which is basically under lock and key during the entire route.
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Yup I'm right there with you. It pencils out in the end but when something gets lost it still hurts 🤣

I also still insure some stuff, just depends on the circumstance.
 
What is the general procedure with porch pirates?
Who is responsible? Buyer or seller?

Seller honestly sells and ships. Shipping company holds their end of the bargain.
But crappy neighborhood/thieves do Their part.

What if the residence doesn't pick it up, leaves it out all night. Goes away on vacation or something?
 
In my opinion that’s the responsibility of the buyer. I do my best to work with people in these type of situations, but I consider my part of the agreement complete when the package is delivered to the address the buyer gave me.

If you live in a high crime area, get a P.O. Box, lock box, or request signature delivery. 🤷
 
I confirmed with the post office clerk today that hand made goods are not worth insuring. First time I got an honest answer from them. Only way handmade good can get full value is if the item has been valued by someone official before the insurance is bought.

Really wish they would of told me this years ago before I spent thousands of dollars on bogus insurance.
 
fitzo said:
I like the Amazon habit of taking a foto of the package on your porch. "It's yours, now, butthead!"
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I have seen videos where they put down the package, take the photo, and pick it up again. You are trusting the honesty of the carrier that your package was delivered. It does not stop the neighbor from picking the package up the moment the driver is out of sight, either. Sad world in which we live.
 
Sharp Steel said:
I have seen videos where they put down the package, take the photo, and pick it up again. You are trusting the honesty of the carrier that your package was delivered. It does not stop the neighbor from picking the package up the moment the driver is out of sight, either. Sad world in which we live.
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No, it doesn't stop any of that. (A Ring camera does help, though.) All you do with any of this, though, is keep the honest man from temptation. Douchebags seem impervious to conscience and, like empty plastic bottles, they proliferate. Perhaps we need to recycle and grind a lot more of both? :)
 
Blues said:
I don't know what it would take, (in terms of value or other considerations), to get the Postal Inspectors involved. I've only worked with them in the past on narcotics cases or domestic terrorist cases where they had access to information that other law enforcement agencies could not obtain otherwise.
They were always helpful back then in these matters...though I imagine their manpower is somewhat constrained. (That is a guess on my part.)

I often forego the insurance anymore on USPS packages and just take my chances that the item will get there...otherwise sucking it up knowing I'll have to refund the money to the buyer if it isn't delivered. The horror stories are legion...but I have also heard from folks here who have successfully been remunerated. So, I dunno, it's a crap shoot at best, I figure.
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Had a knife maker send me three knives to make sheaths. Sent them back to him and they MIA at the Memphis sorting facility. Tracking from here in Ca to Memphis and then poof gone. Filed a claim but the local PO wouldn’t let us file for 30 days. So went back to file and sure as heck is the empty packaging in our PO box stapled to a form letter that basically said Ya know if you’d of used our packaging this wouldn’t have happened. This note was stapled to the USPS packaging that we had used so that person with the stapler was functionally brain dead. Also extremely obvious that the packaging had been opened by a very sharp knife. This was no burst package with contents spilling on the floor. It had been opened with probably box cutter. We did jump through all the hoops and contacted the Postal Inspectors. They did an investigation and sent us a copy of their report stating that it was postal employee theft. We attached this report to the insurance claim and yet it was still denied. We appealed the denial and they paid after the appeal. I have later learned that all claims are originally denied and then usually paid on appeal.

Dang if a couple of months later one of the knives and sheaths didn’t show up for sale on the Bay. They were selling it as a Horsewright knife as my sheath was marked and the knife was not. A freind had seen it and let me know because he said it obviously wasn’t one of my knives, (completely different style from what I do). Sent the link to the Postal Inspector that had done the investigation and……crickets.
 
Thanks for sharing that, Dave. That is one messed up story. I'm glad the Postal Inspectors did the right thing in not sugarcoating their original findings...but everything following is simply unacceptable.

If it was a postal employee that listed the item on eBay, it's unfortunate if they didn't follow up. (Or they may have but not reported it to you. Or, it may not have met the threshold for them to make a criminal case...though it should result in at least a dismissal...and perhaps it did. We'll never know.)

I hate corruption of any sort, and public corruption by gov't employees is even more troubling.
 
Fixall said:
Can’t say I agree with that. My mother lives in a rural area that UPS and FedEx flat out refuse to deliver to because it’s not profitable enough. Without the USPS my mom wouldn’t have access to the meds she needs to survive. I’m sure there are plenty of others in that boat.

You’d also see some pretty massive changes to how I, and others handle shipping costs on their site. Right now because of my volume and USPS pricing, I am able to offer $5 flat rate shipping on all orders, or free shipping on orders over $90. Get rid of the USPS option and I’d start charging you guys a minimum of $10 for UPS or FedEx shipping and no free shipping option.

As far as insurance goes…. Look into using a third party shipper for USPS like pirate ship. Their insurance covers the full value of the item and all they require is the receipts/paypal payment. None of that just covering materials BS.
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That's a good tip about pirate ship's private insurance.
 
Do you guys have a parcel locker system?

That didn't really explain it well at all. Imagine a one off P.O. box.

 
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sadly that logic has been applied when ive shipped watches in the mail. the buyer agreed as well when i asked if they wanted insurance. insuring something for a big number seems to scream steal me! goodies inside! . the watch made it just fine. big price tag items seem to do better in fed ex with parcel pro or other insurers at least thats how the major watch dealers do it.
 
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