USPS Delivery Problems

[golfnut]

Sold a golf club on Jan. 8th. Dropped it off at post office same day. Priority 2 day mail. Shipment from Illinois to Wisconsin. Tracking still says it went to sorting facility. Been in contact with buyer who still has not received it. Called the post office couple of times and they are really no help as they can't tell you anything add'l over the tracking info.
Couple of questions.
- How long do I wait this out before giving up hope?
- I insured the club for $50 but sold it for slightly more including shipping? Wondering what I'll get from usps if I need to file a claim?
Never had this happen before. In the past, my only complaints with usps dealt with their awful tracking system and packages taking longer than 2 days.
Any similar experiences or guidance here would be appreciated.
Thanks

[ziggy29]

I am a postal clerk but do not speak for the USPS. That said, here's my take given my experience.

Internally, postal employees have a little more tracking info available to them than the external website displays. Usually that's not terribly useful in terms of tracking down a package (and the extra detail usually confuses customers) but the extra info occasionally helps. It generally really is true, though, that postal employees (and even local postmasters) can't really track down a package a lot more than what is in the tracking history. A postmaster may check with the facility where the package was last seen in the tracking, and it may be occasionally found that way -- but really not all that often. Sometimes, someone is derelict in scanning somewhere, but occasionally things get stuck in the plants for some reason.

Priority Mail comes with up to $50 insurance with no additional charge. You may have to furnish some documentation about the value of the contents, but for $50 it might not be worth their fighting to avoid paying out.

[golfnut]

Thanks for response. Not sure I know what you mean by " but for $50 it might not be worth fighting to avoid paying out".
***************

I actually sold the club $60 plus $5.50 shipping costs.

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by golfnut Any similar experiences or guidance here would be appreciated. Thanks

Lots of similar experience since I sold hundreds of large items on eBay over the years and used the P.O. to deliver (until I finally gave up). Horrible service as you have found out. I once purchased a computer motherboard that was shipped Priority Mail to me from Florida. It was delivered 8 months later.

You may never get the club back, or the buyer may not get it either. Or he may in due time. It's a crap shoot with the P.O.

Next time spend a bit more and send it FedEx.

[ziggy29]

Quote:

Originally Posted by golfnut Thanks for response. Not sure I know what you mean by " but for $50 it might not be worth fighting to avoid paying out".

I mean the USPS may not challenge a claim that low because it may cost more to them than it's worth.

[samclem]

Quote:

Originally Posted by golfnut Sold a golf club on Jan. 8th. Dropped it off at post office same day... - How long do I wait this out before giving up hope?

I wood wait a few days, the USPS drivers are known to putter around a bit. Don't worry, they'll iron it out.
Sorry.

[bobandsherry]

I mailed a package recently via Priority Mail and tracking info showed it was in limbo, received at recipients post office. I waited a couple days and then filed a complaint/case on the USPS website. My local postmaster called next day. He said he would look into it. Next day status changed to our for delivery. Guessing that postmaster involvement got people to look and found package sitting in corner or some place similar. Item was then delivered that day. I'd suggest you file compliant and see where that gets you. Good luck.

[ziggy29]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bobandsherry I mailed a package recently via Priority Mail and tracking info showed it was in limbo, received at recipients post office. I waited a couple days and then filed a complaint/case on the USPS website. My local postmaster called next day. He said he would look into it. Next day status changed to our for delivery. Guessing that postmaster involvement got people to look and found package sitting in corner or some place similar. Item was then delivered that day. I'd suggest you file compliant and see where that gets you. Good luck.

Yes, that happens. Not the norm but it does happen, and that's part of the postmaster's job.

[Aerides]

I sell lots on Etsy, and this happens too often that I know not to worry, it will turn up.

Call the USPS 800 number, not the post office location itself. Ask them to investigate. That will get it moving 9 time out of 10. Whether it was dormant for 3 days or 2 weeks, every time I've called them it's magic and often starts moving the same day.

It's not long enough yet to be terribly worried, but it does suck.

[ziggy29]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aerides I sell lots on Etsy, and this happens too often that I know not to worry, it will turn up. Call the USPS 800 number, not the post office location itself. Ask them to investigate. That will get it moving 9 time out of 10. Whether it was dormant for 3 days or 2 weeks, every time I've called them it's magic and often starts moving the same day.

If you call the 800 number or use the website, it will wind up going to the PO (and the postmaster) where the item was sent from, anyway. The only difference is that calling the 800 number will generate a "case" which is tracked, whereas an informal call to the PO is not.

I can tell you that these ECC cases suck, especially when they are clearly not your own PO's fault, because management is on your butt about you resolving something your PO often didn't cause. But yeah, as much as it sucks to be accountable for other people's mistakes, that is a good way to make sure your call doesn't get buried.

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by samclem I wood wait a few days, the USPS drivers are known to putter around a bit. Don't worry, they'll iron it out. Sorry.

ha ha ha, You are certainly on the ball with that one

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sunset ha ha ha, You are certainly on the ball with that one

And, the P.O. having these problems is par for the course.

[CRLLS]

Priority 2-day mail is not a guarantee, unlike the competitors. It is only a guideline. The USPS is the worse shipping method around. The tracking system sucks compared to the others. Now even if you go FedEx (I think), it could be delivered to the final destination by the USPS. Good luck in finding the package.

[golfnut]

Thanks to all who responded. Will wait until end of week and, if necessary will file a claim for what I sold it for - $65.50- and send a refund back to the buyer.

[Chuckanut]

Postal service in my area is great. And they will deliver when the private services have stopped due to bad weather conditions. No complaints here.

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckanut Postal service in my area is great. And they will deliver when the private services have stopped due to bad weather conditions. No complaints here.

Must be cocktail hour where you are.

[harley]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aja8888 Lots of similar experience since I sold hundreds of large items on eBay over the years and used the P.O. to deliver (until I finally gave up). Horrible service as you have found out. I once purchased a computer motherboard that was shipped Priority Mail to me from Florida. It was delivered 8 months later.

Postal service in FL sucks. Standard first class mail takes a week or more to get anywhere, and packages slip into limbo with astonishing regularity. Also packages often arrive having been opened, and magazines often have pages missing. Complaints and suggestions are never responded to.

I also live in MD almost half a year, and a first class letter often gets delivered in one or two days. I'm not sure if it's the employees, or whether the FL PO is still using pony express, or what. But it's so consistently bad compared to all other locations I've ever lived that it's obviously something about the state.

[skipro33]

File your claim on-line. I recently had a package sent to me that didn't make it. Took me maybe 5 minutes to file and within 48 hours my claim was approved and they added the shipping costs to my claim. Within 24 hours after that, the check was in the mailbox.
Seriously the easiest claim with any carrier I've ever had to file. Do not delay, thinking it's another government bureaucracy with too many hoops to make a small dollar claim worth the trouble.

Here is a link to the tracking info on the USPS site for my package. Says it's in 'dead mail' and sent to a mail recovery center. Not that I care, I got my payment w/ shipping charges.

https://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfi...99000734762871

[Big_Hitter]

Bumping this for my recent exchange with the USPS. Package from amazon was a few days late - guess what? USPS delivery.

So I sent an e-mail complaining about the delay and they magically found the package and it is now out for delivery. Even got a "form" apology email.

Why should it take a complaint for them to find a package? No wonder they are going out of business.

Has anyone been in a post office lately? Straight out of the 1950s. UPS store or FedEx is night and day compared to a post office.

[SumDay]

Big hitter, thanks for this tip. I sent my son homemade cookies on Monday, and they've been out for delivery since 9:30 a.m. yesterday. I hope the mailman has a gluten intolerance.

I sent an email with the tracking number. We'll see what happens.