Did I read above that the op received the package? Maybe they should've waited two weeks before they posted this comment.
This is why it’s not a good idea to ship puppies through the US mail system.
Package Has Disappeared in USPS System
I recently purchased a modestly expensive audio product over the Internet, paid for by credit card, to be shipped to me via the USPS Priority Mail system, with tracking and insurance. The vendor, who will go unnamed at the moment out of respect for past good service, emailed me that the package shipped on 20 December, although the package did not show up in the USPS system until about 27 December. Being a patient guy, I figured that the USPS is slow in keeping up with demand over Christmas. On about 28 December, the USPS tracking system said the package had been received, had been sent to a regional distribution center, and had been shipped on from there. However, and now it gets "interesting," on 31 December, the USPS tracking system said that the label had been created but that the package was not in the system. In other words, the package had "disappeared" from the USPS system. At several points in this saga, I contacted the vendor to express my concern, especially after the package disappeared from the USPS system; their response was that I should be patient and await further developments..
On 2 January,I contact the vendor, suggesting they initiate a missing package complaint, file an insurance claim, and requested that they send me a replacement product, assuring them that I would promptly return the first item if it ever showed up. (Coincidentally, on the same date I read a reputably-sourced news item about rampant theft by employees in the USPS system--hardly reassuring.)
The vendor's response again was that I should be patient--in spite of my pointing out that the USPS had obviously lost the package--and await further developments.
However, in spite of normally being a very patient guy, I think, with two weeks having passed and the USPS tracking system now saying they haven't received the package that they previously acknowledged having, it is time for the vendor to send me a replacement item.
I will never use the USPS system for product shipment if there is any other viable alternative.
Several questions come to mind:
1) How long is reasonable to wait for a package that should have been delivered in one to three days?
2) At what point should a vendor realize that good customer service means providing the customer with a product they shipped with tracking and insurance?
3) Would it unreasonable for me to tell the vendor that if they cannot provide a replacement product within a few days, I would like my money refunded? (I am prepared to contest the charge on my credit card for non-performance.
4) Am I being unreasonable?
86 responses Add your response
Thank goodness I live in Australia and buy most of my stuff from the UK and China. Australia Post provides by far the best courier service locally. Usually I don't insure and they have never lost anything of mine, ever. The UK postal service seems just as good - between them they can sometimes ship from England to the other side of the planet in under a week. I recently bought four cheap items from Temu (China) and got an emailed photo of the delivery, which was left under a mailbox I did not recognise. Turned out it was a few doors away, and the mailbox owner kindly placed it at the right address. The package was torn, and a part of one item had fallen out. Another was missing a USB cable, and the third did not magnify as described. I started down the reorder process but was quickly directed to a refund where I got my money credited almost immediately, with no need to returns the goods. I always use PayPal if I can. I ordered an amplifier upgrade kit from Europe and it arrived missing RCA connectors. Rather than pop some in the mail, the supplier arced up, I bought very expensive RCA connectors locally and PayPal sided with me. Australian Banks are very good at handling disputed transactions - they quarantine the debt immediately. Then there's Amazon (US shipments!). - the only people to have completely and permanently lost a tracked package in one of their transit depots! |
I'd just like to point out that the Postmaster General, Louis DeJoy, appointed by a Trump appointed Board of 9 Directors was a major Trump contributor who in 2012 published his plan to run USPS thus... from Wikipedia: In March 2021, DeJoy issued a 10-year plan called "Delivering for America" to stabilize the finances of the Postal Service by slowing first class mail delivery, optimizing transportation networks, cutting post office hours, and raising prices. The plan assumed Congress would relieve the USPS of the requirement to pre-pay retiree health care costs, which with DeJoy's urging it did with the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022. My local Mailman is a very nice, hard working, dedicated, long term employee. Sorry to politicalize yet another area of concern. |
Sorry to politicalize [sic] yet another area of concern. That's interesting, but irrelevant to this story. If the seller sent it via USPS he is ultimately on the hook for delivery or a refund. A good vendor will go out of their way to choose the appropriate method, pack it to withstand normal bumps and bruises the equipment will receive while being shipped, and if lost despite careful planning, cheerfully refund the money if the package does not arrive in a timely manner.
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The package arrived today, and, as it was superbly packed by the vendor, it came through in fine shape. I do wonder about the story it could tell about its travels. I recall an old joke in the Army about never alienating the Transportation Officer … for if you did, there was the distinct possibility your household goods shipment might end up in Adan, Alaska—an island well out in the Aleutian Island chain … at the start of winter. to all, thanks again for your input. I won’t be using the USPS for any valuable or time-urgent shipments in the future when other options exist.
and, for Carlsbad2, I have no such illusions and make no such assumptions as you have mentioned … beyond the expectation that 1) modern tech should make tracking shipments fairly easy, and 2) having your tracking system say “we don’t have the package” after it said “we have the package” and then, the next day, it shows up at its destination over 1500 miles away, and 3) if a service advertises a certain level of performance, they should work to achieve that level of service … or change their advertising. Still have a blessed day, filled with great music of your choosing, performed and reproduced with great quality! |
Sorry to hear about your experience buying online. To answer your questions: 1. 30 days 2. 30 days 3. Yes 4. Yes it looks based on the updated comments that you will hopefully receive your shipment tomorrow. I find the most important thing on ordering online is the seller. I’ve had good and bad experiences with all shippers in the US. The only thing that made it right when things went bad was the seller. If the seller is responsive and follows up I can deal with delays. If not, I don’t buy from that seller again, even if things eventually work out. There is so much competition online that there is no reason to frequent a seller without good customer service. As always, buyer beware. Hope things work out for you. |
I've had good luck with USPS until a few weeks ago when I sent a poster tube with some prints to somebody across the country. It hadn't shown up a few weeks later and the customer checked the tracking number and it showed it was still in the post office I dropped it off at. I went down there and they looked for it and couldn't find it, so I sent the customer a replacement via FedEx; they got the tube, but it was damaged as were its contents, so I tried again with USPS and it seems to have worked this time. |
Actually with the change of my mailing address to a PO Box it went from my mixed low to middle class neighborhood of West Palm Beach to Palm Beach where Louis DeJoys republican friends live, the change in competence between the two post offices was staggering. |
I feel your pain brother, ordered an amp from Sweden in early december, and I still dont have it...UPS attempted to deliver twice to my home after I made multiple attempts to get them to either deliver without signature required or to another location so I could go pick it up...all efforts to have meaningful useful communication with UPS failed and I STILL am waiting. I contacted the company I purchased the amp from and they are working it from their end albeit very slowly. I have every belief that not only will I not get the amplifier but I will not get a refund either. And then there is the issue of what do you do when someone ships you something via UPS - I will never use them for anything ever again given a choice in the matter, don't care if it costs double to ship via another carrier. |
I have seen some “interesting” things happen with shipments in my industry where items get stuck at a terminal for weeks, rerouted to other parts of the country more than once, get left off trucks when they were logged as being “on vehicle for delivery” and more. Sometimes it just happens. What’s more surprising for me, is the postures that some suggest here so soon to be taken out on the seller. I think the age of Amazon has really spoiled some people. Geez. |
@devinplombier sellers are responsible to get the stuff to your door. And NO, we don't need to chill. When my delivery is late to my client, they rip me a new one and I can just hope to keep the contract We should expect exactly what it says in the contract. 2 days or 20 days - should exactly be that. Don't be in the shipping business of you can't stick to what YOU THE SHIPPER promised We need to hold these corporations responsible if we don't want to turn into a third world country |
I have a small online business that routinely ships packages via USPS, and maybe one package has been lost over the past 10 years - this mind you after shipping about 2,500 packages in the "flat rate" boxes supplied by the USPS. Of course, my shipping receipts are always kept, and the first thing I do upon arriving home from the PO is to email the customer the tracking link copied from the USPS "tracking" page. It requires the tracking number be typed in by me. My paper receipts are meticulously filed. Whether or this "postal hygeine" has a beneficial effect on delivery I cannot say, but it appears to do so. Of course there are available more automated ways to do USPS shipping that don't require my typing much of anything, but I am old and in the way. If a shipper to me cannot supply a tracking link then I do not do business with them., If nobody has a tracking number including me then everybody is SOL. |
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I'd have to say that most of my experiences with the USPS have been fairly good. I do remember, however, back right before the '20 election I ordered some U-joints from rockauto, and they didn't arrive and continued not to arrive but rock's tracking said they were shipped (even though he tracking number from the USPS said that the USPS didn't have them). You can NEVER speak to a human being at rockauto, so I sent their customer service email after nasty email and what they told me in reply was that after the allotted number of days (and I cannot remember what it was) they would consider the U-joints lost and refund my $ or send me another set. So I bought the U-joints somewhere else and they did put the refund back on my credit card. Then the U-joints finally arrived, and Rockauto was sending me email after email telling me to pay up or send the u-joints back or be banned from ordering from rockauto anymore. I finally sent them their U-joints back. |
To all who buy gear from non-U.S. sources. Yes, U.S. Customs may detain and inspect your items (unless they are part of a diplomatic shipment). These inspections rest upon a long-established, legal authority and process. Furthermore, your items may get damaged in the inspection process. I suggest that you ask the seller to photo-document and write a letter describing the specific condition of each item. Work with your dealer/import broker to clearly describe the item's identity. Try to avoid co-mingling your gear with items of high interest (see the A.I. generated list below). Last, but not least, use a reputable shipper & broker, with each item labeled with a tracking number and your address. There are NO guarantees, but these common-sense steps may help your purchase arrive faster. Finally, if things go very badly, use the aforementioned documentation to request assistance/intervention from your U.S. Senator's office of Constituent Services. If you have a reasonable request, a call from their office may hasten the importation process. good luck, and enjoy... ________________________ U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) targets a variety of items for inspection when they are imported into the country. Here are some key categories:
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USPS does have a small number of contracts with UPS to carry some of their packages and mail that is separate from SurePost. These particular USPS packages and mail are being transported mostly by the UPS trailers that crisscross the country on the backs of railroad cars. So, yes, you can also blame the railway companies for not getting your packages in a timely manner. SurePost or "last mile delivery" the dreadful practice of billion dollar service companies dumping packages on understaffed rural County Post Offices to save money is about to change with some new USPS rules and price hikes about to take effect. Cheers! |
More packages have been transit challenged by poor labeling and inadequate packing than all the lazy, overpaid, covid influenced, apathetic employees put together.
I don't doubt it, but in the end, the seller is responsible for the successful delivery of product to the customer (which means on time and in working condition).
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...Because the seller is aware that the delivery company is a bunch of screw-ups and had the foresight to take out insurance (charging the buyer in the cost as appropriate) so that he could reinburse the buyer when they do. I run a business and have had the post office screw up several times, and they now have much tighter limits on how much they reinburse unless you take out additional insurance. And get this! If the US Post Office looses your package and pays you the "value" of the insurance, they will NOT reinburse you the actual cost you paid for shipping even though it never got there! |
@mike4597 Glad to hear it arrived safe and sound. Here's one more data point on USPS Priority Shipping and Tracking, from sending my tax return: Oct 9, 2024: Dropped off my tax return in Raleigh, NC, destined for Sacramento, CA. Sent Priority Mail / return receipt requested. Nov 24, 2024: Tracking number says "USPS in possession of item in Raleigh" and nothing more. Send message to California FTB with proof that I mailed my return before Oct 15. Asked if they received it. They had received it Oct 15 (so 6-day delivery for "1-3 business day" service. Dec 20, 2024: Got my return receipt postcard. Round trip time: 72 days. Today (Jan 6, 2025): USPS Tracking page still says "USPS in possession of item in Raleigh" and nothing more.
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