2-day Priorty mail is not a funny joke

[gittist]

This is posted here for those who might consider ordering equipment online that is delivered by the US Postal Service. On August 28 I ordered a STAB motor from an online dealer that I'd seen mentioned on line. By their online delivery map I am in the 3-day delivery zone so I should have had the package no later than September 2 which was ideal because I was off for the next 6 days.

Having not seen any status by September 1st, I asked for shipping or tracking status and received a tracking number a few hours later for 2-day priority mail. Oh well, it'll be here for the weekend....WRONG! See the attached. It's now September 5th and the mail carrier has already come and gone. So much for installing the motor during my time off. Tomorrow is Sunday, Monday is a federal holiday so the soonest I might get the package is Tuesday September 8th but then see the post office disclaimer on the attached.

On a side note, about 2 weeks ago my wife mailed a birthday card to Washington DC which is about 2.5 hours away. After 10 days she did a stop payment on the check and paid that fee the card b/c the card and check weren't received . She wrote another check, mailed it and it was received 2 days later, followed by the 1st check the next day!!

Great!!!!! All my expletives deleted.

 

[fred555]

The United States Postal Service Sucks Balls And I Refuse To Use Them If At All Possible!

 

[Magic Static]

My home delivery is a joke sometimes. This is a training route and one that is done as a fill-in. We never have the same carrier it seems. You never know when the mail is going to be delivered. But I use priority mail all the time and never have an issue. And it's cheap. I can't believe how fast I get stuff from Digi-Key and they use USPS. It's unfortunate you had a bad experience, but they rate high with me

 

[fred555]

My home delivery is a joke sometimes. This is a training route and one that is done as a fill-in. We never have the same carrier it seems. You never know when the mail is going to be delivered. But I use priority mail all the time and never have an issue. And it's cheap. I can't believe how fast I get stuff from Digi-Key and they use USPS. It's unfortunate you had a bad experience, but they rate high with me

Same situation on my route, lots of different fill ins. You don't know when your mail will arrive or what address it will get delivered to either.

 

[FaT Air]

Sent a small package to Hillsboro* thinking it should arrive overnight. Which was also the thought of the postmaster. *Midway between GF and Fargo. Package tracking showed Origin, GF, Fargo, GF, Hillsboro. 3 Days.

I should have just driven it to Hillsboro myself. about a a 2 hour round trip.

 

[Mr Tony]

Stuff like that is what bothers me....when people/companies create a shipping label....then sit on it for 2 to 3 days before sending it.

But I use priority mail all the time and never have an issue.

same here. And I live **technically** on a rural route. Until maybe 3 years ago we had RR address (as in RR1 box 152). Then they got us E-911 addresses. My mom mails stuff to me all the time (from suburban Minneapolis) and I get it next day or within 2 days

What gets me is companies who are determined to use either smartpost or whatever the UPS version is....where UPS or Fedex takes it to the town you live in then drops it off at the PO and mail carrier delivers it. I always write in comments "DO NOT SHIP VIA USPS" as our mail carrier drives their own vehicle and wont come up the driveway if it doesnt fit in the mailbox. They pout the "its at the post office" slip in...well its 22 miles to town

I like Fedex and UPS because I'm usually one of the first stops as I'm so far away from their "starting point"

 

[raoul5788]

My home delivery is a joke sometimes. This is a training route and one that is done as a fill-in. We never have the same carrier it seems. You never know when the mail is going to be delivered. But I use priority mail all the time and never have an issue. And it's cheap. I can't believe how fast I get stuff from Digi-Key and they use USPS. It's unfortunate you had a bad experience, but they rate high with me

There is no such thing as a training route.

 

[Magic Static]

There is no such thing as a training route.

You may be right. It's one of the excuses I got when complaining to the Post Office about their delivery service. Lately we have someone who likes to smash the mail into the end of the box with small packages. My wife got her check the other day all wrinkled up. I really like when they stick a package in their end that just fits the box. There is no way you will get it through the door on your end. I often have neighbors mail in my box and I deliver it to them. But I never have had one of my neighbors show up with my mail. Makes you wonder

 

[FTA4PA]

This is posted here for those who might consider ordering equipment online that is delivered by the US Postal Service. On August 28 I ordered a STAB motor from an online dealer that I'd seen mentioned on line. By their online delivery map I am in the 3-day delivery zone so I should have had the package no later than September 2 which was ideal because I was off for the next 6 days.

Having not seen any status by September 1st, I asked for shipping or tracking status and received a tracking number a few hours later for 2-day priority mail. Oh well, it'll be here for the weekend....WRONG! See the attached. It's now September 5th and the mail carrier has already come and gone. So much for installing the motor during my time off. Tomorrow is Sunday, Monday is a federal holiday so the soonest I might get the package is Tuesday September 8th but then see the post office disclaimer on the attached.

On a side note, about 2 weeks ago my wife mailed a birthday card to Washington DC which is about 2.5 hours away. After 10 days she did a stop payment on the check and paid that fee the card b/c the card and check weren't received . She wrote another check, mailed it and it was received 2 days later, followed by the 1st check the next day!!

Great!!!!! All my expletives deleted.

Wow! That is just ridiculus such a short delivery distance taking that long. Doesn't surprise me though. Mail service stinks here as well and pretty much the same as others have mentioned. Probably 1 in 4 packages delivered on time and then thrown in the driveway (whereas Fedex and UPS bring them up the steps and on the porch and UPS even puts them in a plastic bag if weather is bad). Late mail and can't count the number of times they just don't bother delivering on Saturday and then it shows up on Monday. Mail delivered to the wrong address (goes somewhere else or someone's comes to us). Many different carriers so delivery sometime between 11am to 4pm (usually the later). Always someone else's fault but not theirs if you complain. If they were a private business they would have been out of business a long time ago.

 

[KE4EST]

I think in this case it has nothing to do with the mail service.
This is a case of buying something and the seller waits a few days to mail it.
This is why sometimes I will make two trips in one day, to the PO to get packages out in a timely manner when I sell stuff.

 

[raoul5788]

You may be right. It's one of the excuses I got when complaining to the Post Office about their delivery service. Lately we have someone who likes to smash the mail into the end of the box with small packages. My wife got her check the other day all wrinkled up. I really like when they stick a package in their end that just fits the box. There is no way you will get it through the door on your end. I often have neighbors mail in my box and I deliver it to them. But I never have had one of my neighbors show up with my mail. Makes you wonder

If you want results to your complaints to the PO, you need to deal with the Postmaster. Let him know you will go over his head if necessary to his boss.

 

[FTA4PA]

I think in this case it has nothing to do with the mail service.
This is a case of buying something and the seller waits a few days to mail it.
This is why sometimes I will make two trips in one day, to the PO to get packages out in a timely manner when I sell stuff.

Although the seller did delay in getting the package to the postal service, tracking provided by gittist clearly shows USPS accepted it the afternoon of 9/2 in Coraopolis, PA. I see no reason why a package scheduled for 2 day priority delivery couldn't have been delivered within the same state by 9/5, which is three days later. Appears someone simply didn't do their job, as is the case with much of my experience with them.

 

[KE4EST]

I see you are correct. This is a case of the seller waiting two days to mail and then the USPS taking forever.

 

[primestar31]

I'm located in mid-Michigan. I've had packages mailed to me from FLINT (75 miles South) go ALL the way to the South bottom end of FLORIDA, and then come back to Michigan, and finally get delivered to me. There is a town down there with the same name, BUT, it's not the same zip code or state.

When I get them, they are perfectly addressed and legible.

 

[FTA4PA]

If you want results to your complaints to the PO, you need to deal with the Postmaster. Let him know you will go over his head if necessary to his boss.

That doesn't always work. We have complained numerous times to the postmaster (and another person that my wife went to school with who works there) and even they make excuses. They tend to blame either the shipper or UPS/Fedex in the case of Surepost/Smartpost delivery, even when tracking clearly shows that the USPS had an item in their possession. It gets very tiresome complaining and having nothing done about it so after a while you just give up and live with it (which is what they want I believe).

 

[raoul5788]

Like I said, sometimes you have to go to their boss. Their job title is POOM, or sometimes MPOO.

 

[FTA4PA]

Like I said, sometimes you have to go to their boss. Their job title is POOM, or sometimes MPOO.

Guess what happens to already crappy mail service when you do that? The last time we complained, the next package we were supposed to get magically disappeared, although tracking showed it as delivered it. Like I said, it gets to a point where you realize you are better off just accepting it and living with it.

 

[gittist]

Thanks for all of the replies to this string. In all honesty, once the mail makes it to the local post office we usually have good luck, unless the dingbat is on the route and then we're delivering each other's mail as some of you have already said.

Thanks Iceberg for bringing up "...when people/companies create a shipping label....then sit on it for 2 to 3 days before sending it" because I didn't and still don't know what to make of that part. Did the company have it ready for pick up and the carrier didn't? Did they do the shipping label and it took X number of days to pull it from inventory, or does this company pack it up and take it to the post office?

I like UPS. If the status is by the end of day, it's here by the end of day. FEDEX in this area are independent contractors with their own vehicles. We had one package that was on the truck for 5 days and finally I put out a sign by the road saying "FEDEX Call xxx-xxx-xxxx before you drive by again".

I cringe when I see that a package is being sent via one of those hybrid deals where UPS/FEDEX delivers it to the post office. If it's the local post office it adds a day. If it goes to a big post office, chances are that the package passes to my north, south, east, and west before I finally get it.

Oh, the box in the mailbox. It's like a cannon. Put the powder and the patch in, then stuff the cannon ball in. They're doing you a favor, with the box being the last thing jammed in your box the mail won't be flying about the neighborhood.

"I see you are correct. This is a case of the seller waiting two days to mail and then the USPS taking forever." Thank you, it's a team effort!

 

[Lone Gunman]

Well, I must be on a good route because I buy lots of stuff from fleabay and about the only way that stuff is shipped is via USPS but to be honest, I'd just as soon they were used by everyone I deal with especially on stuff that comes out of the Left Coast! I've gotten carburetor parts from Mexifornia in 3 days via USPS and it usually takes 7 to 9 days via UPS. That and the USPS is usually cheaper than UPS too.

The way I look at it is since they're loosing something like 8 BILLION of our tax dollars a year, we might as well get something for that.

 

[Comptech]

Order something from Amazon with a prime account on a Friday evening, and I promise a mailman will be in your driveway on sunday delivering your package. At least they have here for the last month.