posted on February 12, 2002 04:59:48 PM
Has anyone else been having trouble with USPS & items being damaged? I package things well, mark them "fragile, please do not drop or crush" and insure them. I have seen post office employees throw boxes around, and when I asked post office employees why items get damaged, I was told because the boxes are thrown around all the time. They wan to keep increasing their postage rates while the services continues to decline. We can insure things, but that does not solve the problem. People usually would rather have the item they purchased rather than a refund. Does anyone know of a way for many Ebay sellers/buyers to unite and file a complaint and try to get something done about it? As long as we sit by and accept it, it will continue. Any ideas out there?
posted on February 12, 2002 05:40:16 PM
once i reminded the postal clerk who threw my box marked fragile around that it is marked fragile,she said 'you aint see nothing yet,it gets worse as it moves thru the system'
so i called this central customer service number which you can find on usps priority box and complained about the incident.
i did not name name ,but i gave the location of the post office.
it did get back to her superior and then to her.
so you should call that number and let them know
posted on February 12, 2002 06:05:01 PM
It may be coincidence, but I had no real trouble with packages being ruffed up until after the 9/11 WTC incident. I thought maybe because so much mail was held up until things got back to normal, that they had to rush and process the mail fastest way possible.
One exception before 9/11; I was mailing a music cassette that was well packaged. After the postal worker was done stamping it, she held it up to her face, shrugged, and threw it backwards over her shoulder. It landed in a bin behind her. She did it without looking.
The postal worker in MY town gets angry whenever I insure a package (????) She is not thrilled that I get a Delivery Confirmation on each one, either. Since I fill out the forms ahead of time, so she doesn't have to do it, Why angry??
posted on February 12, 2002 06:20:15 PM
I ship a fair bit of glassware (among other things), and during the past year only had one package that arrived broken. I'm happy with the service, but I would like them to rethink that next rate increase.
posted on February 12, 2002 06:25:05 PM
holdenrex - it's always possible I am not doing enough to combat the battles packages will receive. May I ask what you do to pack your items? Do you mark fragile on the box?
posted on February 12, 2002 06:43:58 PM
baylobsters - yes, I mark my packages "fragile." I had read horror stories about Postal employees using boxes marked "fragile" for soccer practice, so I didn't used to. During that time, I had several broken shipments per year. Then I corresponded with a glass seller (who has shipped thousands of glass items) and he strongly recommended I mark my packages as "fragile." After I started marking my packages, my breakage went down drastically.
As for packing materials, I wrap the breakables in bubble wrap and fill the box with styrafoam peanuts. If I'm shipping a heavy breakable, I'll lay thick pieces of spongy foam on the bottom and sides and fill the remainder with peanuts. Also, I always leave a little room for the item to shift - if you pack a delicate item too tightly (even in peanuts), it can easily break from pressure when something heavier is placed on top of it. And I double box the really pricy breakables for added insurance. That's about it.
posted on February 12, 2002 08:44:58 PM
In the past 4 months, for the first time, I've had two items arrive damaged. The first, a porcelain tray, may have been my fault. The second item itself wasn't damaged but the buyer reported that the box was "stove in on one side." This had not happened before, to my knowledge. Thank goodness for bubble wrap!
