Up until now I’ve been using the U.S. post office to ship all of my eBay packages. I bought a cheap postal scale from eBay and I’ve been using it in combination with PayPal to ship packages without having to wait in line. So far I’ve shipped about 10 items this way.
But last week I received an email from an eBay buyer who never received the item she purchased. I logged into my PayPal account, typed in the delivery confirmation number, and sure enough found that the item had not arrived. I asked the buyer to wait a couple more days, but when the status didn’t change I called the post office to find out what happened.
USPS Loses Packages
First, I called the 1-800 number and was informed by a very pleasant postal employee that my package had “fallen off the grid.” He asked me all sorts of questions, which lead me to describe what was in the envelope, how much the item was worth, where the package was going, and what the package looked like. Then he informed me that I’d receive a call from my local post office after they spent some time researching the issue.
An hour later I received a call from another very nice postal worker who informed me that the package had left my local post office and was never seen again. By the way, this is essentially what I found when I typed the tracking number into usps.com. She asked me to try to track the package myself by calling the post office corresponding to the buyer’s address. I was a bit surprised that the post office would ask me to call another post office. I assumed that one postal worker would call another to find the package, but when I mentioned this to the postal worker she just laughed. The woman directed me back to the 1-800 number, rather than provide the number to the post office I needed to contact.
So I called the 1-800 number and received the phone number of the post office where the package should have been delivered. The postal worker entered the tracking number I gave him and said “yup it never got here.” I asked if he could look around the post office to see if it had gotten stuck in the wrong bin or something. He laughed and said if the computer says it never got here than it never got here. He then gave me the number of a claims department. I called and the number rang and rang. No one picked up and I couldn’t leave a voice mail. I tried calling for three days.
Today I gave up. Because the item wasn’t insured the post office wouldn’t allow me to file a claim. Even if they won’t give me the value of the item, I assumed they would give me a refund the price of shipping. Nope. No such luck. So I refunded the eBay buyer the full amount and sucked up the loss of the item and the shipping.
Next time. I think I’ll ship UPS.
I feel your pain. I ordered four books for my college classes from Amazon. They told me that it would take 4-14 days for the books to be delivered. Well I got three of them almost right away, 6 days as a matter of fact, but the other one I never got. Amazon said that at the longest it would take 21 to be delivered and well now it’s been 22. I called the post office today and they said that they received it and delivered it. I told them that i didnt get anything and they were like “we put in your apartment box. I told them that i live in a house, not an apartment. The guy put me on hold while he went to see what was going on. I am on a prepaid phone so he was sucking out my minutes like crazy. Then he came back and told me that they put it right inside my screen door,and i proceded to tell him that i don’t have a screen door. He puts me on hold for ever again and goes to see what happened. When he comes back he says that if the package was to big, that they put a notice in my mailbox to go pick it up. First of all the book was the same size as all the other ones i recieved and they got there ok. Second of all this asshole just finished telling me that they fucking left my book outside “my door” which indeed was not my fucking door. Does anyone know if they refund lost packages that you paid for?
I know just what you’re talking about. I was supposed to receive a package the other day and it was scanned as delivered, but I never received it. Someone from my local post office called me back and said that the delivery person definitely delivered it to my mailbox, obviously the delivery person would say that. So all they said now is just write a letter to the manager and tell them what happened, which really means that I’m never going to get my package, I’ll never get my money back and someone gained from my loss.
I shipped a 46 lb. box of books at the “media mail” rate to my new residence. I was told 6-8 days, and it arrived today, nearly 3 weeks later.
But get this, the box now weighs 17 lbs. and has less than half of the books I packed in it. On top of that, it has a small package addressed to someone else also IN the box!!
So, someone at the post office opened my box, took more than half my books out, put someone else’s mail in my box, taped it up and delivered it to me. I’m livid and don’t even know how to deal with these maniacs.
WELL I HAVE HAD IT WITH THE FLIPPIN USPS….I TOOK A PACKAGE IN TO THE HIGHLAND PO AND JUST THE SHIPPING CHARGES ALONE WERE 33.00….LIKE A DUMMY I DIDNT GET INSURANCE…(DIDNT KNOW ANY BETTER) THEY DIDNT OFFER SO I DIDNT ASK…ANYWAYS TO MAKE THIS SHORT….I HAD TO REFUND THE BUYER HIS MONEY BACK…..PLUS LOST MY 33.00 AND MY PACKAGE….IT JUST ISNT RIGHT…
I can completely relate to your story. The USPS is apparently not responsible for losing items…they have a way of never accepting full (or any) responsibility for their mistakes.
I bought concert tickets from a seller on craigslist, and paid via paypal. The seller sent them with signature confirmation, and I wasn’t home when they were initially delivered, so the mail person left me a note to pick it up. When I went the following day to pick it up, it was no where to be found. I called and went up there for 2 days, and ultimately missed my concert that weekend, which was on a Sunday. The next week, I called again to see about filing a claim, because I figured I had PROOF the post office had the tickets in their possession, and obviously misplaced them…and it seems only fair that the USPS should be responsible for reimbursing me (or anyone for something they lose because of stupid workers).
Finally, a Post Office supervisor informed me that our mail carrier TOOK my envelope containing my tickets home over the weekend, never took them outta her bag and placed them where she should have for me to pick up…and consequently made me lose over $100 dollars because of her negligence.
The Post Office told me I can’t even file a claim since it wasn’t insured…which I think is ridiculous. And as others here have said, even if you have an item insured, they most likely won’t give you your money back or pay for what they’ve lost or damaged.
It isn’t fair. Why should we be accountable for anything wrong we do when a government corporation doesn’t feel the need to be? It’s aggravating!
Sorry to respond to such an old post, but I was recently on the other end of this situation. I moved a few months before an eBay transaction, and had my old address forwarded to the new one. But the sender used the new one – and my post office sent it back to the OLD one, which makes NO sense – and now it’s gone.
Either the carrier or the new tenant at my old apartment stole my mail, which is a federal offense. I’m looking into getting someone into serious trouble.
is there have a possible that i can still find my package?? the sender was sent in my address but it wasnt correct my postal code. it didnt arrive to my residence yet. in what area do i check? either in my address or in the postal code area that was wrote? coz my address is different from my postal code its not match.. where where in post office do i gonna check my package??
So essentially, if an item has no insurance its okay too loose it or steal it by postal employees? Nice!
This is very funny to me because the same thing happened to me except I insured it but did not track it. They said my package was delivered on so and so date.
The package was delivered to the wrong address per the recipients route lady.
I filed a claim and the claim was denied b/c it was delivered. I have to appeal showing proof that the package was lost by the recipients post office.
So bottomline, next time send it fedex, ups or if you go through the post office 1. track it, insure it, and require signature. These don't cost more than a few dollars extra.
Marla
My mom sent a package in November & never received it. It was a large box, so It can't just be misplaced. I contacted my local post office, they said it was scanned delivered Nov. 23. I didn't get the box. They also said it had it was scanned Dec. 15. That's strange, first it said delivered in Nov. Now it has been scanned again. I went to local post office, manager asked all these questions, called 800 number several times, nothing. First question is, is it insured? No it isn't. Someone from the post office is playing games & stole it. My mom's friend , who works for a post office said, every time a package is scanned, the scanner has to put in their social security #. They can find out who scanned it delivered & again Dec. 15. Yet, they won't do it. Now my kids didn't get their gifts from my mom. Me or my mom will send through reg. Post office again!