Topic: (Update 1-21-17) OK, Canada, I give up!

[HondaMan]

  
Canada Post has lost 5 of the 7 packages (and numerous envelopes) I sent there in 2016. They lost 50% of the ones I sent in 2015, too. If anyone up there desires something I make or do, you'll have to find some other way to get it from here, as I can't afford to do this anymore...I know Del at VintageConnections also swore off Canada in 2012 for this same thing: I'm sad to have to do it, too.

There are apparently booming businesses in the northern US States (like Kinek) that offer "post boxes" where I can send things to and Canadians can come themselves to pick them up: now I understand how those got started, and why they are thriving. Sending even something as small as a Transistor Ignition via Fedex (UPS doesn't do Canada, I am told) will cost 3x as much as the unit, so I don't think that's an option, either.

If they are bemoaning the fact that these parts "have wires inside" during a package X-ray, thinking they are bomb parts or something, then they should AT LEAST have someone with enough expertise to open the package and READ THE INSTRUCTIONS that come with them to know WHAT THE PART IS, instead of just stealing it by rat-holing it somewhere.

If anyone has any ideas, I'm all ears: until then, I give up throwing my stuff away by sending it to Canada Post. Heck, they will not even report back to the US Post Office's Tracking system anymore: all I get from the Tracking now is: "Left US mail center on [date]". I have lost nearly $400 in Transistor Ignitions and Fuseblocks this year by doing this: I even have sent O-rings in envelopes up to 3 times, just to get them there. That's enough of that... 

Sorry for the rant, am pretty hacked off about it...
==============================================
Update 1/21/17: According to the USPS opinions (and that is all you can get from them, they have no 'official' voice to talk with...) I have of late, if these packages are switched from the lower-cost bubble-pack envelopes I have used for 10 years to their flagship Priority Mail box (with its flagship price), they will fare better in transit. I have NO idea why they think this, as the problem appears after the packages vanish into Canada. But, what this would mean for, say, a Transistor Ignition or Fuseblock (or both in one package, as was the last one lost) this would cost twice as much postage, about $25 per box.

What do you Canadian 'brothers' think of that sort of solution?

[markreimer]

Holy smokes really?? I live in Winnipeg, Manitoba and Canada post has always been the most reliable shipping option, including with international shipments, for moto parts. However i do often ship to a town next to the border because the savings are huge. For example, I bought a rear Cush drive wheel for my xr650l. Shipping to the border was $6. Shipping 60 miles further north was $140...

Sorry to hear you've had such bad luck. We're not all bad up here!


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[firebane]

Damn suck's to hear but I'm not surprised. Shipping charges cross border and with the exchange rate is mental right now. 
 
What methods do you use? I have gotten tons of stuff shipped cross border with USPS including a giant box of wires and a cdi box for my bike and no issues

[Terry in Australia]

I know your pain Mark, but from the other end. I bought 5 petcock rebuild kits from a US seller back in October, and promptly forgot about it. I'd bought a heap of stuff on ebay and as I work 400 miles from home, I just assumed it had arrived with the other stuff.

I went thru all the boxes looking for them last week, but couldn't find them, so I checked the tracking, and they've arrived in Australia, but haven't left "Border Security". (customs)

I rang Australia Post and after getting screwed around by the woman I spoke to who lied to me and said the sender in the US had to contact them, I went to the Oz Post website and saw that indeed I could make the enquiry, which has now kicked off an investigation.

In the meantime I've ordered two more kits from the same seller, it'll be interesting to see which arrives first.............

[Anglo]

Its the weather mate. I'm in Vancouver waiting on 3 packages they promised me would arrive last year... No excuse mind, you'd expect Canadian posties to be able to handle a little snow 

[Terry in Australia]

Its the weather mate. I'm in Vancouver waiting on 3 packages they promised me would arrive last year... No excuse mind, you'd expect Canadian posties to be able to handle a little snow 

Ha ha, obviously they're not ex-Mounties!

[BPellerine]

always received anything I have got from you Mark,sorry to hear that stuff,I understand the frustration but I will not even try to buy vc stuff just because they will not ship to Canada,might get less quality but china is happy to oblige.bill

[PeWe]

Mark, it is not possible to ship things to Canada then
FEDEX, UPS and DHL is the safer way. USPS will end up in the receiving country's state postal service.

Only small packages  that disappear?

When this cannot be trusted the basic functions in a country's infra structure has been fallen apart. I look forward to cheap GPS tracking devices that can be hidden inside packages/parts inside. Trace log saved online so it will be visible where it disappeared and exakt which time to trace who stole it. GPS tracker as alarms used in shops traced by satelite, polled everr 30 minutes or so...

[jamesw]

As a victim of the unreliable Canada Post with one of Mark's parcels, I learned not to use them. Luckily in my case, it was just o rings.

After not receiving them, I registered for a US Postal address with a company that picks up and delivers the package(s) for me. So far it's worked without a problem and I've bought 2 transitorized ignitions, 1 fuse box, and a set of carbs that he rebuilt for me.

For any Ontario resident, use crossborderpickups.ca

For any other Canadians, I'd use FedEx or a courier service. Or contact crossborderpickups and ask if they ship packages to other Provinces. I can't see why they wouldn't.

As for why the packages disappear, I won't even speculate. However, working in a similar field and knowing collegues who work for the Canadian Border Services Agency, once a package is flagged during x-ray inspection, the package is then tested for contraband & explosives . If anything is found, the package will be quarantined and the shipper/receiver investigated.

[flatlander]

can you insure the shipments, so that they have to pay out the value if they don't arrive?
that would shift the financial part of the problem from you to usps/canada post. maybe they'd eventually even feel some pressure to solve it.

[bwaller]

I hate to poopoo anything about my country, but Canada Post has become just another government wasteland. As an example I asked when sending some gearbox parts to the UK, C-Post was $165 for 30 day delivery. USPS was $48 and was delivered in five bloody days. 30 days, WTF?

They're struggling to keep the thing alive and it's floundering. Prices have continued to increase as they lose business. There is a need for some smart thinking trouble shooters to clean up the mess because I still feel postal service is needed.

James offers good advice with the cross border pickups deal. I'm twenty minutes from a NY USPS office plus a good friend there has a USPS delivery route and accepts all my junk in trade for a nice meal & drinks!! 

[stikman]

Sorry to hear you've had these bad experiences, Mark.  I find that once the package leaves USPS and is picked up by Canada Post you can't track it by USPS anymore.  No big deal though, just use the tracking function on Canada Post's website.  Do you find there are more issues with lost packages around this time of year?  If so, maybe waiting for the year end dust to settle will lower the rate of package loss.  I have never had a package go missing when shipping from the US to me in BC Canada, and I order alot of stuff that way.  At any rate, I hope you can figure something out so the rest of us Canucks don't miss out on your fine products.

[rotortiller]

I buy lots of bike stuff from the USA and have never had a single issue. It always arrived in good time. I use USPS which partners with Canada Post since it avoids Fedex or UPS brokerage fees. I ship Canada Post to USA and that works fine too.   I have ordered jet ski parts from USA along with automotive stuff ,not a problem with USPS or Canada Post. A bad postal code on the address will mess things up. I have been able to track both ways to and from, usually the hold up is with customs. A few of the merchants I have used below. Generally expect 2-3 weeks delivery coming in.

Z1
Jessbikes
triplecranks
ebay
amazon
vintagekawasaki
lakeland
greatplanes
New Hondaman ignition sent promptly several years ago.

Lakeland makes and promply dleivers by USPS really nice electronics for motorcycles so maybe he can take over the SOHC line for you. LOL

[grcamna2]

Would USPS Priority be less troublesome when shipped from the USA compared to USPS Standard Ground Post ?

[stikman]

Mark, let me know if you want a hand dealing with Canada Post to track down these lost packages.  Might help to have an extra pair of hands or even someone local.  Let me know.

[HondaMan]

Mark, let me know if you want a hand dealing with Canada Post to track down these lost packages.  Might help to have an extra pair of hands or even someone local.  Let me know.

Thanks, Stikman, will keep it in mind.
The USPS will not insure packages going to Canada Post now: not that they have EVER paid me in 12 years for any of the others I have have insured and they lost lost (10 and counting). I have NEVER been paid for a USPS claim since I started doing this: they just stonewall it and tell me to "reapply" for the claim. After 8 of these attempts, I gave that up, too. UPS Store told me they can ship these tiny boxes there, but it starts at $35 or something like that: for a $50-$80 part that's mighty steep "postage". I'm beginning to understand why so many electronics suppliers I deal with regularly will not use USPS anymore, unless there is no other option: then they charge a lot for "insurance", which I suspect is just them taking a piece of you to help cover their losses when USPS loses theirs, too.

I just have run out of ideas: I have lost more $$ in these last 2 years of sending stuff lost to Canada than I made on Canadian "sales" in the last 12 years. I make about $8 on the Fuseblocks, about $7-$12 on the Ignitions (depending on how much the parts were last time), and $0 on swingarm rebuilds (I spend it for tooling for the next one), so losing just one Ignition means I have to make 8 more of them just to break even(!). I don't do it for 'business', just for the fun of riding and helping out other SOHC4-ers like me.

I was just hoping Canada Post had a "rough spot" with their package security checks after last year's terrorist attacks there, but now it seems that if it has wires, they will not even deliver it, and there is no hint of any kind on their website as to what happened to it. Heck, even 2 of these "packages" were no more than envelopes with O-rings inside, which never got to their owners, either. The second envelope went just fine to the same address(es), so no clue there, either?

I am used to the long time it takes to get to Ontario up there: it can take 6 weeks from Colorado to there, sometimes. South Africa has this problem even worse: normal to there can be 2 months. AUS is about 2 weeks on average. And USPS will not "Priority Mail" to any of these countries unless (oddly) it is to a US APO (military) base in those countries: then it always works and costs only as much as sending it across town. Go figure?

[754]

The whole insurance thing is a bull#$%* scam, pay them extra to do the  job they do everyday ?
 What, they only actually worry about doing the work , if you pay extra...
An claim over the border takes like 90 days before a reimbursement claim can happen... Why, cuz they know how long they can make it take.
 I think the reason a company on here charged me for Priority Shipping is less problems than regular post.
 The other thing that can happen..has to me ..is the buyer either does nit admit it got there , or wont pay if you (stupidly fronted them. The part). Lost a triple tree that way, was to be a trade... And a carb bracket, and some 500 frame parts...cut them out carefully, pretty much only get paid for the time not the part... The the fukstick does not pay you...

[drumstyx]

Mark,

I'm pretty surprised about this -- my Canada Post experience has been phenomenal, and of my many packages over the years (probably nigh on 1000 now!) I've only had 1 lost, and it turned up a few weeks later anyway, after the insurance payout! They're by far my preference over any courier here in Canada. My mailman is always here at the same time every day, and even delivers Sundays during the holiday season.

A tip for cross-border shipping -- check Canada Post's tracking with the USPS tracking number, it transfers over and you should see it long before it even leaves the USA (though it won't have much detail until it enters Canada).

I sent you my swingarm earlier this year, but I picked it up at the border to save some bucks (and to have an excuse to go for a ride). Sent it out via Canada Post, because it seems to be much cheaper to send to the USA than USA to Canada via USPS.

All I can say is *please please please* don't let this sour you on Canadian shipping completely!! I'm gonna need one of those ignitions when the dollar gets better (soon hopefully!) It could well be down to bad people, bad local postmen, or bad CBSA/customs forms. I can assure you though that, while expensive, shipping to Canada can work! I just received my head from MRieck this morning via Canada Post, and it's in great shape -- only a week after he sent it too!

[stikman]

Something really seems wrong here, Mark.  Are you using the same post office to send out from?  I have never heard of so many bad shipping experiences from one person.  I can only imagine the level of frustration.  I hate to say it, but if it means raising the price you charge Canadian customers just to help cover your cost then that might be one option.  Just a bandaid though really.  My offer still stands to help out.  If you want to send me the info on just the most recent item even, I could make some phone calls and start from there.  I understand your lack of desire to go down the whole "make a claim" road.  I can't promise anything but I'm happy to give it a solid shot.  Maybe if we can figure out the issue with one it will help with the rest?  Up to you though, bud.

[2wheels]

i have not had any problems receiving from the US??
I allways have a tracking number that seems to follow from USPS to canada post.  Not sure if that has anything to do with it?..

[rsank]

Wow! That's not good. I guess I am glad I got my Hondaman ignition, fuse box, and the resistors in 2015. But seriously, I have not had much problem with Canada post. I just recently bought a luggage rack for the CB550 shipped from Ohio in a huge box and it reached me promptly. I guess you must be sending larger volumes and there could also be some stealing going on at the mailbox level after delivery. I have had that happen in my building a few times.

[HondaMan]

Something really seems wrong here, Mark.  Are you using the same post office to send out from?  I have never heard of so many bad shipping experiences from one person.  I can only imagine the level of frustration.  I hate to say it, but if it means raising the price you charge Canadian customers just to help cover your cost then that might be one option.  Just a bandaid though really.  My offer still stands to help out.  If you want to send me the info on just the most recent item even, I could make some phone calls and start from there.  I understand your lack of desire to go down the whole "make a claim" road.  I can't promise anything but I'm happy to give it a solid shot.  Maybe if we can figure out the issue with one it will help with the rest?  Up to you though, bud.

Yes, it is the same local Post Office I have used since 1998. It's only recently when this trouble started: to be precise, it began after the series of terror attacks began in various parts of Canada. After the 9/11 attack happened in the States and they started their new 'package examination' process here in 2009, my Ignitions were vanishing from sight in the USPS tracking system that whole next year. I quit trying to track them because the tracking would report "Arrived at [some big depot] and they would never leave it, but no one could find it. I completely suspected it was because an Xray of the package (which was their first patched-together process) would show a metal box with wires hanging out of it, and they were publicly looking for "bomb parts": but they did not have anyone in their "security teams" that could look at one of these (or even bother to read the instructions that accompany them) to understand what they were. Instead, they would simply vanish into the abyss, never to be seen again. Since I make LOTS of electronic stuff for LOTS of people and have for almost 40 years, this became a large problem then.

I fully suspect this is the problem at Canada's border, where these package tracking reports show "Left USA" (from USPS) and that's their end comment. They don't usually reappear in the Canada Post side, but just vanish. So, when I tried (last year) to contact Canada Post about it, they asked for their Tracking Number equivalent: I didn't have it, since they change the number from the US number when it hits customs, and the USPS number would not bring up anything on the Canada "side". So, they would not help me. I figured they would eventually "heal" their process, so I kept sending stuff: I am just out of patience and $$ too much for now to cope with it, and don't have a good way to do it in any case.

Nothing makes me sadder, either. I have rebuilt engines, carbs, swingarms, electrical switches, and more for Canucks, and have really enjoyed working with everyone: I just don't know what else to do? I am now afraid that I will end up sending someone's carbs back, only for them to never see them again...or something even worse?

[grcamna2]

Would be nice if a sohc4 member up near the border in N. Michigan,etc. were to help out this situation and be a 'facilitator' who would p-up the pckges. from HondaMan from the local US Post office and then to pass-on the shipments to a Canadian member who makes regular trips to the US and will pick the parts up & will ship them in-country. imo
Does seem like the 'long way around' but could help.

[evanphi]

Well I'm glad I got mine with no issues.

What someone said earlier is true, though. You can use the USPS tracking number in Canada Post's tracking system once it crosses the border.

[Terry in Australia]

I am used to the long time it takes to get to Ontario up there: it can take 6 weeks from Colorado to there, sometimes. South Africa has this problem even worse: normal to there can be 2 months. AUS is about 2 weeks on average. And USPS will not "Priority Mail" to any of these countries unless (oddly) it is to a US APO (military) base in those countries: then it always works and costs only as much as sending it across town. Go figure?

I don't know where you're getting your information from Mark, but that's not true, I get stuff shipped out via USPS "Priority Mail" all the time. Cheers, Terry.