Topic: F**ing Post Office

[neudl]

Boy am I frustrated.  I bought new piston rings from Cycle Recycle off e-Bay.  Paid on 4/24, and they haven't shown up.  Anxious to get the top end back together, I called Cycle Recycle.  They were very, very nice, and confirmed they had shipped the rings on 4/25 priority mail, and confirmed that they had the correct address.  Using the confirmation number they gave me, I was able to look on the USPS website, and follow the journey the rings have been on.  They left Indiana, and showed up in Las Vegas on 4/26.  They were then off to Bell, CA, and from there to sunny Los Angeles.  After a relaxing weekend in LA, they made it up to Federal Way, Washington, about 20 miles south of my home.  From Federal Way, they went back to Los Angeles (I guess it was too cold here), then back to Bell.  They appear to have changed their mind again at that point, because the next day they were back in Los Angeles, and a couple of days later back in Federal Way.  Always fickle, they decided to head back to Los Angeles, and as of yesterday, had made it back to Las Vegas.  Of course I called USPS, who informed me that there was nothing they could do to get my rings out of this apparently endless loop.  After 14 business days, I can report them lost.   All I can do is hope that at some point they are either returned to Cycle Recycle or wind up on my doorstep, but I’m not holding my breath.

[Gordon]

That sucks, but keep in mind that it's the seller's responsibility to make sure your purchase gets to you, not yours.  Their responsibility does not end with putting the item in the mail.   

If they don't show up soon, let CrC2 know that you would like them to re-ship another set of rings, which is what any company with decent customer service should do.  They have Delivery Confirmation, so they can tell that you're not trying to scam them.  If for some reason they refuse, then you can file a charge back through your credit card.   

Hope you get them soon!

[333]

It's not only the Post Office.  Anytime "people" are involved, mistakes can happen.

Then there's my UPS story.  When I worked for a dealer, we would sell to independent repair shops locally(Virginia).  We shipped parts about 40 miles away, and ground service works out to 1 day service. After 1 week, we tracked it and found it had gone to California!!!

[SD750F]

And get this, on May 12 the rates will increase again!!! Just a penny fr a 1 ounce First Class envelope but more for packages. Maybe the increase is to cover all the extra fuel cost for a scenic tour of the US.

Benjamin Franklin should be turning over in his grave!

Scott

[Gordon]

And get this, on May 12 the rates will increase again!!! Just a penny fr a 1 ounce First Class envelope but more for packages. Maybe the increase is to cover all the extra fuel cost for a scenic tour of the US.

Benjamin Franklin should be turning over in his grave!

My wife just bought a crap-load of those "forever" stamps, and I'm beginning to think they might be a really good investment.

[nickjtc]

That sucks, but keep in mind that it's the seller's responsibility to make sure your purchase gets to you, not yours.  Their responsibility does not end with putting the item in the mail.   

Erm, not sure that the average seller understands that. The fellow I have been dealing with over a pair of boots I bought last December has told me (and eBay) that as far as he is concerned his responsibility ends when he puts an item in the mail. FWIW his moniker is Lumpy something-or-another.

I've long since written the boots off as a lost cause.....and because I was a patient soul I lost the opportunity to give (my first ever) negative feedback.

[Gordon]

Erm, not sure that the average seller understands that. The fellow I have been dealing with over a pair of boots I bought last December has told me (and eBay) that as far as he is concerned his responsibility ends when he puts an item in the mail.

Oh, I know.  It's an accepted fact that many ebay sellers have little idea of what they're doing, but regardless of who you buy from, in most cases as long as you pay with a credit card you're protected.  If you pay with other methods you're basically at the mercy of the seller, unfortunately.   

[tramp]

by the time you get that package it will be worn out

[333]

Not to sound like the advocate for the USPS, but, ...

The USPS gets no money from our government.  They are totally self financed.  And they are still the cheapest postal service ON THE PLANET.


This message was not paid for, authorized or sanctioned by the United States Postal Service.

[nickjtc]

The USPS gets no money from our government.  They are totally self financed.  And they are still the cheapest postal service ON THE PLANET.

I seldom have reason to berate our Canada Post. If a letter/package/parcel is correctly addressed it will invariably get to its destination. And if you are in a hurry you can pay the premium to have a guaranteed delivery date.

My concern is with the slime bucket sellers out there who 'take the money and run'.

[754]

What do you want, instant service??

 Iwoud be happy with 2.5 week delivery...

 I should get my Lester mags this month, that I found on here and bought back in November or thereabouts...

[thrownchain]

I ordered a seat cover from a company in Fla., told it was going to go out USPS Priority............3 weeks later it shows up, parcel post, and it's the wrong cover. I complained and they took it back and gave me a full refund.
They made it right, but I won't do business with them again.

[uptworedline]

man dude that is a good story. it sucks tho, i'm sure everyone knows how it feels to not have parts you're waiting on

[burmashave]

neudl, have you ever used packagemapping.com? Not that it would help you in any way, but it might be even more annoying/amusing to see that package's movements actually mapped.

It reminds me (not nearly as bad, though) of when I ordered a Palm III long ago. My buddy ordered one at the same time; however, I had mine shipped UPS overnight, while he had his shipped UPS ground. I got mine the next day, and his arrived at the local shipping point in a day or so, but it sat there for about 2 and a half weeks before being delivered.

For what it's worth, there's a Thunderbird plugin that lets you simply select and right click on any tracking number in an email, and it'll open a browser and map it via packagemapping.com. (I'm even too impatient to copy a tracking number in an email and paste it at a shippers website.)

[neudl]

According to packagemapping.com it has traveled 5519.67 miles, at an average speed of just over 16mph.  It left Las Vegas again last night, but until it gets processed again, I don't know if its heading east or west.  I'm waiting in eager anticipation to see where it winds up today.  I'm thinking the Southeast might be nice this time of year.

[burmashave]

You're way ahead of me. I shouldn't laugh, but I am. ;-)

[neudl]

So I’m starting to think I owe the post office a bit of an apology, in that I’m beginning to suspect it is an incorrect zip code at issue.  The rings made it back up the sorting center in Federal Way, WA, for the fourth time, on Friday, and are back in Los Angeles today.  I spoke with my mail carrier about the issue, and he told me that it is probably an incorrect zip code.  My zip is 98117 (and I double checked it is correct with Paypal and E-bay), Pasadena has the 91--- zip codes (such as 91887).  My guess is that the sender transposed a number, which would explain why it keeps getting sent to LA.  In LA they see “Seattle” and send it up here, where it gets scanned by zip code, and sent back to LA.  Apparently everything is so automated, that nobody ever figures out the problem.

[burmashave]

I had wondered that the address might have been somehow screwed up, but this does not exonerate the Post Office. I think that USPS generally does a decent job, but they must have some sort of procedure for dealing with a mismatch between ZIP code and city. Yours can't be the first package with a ZIP transposition, and I have to guess that the package was handled by hand each time it achieved an error status.

To think that the USPS doesn't have some sort of procedure for a mismatch would be to assume that the USPS has tens or hundreds of thousands of packages simply moving back and forth forever in the USPS delivery system.

[neudl]

From what I understand, the sorting is mostly mechanical these days.

[burmashave]

I'm thinking that some of the rejects had to have been handled manually.

[Gordon]

That is kind of strange.  I've had packages and letters show up with the address completely screwed up, yet they still made it to my house somehow.  I bet there's one person on each end of things that doesn't want to deal with it and keeps sending it back to the other location hoping the other person will take care of it. 

Either that or the P.O. has reached the point of bureaucracy that they simply can't comprehend the idea of a mistake, and your piston rings will be trapped in that endless loop until the end of time. 

Ever seen "Brazil"?

[DarkRider]

if he hasnt at this rate his rings might get to..

[333]

Since th P.O. instituted the zip + 4 codes, that and the house number are all that need be legible to make it to your address.

[nickjtc]

Since th P.O. instituted the zip + 4 codes, that and the house number are all that need be legible to make it to your address.

.............if the human being doing the deciphering has their brain in gear.

[neudl]

As of yesterday, my rings had travelled 8264.07 miles, and they are still floating about in the postal system.  Cycle-Recycle has not responded to any of my emails inquiring as to what their policies are with respect to shipping losses.  They were nice enough when I managed to get them on the phone last week, but offered no insight as to how long they expect me to wait before they are considered lost, or even if they would send another set if they are lost.

So here's the question - do I contest the charge with my credit card company, and order from another seller, or just continue to wait and hope they show up?  At this point, there's no way to tell if I will ever receive them, and Cycle-recycle is ignoring all of my emails.