only time I have had an issue overseas was when the customs guy claimed it hadn't arrived yet until I showed him the DHL tracking number, he walked back in the warehouse, took a look at the size, returned and said he needed more money to allow it to pass thru customs.

 

When we lived in Japan I used both the USPS system and the Japanese mail for domestic and overseas shipping. The JP system worked pretty well and felt pretty similar to the US system when I shipped from JP to US customers.

I'm one of those USPS customers that is pretty satisfied, especially with as much as I have shipped as a business. Knock on wood I've never needed to file a claim or any kind as a sender.

 

Well of course you haven't had to file a damage claim... it actually has to GET there for it to get damaged!

 

Every item I've shipped has arrived and confirmed by my customers. Not one dropped package.

 

I think the USPS does an ok job.
The items I have had issue with have been the ones UPS offloads on USPS for local delivery.

 

I've noticed that there's a difference in service between big busy hubs and smaller rural outlets. I live right on a big hub so I get fast delivery and outgoing mail. But my folks down in Corpus are several stops off the main PO. Items I send to them bottle neck and usually get slowed down by a day or two. I've noticed this difference in the tracking efficiency as well.

 

Anytime someone sends me something USPS with a tracking number, the tracking number never shows me anything until after I get whatever was sent. Maybe the tracking number does something for the sender but it's useless to me.

 

With as much as I was shipping I stopped micromanaging the tracking until it was past the 3-5days of priority. If a package "should have been there by now" then I'd look in on it. Honesty I didn't have time or energy to waste unless it came up missing. Since all items went insured, with delivery confirm and tracking (all online postage gets it automatically, it was real easy on my end to settle up with a customer for an item they didn't get. I would simply build them a new item and send it out and then file an insurance claim on the lost package so I would still get paid for the first item. But like I said, I never had an item lost. Just had to let shipping be.

 

Joy for me... they keep moving the hub farther and farther away...
they used to sort regional here and everything else went to the hub in sallisaw. now everything goes to tulsa. To mail to a zip code 20 miles away, it goes 200 miles each way to tulsa to be sorted and sent back.

 

So it's the same everywhere then. Something going 20 miles gets transported 400... and they wonder why they're going broke.

 

Yeah, pretty much.
I mean, they still made the daily trips to the hub, just instead of hauling 5 tons in a box truck, they are hauling 20 tons in a semi box trailer.

 

Supposedly it saves money to close down sorting centers and move the mail longer distances. The USPS announced some time ago that ALL first class mail would take two days minimum with no more overnight delivery. The change has been delayed, but it seems ridiculous to take two days to go 10 miles!

I haven't had a Priority Mail package for a month or two, but I almost always get them in two days. Maybe it depends where one lives. If I need something quickly I always look for the shipper that uses Priority Mail.

 

usta be, there were several places were overnight. I dont think I can overnight across town anymore.

Maybe the USPS needs to add a hotshot options.

 

Got that one in my e-mail also. Its a scam

Note the English is broken up and grammatically odd. Probably Russian.

 

That isn't as much fun as watching everyone get their shorts in a knot about the USPS, blamed tongue in cheek for the spam.