USPS delays are driving me insane!

[abtactical]

These **bleep** delays with USPS are driving me insane and I don't feel like eBay is properly notifying buyers.   I ship probably on average 30 items a day, and we are receiving about 2 emails a day (give or take) about delays, and many of them out of the memphis hub.  I know I could always use alternate methods, but nothing competes with usps first class rates and you can't really ship a $10 item under a pound any other way and make a profit, at least not as far as I'm aware.  Do you guys have a set email that you are replying to buyers with or what's your strategy?

[katzrul15 · Accepted solution]

Memphis is the bane of our existence right now as well.  (and Maryland)

Yes, we have been using an email template since December when all Hades broke loose.  We know e-Bay sends a shipping email, but we started sending one to each buyer in Dec as it was a mess and now we do it if being shipping to PA, MD, anything that goes thru Memphis as a hub, etc.  (For a while Indy, Louisville and Cincinnati drove us nutz too - Louisville can still be hit or miss for us)  

We send this letter via email and we also print off a copy, especially for Memphis and PA and enclose it in the box.  I include a business card stapled to the email to the Buyer that has our info on it should they wish to reach out.  We had lots of parcels really delayed and I have 9 sitting in Memphis that are evidently at the Hub, but have not moved in over 2 weeks again.  Ever since the ice storms, Memphis has been an abyss.

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Thank you so very much for your order with us, it is very much appreciated.

We have shipped your items this date and your order view on e-Bay should now reflect your updated shipping status and tracking.

USPS continues to have Shipping Delays due to very high volume in certain regions and work force issues due to Covid-19.  Unfortunately, your region continues to be a source of issue for USPS with continued processing delays at this time.

We meet regularly with our USPS branch as tracking appears to not be updated daily and/or only at major destinations on arrival. We are assured by USPS that parcels are in-progress and only delayed due to the volume they are still receiving.   Know that we monitor our Shipping progress on our Orders daily and will continue to do so until your order status shows delivered.

Your FREE Economy Shipping with your order was upgraded to USPS Priority Shipping at No Charge vs the Economy Shipping selected to work to insure your order progresses as quickly as possible  We did anticipate some continued delays with USPS for your Region, but not what we are still currently experiencing.

We appreciate your Patience and know that we are monitoring this Daily as well.  Please let us know your item has arrived safely by leaving us feedback upon receipt.   Should you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. 

We thank you again for your purchase.

Sincerely,

Your Seller

[abtactical]

Nice.  I can't upgrade folks to priority unless their item weighs over a pound, but thanks for the info.  Nice well thought out letter.  

[cooper9211]

Nice letter

[popblox]

Memphis is definitely a major issue right now - it's been building slowly since Easter weekend and is now completely out of control (again). I currently have 76 packages (all shipped and scanned on time) that are late/stuck/delayed, some have been in Memphis since March.  I got an email from eBay saying I am now subject to "consequences" due to a very high INR rate.

[bbravo65]

...agreed with everyone about Maryland...

...sent a Priority package to Baltimore, Maryland since 04/19 with 2 claims were filed recently in searching for it...the latest notification from USPS today said it will be delivered tomorrow...

...USPS has been degraded since 2009 with FSS, and getting worse when Amazon's contract kicked in in 2013...

...why not eBay send a rep. to negotiate with USPS when mostly eBay's sellers using them without much discount (10% is the highest rate)...in reality, Amazon is now paying to USPS only $2 for each package, so many are oversize and weight (gym equipment, mattress, furniture...)...USPS "adores" Amazon as even to deliver their packages on Sunday and if any mail carrier misdelivery, that person has to go back on the street to retrieve it...

...eBay's business must get that same priority treatment because eBay's sellers pay more...USPS should remember eBay was the first online shopping launched a large revenues for them in 2005...

[katzrul15]

Maryland is bad for us, but not as bad as Memphis.  

Any idea what the MD issue is?  We have 2 trying to go to Hagerstown....at least our buyers are familiar with the delays in their area and seem to just take it in stride.  Grateful for that.  

Memphis has been bad for months and continues to get worse.  I dread every time I see something headed to their region.  

[katzrul15]

 I got an email from eBay saying I am now subject to "consequences" due to a very high INR rate.

E-bay has to know about Memphis.  If that is not the 3rd angle of the Bermuda Triangle right for shipping, I do not know what is.  Can you talk to someone about it at e-Bay or is that futile?

[bbravo65]

...to get to Maryland, mail is processing in Capitol Heights, MD distribution center...this facility compares to the one in Memphis is smaller...Memphis is one of the largest distribution centers besides Denver, Atlanta, Cincinnati and Dallas...

...the worst distribution center trophy should award to Chicago...

[yuzuha]

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@bbravo65 wrote:

...to get to Maryland, mail is processing in Capitol Heights, MD distribution center...this facility compares to the one in Memphis is smaller...Memphis is one of the largest distribution centers besides Denver, Atlanta, Cincinnati and Dallas...

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That's the one that a lot of the packages that I ship go through if I mail from the post office near work (in MD). Zero problems with outbound stuff going through it, it all gets processed through and out in under 24 hours.

[dnasilver]

Contact your Senator an Rep and ask them why a crony was put in charge to destroy the US Postal Service. Ask them about fully funded pensions on day one, no other Gov entity is required to do that. Ask them why they do not think the elderly, veterans, and the disable should no longer get their medications on time. Ask eBay why their lobbyist are not asking Congress about the delays. 

Keep  a watch on your shipments and be proactive and let the customer know you are contacting the USPS filing a lost package/item claim per their guidelines. 

[popblox]

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@katzrul15 wrote:

 I got an email from eBay saying I am now subject to "consequences" due to a very high INR rate.

E-bay has to know about Memphis.  If that is not the 3rd angle of the Bermuda Triangle right for shipping, I do not know what is.  Can you talk to someone about it at e-Bay or is that futile?

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Futile is one word for it (transcript following).

——————————————
ME:
I received an email from eBay stating I would be suffering consequences due to a very high INR rate. In ALL the INR cases, I have shipped the items on time and they just get delayed in transit by USPS. The Memphis USPS facility in particular (where ALL my shipments have to stop first) is currently WEEKS behind - there’s several news stories about it. Can someone please help me understand what’s going on here? I can’t adjust the delivery date that the buyers see, I ship everything on time, I’m not sure what else I could possibly do different and/or why I’m being punished?

eBay CS Rep on FB:
Hey there, we're protecting you from any defects for sure but the metrics are a little different. The good news is you have a few from January that will be falling off which will help out a ton! ~Jasmen

Thank you for contacting eBay today, please take a few moments to rate your experience

What is your overall satisfaction with our Social Team?
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[dogsrus3]

I live in MD and First Class packages sit here or in DC (and sometimes MD/PA/Memphis) for weeks.  I've been trying to find an answer but I just get the run around (still COVID, backlog, etc).  I just can't understand the backlog these days. 

[katzrul15]

My 2 going to Hagerstown are still just sitting - no updated scans past the latest facility scans.  I have filed missing parcel reports with USPS on both.  Still sitting.  

I wish I knew what the issue is with MD.  It was wonky starting about last Nov and has only gotten worse (at least for us).

Had 2 Memphis parcels delivered today.  26 days for one and 23 days for the other one.  I could drive from OH to TN 12 times by now and delivered them quicker.  Seriously.  lol

[yuzuha]

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@katzrul15 wrote:

My 2 going to Hagerstown are still just sitting - no updated scans past the latest facility scans.  I have filed missing parcel reports with USPS on both.  Still sitting.  

I wish I knew what the issue is with MD.  It was wonky starting about last Nov and has only gotten worse (at least for us).

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That's especially weird because I actually just sent one to Hagerstown from DC a couple of weeks back and it was delivered the very next day. Accepted April 12th, delivered April 13th.