ESUS tracking/eBay Delivery Services

[ourancestorsattic]

Today I shipped a 2 ounce 7x5x1 Metallic Bubble Envelope using Ebay Standard Envelope. I had sold 3 Pennies to the same Buyer. When I setup the Auctions I had the choice of using USPS First Class Mail Large Envelope for $1.63 which is what the Buyer paid. On the Shipping Label Page that choice was not available & Ground Advantage was my next lowest choice that I knew of until I talked to a CSR that explained I could use Ebay Standard Envelope. After shipping the the coins I refunded the cost difference to the Buyer because it was the proper thing to do. After doing this I read old forum threads that stated that ESUS tracking is not reliable. 

Has it been improved to be reliable or should I just stay with Ground Advatage?

[1786davycrockett]

@crazystuff4sale 

@ourancestorsattic 

"Did you file a claim on the insurance that's included with the service?"

If the OP did not receive the initial "Accepted" scan (or ANY USPS scan after that point), the ESE is not qualified for ESE insurance.  

The "metallic bubble mailer" which the OP used was probably kicked out of the USPS high-speed roller system as being "nonmachinable," and is probably slowly being re-routed back to the OP with postage due.

[crazystuff4sale]

The tracking number they provided shows a few scans and currently in transit.

[1786davycrockett]

@crazystuff4sale 

"The tracking number they provided shows a few scans and currently in transit."

That's good news for the OP then -- the OP can open up an ESE insurance claim if the ESE becomes actually lost, or undelivered.

[ourancestorsattic]

This is my last comment on this insane form of shipping. I would use it to keep shipping costs low but only if it had full normal tracking which it does not.  USPS needs to update their archaic equipment to handle modern safe envelopes which I doubt they will ever do inspite of robbing customers with their constant rate increases. I really wonder where all that money goes because it isn't going to improve their systems. Ebay should eliminate this low cost shipping until USPS joins the 21st Century. I have fully refunded My Buyer & if the coins ever get there they will belong to My Buyer.  The Whole Situation Is Obscene!!!

[1786davycrockett]

@ourancestorsattic 

As several of us have noted in previous comments on this thread, the ESE was not intended to be used with the "metallic bubble mailers" with which you chose to mail your coins.  

The ESE is simply contracted business metered mail, with which I have been involved from the shipping end since 1965 -- so it's been around for over 50 years.

But the rules and regulations have always been very stringent -- as you have found out.

Many of us have been mailing the ESEs for several years now, using simply a #6 or #10 plain flat white envelope, as USPS has intended -- and without any problems.

Sorry it didn't work out for you.

[wastingtime101]

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@ourancestorsattic wrote:

Today I shipped a 2 ounce 7x5x1 Metallic Bubble Envelope using Ebay Standard Envelope.

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For future reference, do not use bubble mailers. They are not permitted with eBay Standard Envelope. Even if you didn't read eBay's help pages about ESE service, there is a clear warning on the label purchase page about this.

[ourancestorsattic]

There Was Absolutely No Warnings When I Printed The Label. Ebay Needs To Remove This Shipping Option Because It Is No Way To Ship Anything In The 21st Century. 

[sapphire_studio]

This thread would make a good example of a seller not taking responsibility for not doing their research properly and instead needing to be thr victim and blame anyone but themselves. 

It's not the end of the world you made a mistake. Just own it and learn from it. If you use the proper envelopes you could save yourself a lot of money with ESE.

[shipscript]

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@ourancestorsattic wrote:

...Ebay Needs To Remove This Shipping Option Because It Is No Way To Ship Anything In The 21st Century. 

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Since eBay doesn't control which shipping services USPS has made available, what should eBay force on sellers in place of the economical ESUS compromise? Trackable Ground Advantage Lightweight (formerly first class package) at $4-$10 per package? Untracked First class letters at $1? Hire Amazon drone delivery service — which is probably the ONLY  21st century delivery service?

Most sellers have had excellent results shipping ESUS letters, and the key phrase here is "letters", not "packages". Those who don't do as well are not in immediate proximity of a major hub to get an initial scan, or have pushed a non-machinable item into the letter system that won't get scanned.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

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@ourancestorsattic wrote:

 sounds like the idea was not well thought out by ebay.

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It was not thought out by Ebay. This is 100% a USPS kludge. I uses the old routing bar codes for letters and the letter sorting hardware.

USPS makes this available to other sites as well, but Ebay might be the biggest experiment.

Ebay cannot do anything to fix this service, they control none of it. If you choose to use it, you choose to accept it as it is. BUT you should use an acceptable envelope, your choice is unacceptable.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

As a further followup. USPS is unlikely to invest in replacing the letter sorting hardware. Letter volume is off and shrinking. Their current survival strategy is based on increased parcel delivery.

[1786davycrockett]

@tobaccocardyahoo 

"USPS makes this available to other sites as well, but Ebay might be the biggest experiment."

To be clear -- business metered mail is NOT an "experiment" -- my employer in 1965 was using it at that time, and probably had been using it for many years before.

And the common denominator then (as it is now) is using either a #6 or #10 envelope -- no bubble mailers, or clasp envelopes, or different sizes -- plus the weights had to be under a few ounces, just like the ESEs.

But the regulations are strict, and USPS is not forgiving for customer errors -- especially for those who haven't bothered to read the regulations.

Kinda like someone who's about to drive a car for the first time -- but who doesn't know how to handle a car, and is ignorant of the traffic laws:

"Well, they weren't written on the car -- so how is it MY fault that I ran a red light and killed someone?"

[tobaccocardyahoo]

@1786davycrockett 

Business metered mail did not have tracking of any sort.

It had a discount based on providing routing bar codes.

ESE reflects a repurposing of the bar codes to provide limited tracking.

Postal employees have told me that metered and stamped mail no longer are processed differently. I know to take what postal employees tell me with a grain of salt.

As best as I can tell, the results of failure to read the bar code for routing were minimal. Sometimes a label was affixed over the bar code, sometimes nothing was done.

This repurposing requires greater accuracy in reading the bar code than metered mail did, and therefore the history is not truly relevant. Use of this capabilty for Ebay is by its nature more likely to fail. A business envelope with a few pages of paper in it is less likely to jam the machine, misfeed or fail to be read. Ebay shipments in the categories supported are more likely to vary in thickness and rigidity and fail to be properly handled. The restrictions on ESE created by Ebay are inadequate, and tightening them is probably undoable without making the service unusable.

In my own incoming letter mail, I see very little metered mail, most of the first class mail I see is imprinted with a permit and number.

USPS is trying to leverage the capabilities of equipment which was not designed for tracking and not doing very well.