Ground Advantage for delicate 1st class items

[boscobosco22]

Hi--- Occasionally I have a relatively delicate light weight item.  I will double box with lots of bubble wrap.  I also count on it going air with other light weight items to protect it. Now, with Ground Advantage it appears that such items will go with heavy items by ground. I try to give buyers the lowest safe shipping I can find.  I think that I may need to  switch all delicate light weight items to Priority, even though there are heavy items in Priority also.  At least it travels faster.  What do you all think ? 

[nobody*s_perfect]

I think you have overestimated the care with which First Class packages are handled, and that you should just switch to Ground Advantage.

[mr_lincoln]

@boscobosco22   You do realize that even now USPS drops, throws, pours First Class packages within their system and onto conveyor belts and then into regional bins?   That part will not change even if an item is going by ground or air.  

You can make the decision to switch to Priority Mail if you see a sudden increase in damaged shipments ... my understanding is that G.A. will have $ 100 built in insurance (per one of our local Postal clerks).

[duffy4444]

   I pack extremely well a lot of china, perfume bottles, and ceramic, glass & porcelain figurines via USPS Parcel Select Ground. Over the last ten years, I've had only one broken plate that was in a shipment of 4 plates.

   Don't over-think it. Your shipments should be fine as long as they're very well protected with lots of bubble wrap and double-boxed when necessary.

   (Now watch - I may have jinxed myself and asked for the gorillas at the USPS shipping centers to start throwing my things around a lot more than they do already...)

Cheers, Duffy

[a_c_green]

---

@mr_lincoln wrote:

my understanding is that G.A. will have $ 100 built in insurance (per one of our local Postal clerks).

---

eBay confirms that as well in their GA FAQ.

I wouldn't worry about how a very lightweight package is handled, as its own inertia is little to none if the whole thing only weighs, like, 3 ounces or so. It can bounce down all the staircases in the building and will probably be fine at the bottom. Just ensure that it remains resistant to squashing, such as using a box instead of a padded envelope if necessary.

[trbl13]

With the USPS changes...First Class Mail remains the same...travelling by Air most of the time..

not by Ground...unless the delivery is close by...The new Ground Advantage Mail replaces Parcel Select Ground...but you can still ship First Class..the same as you always have....

[nobody*s_perfect]

---

@trbl13 wrote:

With the USPS changes...First Class Mail remains the same......The new Ground Advantage Mail replaces Parcel Select Ground...but you can still ship First Class..the same as you always have....

---

You need to read the announcements, or any of the threads about the coming changes. Ground Advantage is replacing Parcel Select Ground, Retail Ground, AND First Class package.  Those 3 services will all be merged into the name Ground Advantage. Here's a link to the rates which will go into effect on Sunday, where you can see the name changes for yourself:

https://pe.usps.com/resources/PriceChange/July%202023%20Price%20Change%2020230627%20-%20Notice123%20...

[a_c_green]

---

@nobody*s_perfect wrote:

---

@trbl13 wrote:

With the USPS changes...First Class Mail remains the same......The new Ground Advantage Mail replaces Parcel Select Ground...but you can still ship First Class.. the same as you always have....

---

You need to read the announcements, or any of the threads about the coming changes. Ground Advantage is replacing Parcel Select Ground, Retail Ground, AND First Class package.  Those 3 services will all be merged into the name Ground Advantage.

---

Where I think there will be some confusion in the coming weeks is that First Class Mail does indeed remain, but First Class Package is being replaced by the Ground Advantage group. So I would say that you're both right, but you're talking about two different things. 😁

[luckythewinner]

What do you all think ?

I think you should be counting on your own packing to be sufficient to protect your items.

If you do not trust your packing, IMHO you are not packing your items well enough.

I also count on it going air with other light weight items to protect it

If you think the USPS does not ship First Class and Priority together, you are dreaming.

[mn467462]

You have to ask yourself, are delicate items even worth the headache? If you're shipping them first class, then hell no. Delicate items should be shipped with some kind of insurance policy. 

Idk anything about this ground advantage. Sounds horrible tbh. Because the only good thing the post office has done in the last 20 years was make all stamps forever stamps.

[trici_2892]

I just asked my local PO clerk if Priority Mail covered broken fragile items during shipping through eBay. He said no 😔

[trici_2892]

I pack my fragile items with double or triple bubble wrap, newspaper, thick packing cushions and I still have things breaking. I've resorted to only offering priority mail even though they don't guarantee that either according to my ocal PO clerk. I don't know what other option there are other than insurance which is too expensive for what I'm selling so I have to refund the buyer which doesn't recoup my original costs.

[mr_lincoln]

Hi @boscobosco22 

What percentage of your shipments wind up with damage? 

I sold some built model planes for a family member a few years back and what worked for those is some of the poly foam pillow material I got at Walmart.  I would cut pieces of it with scissors and build the packing around the model ... the models were light weight and while I only charged First Class for weight I paid for Priority mail for insurance (we're talking around $40 to $ 60 a model).  I could not bubble wrap the models but the pillow stuffing worked perfectly.  

[lamber9347]

I sell small delicate items all the time, only ship FC (now ground advantage) and never have any breakage. I'm talking delicate items which can break while holding them if you have lumberjack hands and aren't careful. If I were to switch to priority I would have to lower my prices, which wouldn't be worth the sale to me. 

I think the secret is simply packaging correctly and always using a shipping box. I have purchased items from others which have arrived broken because they used either a Tyvek envelope or a box that wasn't a shipping box, just a regular container for vitamins or something similar. If you are shipping an item then you need a shipping box. Best of luck to you....