eBay

1avid_collector · ‎12-02-2017

Mind you, the following may be tongue-in-cheek, but it may also be scary-close to the truth:

USPS tracking runs on a 1960's mainframe computer.
The tracking software is on a set of punch cards.
The tracking-system supervisor, an avid poker player, insists the cards be shuffled frequently.
The shuffling ensures that every postal customer gets their fair share of nonsensical tracking info.
The supervisor's boss is out to lunch permanently, and is therefore unavailable for comment.

Example:

A few days ago I sent a package via USPS Priority Mail International to a buyer in Berlin, Germany.
The buyer's address was correctly entered on the shipping label.
The postal zip code in Berlin just happens to be the same as it is for Utica, NY -- 13505.
When I checked the tracking this morning, it said the package was in transit to Utica, NY.
QED

beautybylynn · ‎12-02-2017

I have been using usps for over 20 years, sent thousands of packages and can count on one hand the problems I had. Most were around the holday and due to the massive increasein volume. However I did notice , that when I send a package from Maryland to Cali. (Coast to coast) it takes about 2 days. If Iorder a package from Cali It takes 5 to 7 days Our postal system Rocks!!!

1avid_collector · ‎12-02-2017

You are one of the lucky ones. I've used USPS for packages for about 3 years, and have shipped fewer than 100 in that time. While the packages do eventually get to their destination, my experience with their tracking is pathetic at best. Often there are no checkpoint-to-checkpoint updates along the way as there should be, and often the updates are nonsensical. I need more than both hands to count the number of times the tracking has been woefully deficient.

This is why I switched to FedEx for all of my domestic shipments -- their tracking has IME always been point-to-point, timely, and accurate. FedEx Ground or Home Delivery rates are nearly the same as USPS Priority Mail and deliveries have always been at least as prompt as USPS Priority Mail. I only use USPS now for international shipments, and only because their rates are FAR less than FedEx. I just wish USPS tracking were as good as FedEx tracking.

I was mostly hoping to get a good chuckle from those who have had similar bad luck with USPS tracking. Happy campers need not reply...

duchess-at-speakeasy · ‎12-02-2017

Yes, the 5-digit Germany postal codes are a problem. To help prevent the mis-routing, always print the country name in ALL CAPS as the last line of an address. Also place the postal code before the city name, on the line above.

In September, I mailed a First Class package to Germany and happened to use an online prepaid label because I was on a temp assignment with easy access to a computer and printer. I noticed that the buyer had supplied her address exactly that way -- with the postal code as far removed as possible from the last line.

The package was delivered within 9 days, with no detours!

~~C~~

My Glass Duchess
Quoting Mom: In polite society, "hey" is for horses.

chipper01work · ‎12-02-2017

@1avid_collector wrote:
You are one of the lucky ones. I've used USPS for packages for about 3 years, and have shipped fewer than 100 in that time. While the packages do eventually get to their destination, my experience with their tracking is pathetic at best. Often there are no checkpoint-to-checkpoint updates along the way as there should be, and often the updates are nonsensical. I need more than both hands to count the number of times the tracking has been woefully deficient.

This is why I switched to FedEx for all of my domestic shipments -- their tracking has IME always been point-to-point, timely, and accurate. FedEx Ground or Home Delivery rates are nearly the same as USPS Priority Mail and deliveries have always been at least as prompt as USPS Priority Mail. I only use USPS now for international shipments, and only because their rates are FAR less than FedEx. I just wish USPS tracking were as good as FedEx tracking.

I was mostly hoping to get a good chuckle from those who have had similar bad luck with USPS tracking. Happy campers need not reply...

I have no need to know where my packages are every instant of every day. As long as there are enough scans to cover my butt I could care less. I have far more important things to do other than hit the refresh screen on my laptop and get angry because tracking did not update fast enough to satisfy my wants.

1avid_collector · ‎12-03-2017

The address label was formatted exactly as you suggested, so the tracking error was caused by USPS and their often sketchy tracking system. Later updates showed the package is in fact on its way to the correct destination.

1avid_collector · ‎12-03-2017

No one mentioned a "need to know where my packages are every instant of every day."

No one mentioned hitting the refresh screen and getting angry "because tracking did not update fast enough to satisfy my wants."

When shipping items -- especially expensive items -- I follow the tracking so that I can intervene if the tracking indicates that a package is being misrouted. I do this because I care about my customers and want them to receive their purchases in a timely manner, not to "cover my butt". Got a problem with this?

chipper01work · ‎12-04-2017

@1avid_collector wrote:
No one mentioned a "need to know where my packages are every instant of every day."

No one mentioned hitting the refresh screen and getting angry "because tracking did not update fast enough to satisfy my wants."

When shipping items -- especially expensive items -- I follow the tracking so that I can intervene if the tracking indicates that a package is being misrouted. I do this because I care about my customers and want them to receive their purchases in a timely manner, not to "cover my butt". Got a problem with this?

You do what you want and I'll do what I want. Got a problem with that? I think you are making a mountain out of a molehill.

chipper01work · ‎12-04-2017

@1avid_collector wrote:
No one mentioned a "need to know where my packages are every instant of every day."

No one mentioned hitting the refresh screen and getting angry "because tracking did not update fast enough to satisfy my wants."

When shipping items -- especially expensive items -- I follow the tracking so that I can intervene if the tracking indicates that a package is being misrouted. I do this because I care about my customers and want them to receive their purchases in a timely manner, not to "cover my butt". Got a problem with this?

Your post is not about your service. It is about bashing the USPS- by far the greatest shipping asset available to sellers. They offer unmatched value and convenience. Post stuff like that and expect pushback.

1avid_collector · ‎12-05-2017

Trying for the Troll of The Year award?

chipper01work · ‎12-05-2017

@1avid_collector wrote:
Trying for the Troll of The Year award?

Nah, you got that wrapped up.

1avid_collector · ‎12-05-2017

Sad that you have nothing better to do but post straw-man comments such as:

"I have no need to know where my packages are every instant of every day."

and:

"I have far more important things to do other than hit the refresh screen on my laptop and get angry because tracking did not update fast enough to satisfy my wants."

Since you fail to comprehend that I never claimed that I needed "to know where my packages are every instant of every day." or that I "hit the refresh screen on my laptop and get angry because tracking did not update fast enough to satisfy my wants" you also fail to comprehend that your comments are completely irrelevant.

There are plenty of complaints online about USPS tracking. It's one of the reasons USPS has such poor ratings on websites that rate business enterprises. I don't know about you, but when I pay for a service I expect the service to be performed competently. It's not exactly rocket science to scan a barcode, upload the information encoded therein to the tracking server, and then provide timely updates with correct information.

If members of the public like you accept sloppy service, then that's what will continue to be provided. It's odd that you have better things to do than checking the tracking on your shipments, but have all the time in the world to waste trolling this forum. Find another thread to troll -- your comments are becoming more and more irrelevant.

chipper01work · ‎12-05-2017

Dude, you're the one who trolled the boards with a rant about the usps and labeled it about your cs skills. This thread has what, fourteen replies in three days and 12 of them are yours and mine. If you want to see irrelevance look at your thread. I' m done, so it's just you now.

1avid_collector · ‎12-05-2017

My post was hardly a "rant". Apparently you think of any complaint posted about anything is a "rant". It was a bit sarcastic to be sure, but it was also intended to be a bit humorous. Sloppy USPS tracking is both a fact and an all-too-frequent nuisance to sellers and buyers alike.

Of the last 3 USPS PMI shipments I've made recently, 2 of them had examples of sloppy tracking. One of them had an acceptance scan, followed by 3 days in a row with only "In transit to destination" with the same exact time stamp and with no location stamp. Then no updates for 2 full weeks. Finally, an update when the package arrived in the destination country. Scans and updates were missing for:

A) The USPS sorting facility,

B) US Customs for outbound shipments, and

C) The departure airport.

In the past 3 years I've had many similar (and some much worse) experiences with USPS tracking. That's not what I call "tracking", and is just not acceptable to me, although it may be to you and others who are content with sloppiness.

There is nothing irrelevant about my thread except your straw-man replies. What's irrelevant are people who post straw-man comments in their replies in order to justify sloppy, "could care less" service.

1avid_collector · ‎12-05-2017

One more thing:

"...you're the one who trolled the boards...and labeled it about your cs skills."

I did no such thing, Mr. Straw Man. I didn't "label" anything, nor was my opening post about my "cs" skills.

My "cs" statement was a reply to your obvious insults against sellers who actually do check package-tracking information for the very same reasons that I do. Clearly you "could care less" (BTW, "couldn't care less" is the correct phrase) about this level of "cs" and you've made that abundantly obvious.