A USPS Lost Package Story... With a Happy Ending

[HerbK]

A neat little story that I thought I'd share... Several months ago, I bid on a card on eBay (1915 Cracker Jack - Blair PSA 8). Unbeknownst to me, the seller was a Net54 board member, who I've dealt with before on the board (I wasn't aware of his eBay username). The seller was Andres "Andy" Montero - a super guy who is as reliable as they come.

Andy shipped the card USPS Priority but after checking the tracking, the package seemed to have stalled at the PO just after it's acceptance. Needless to say after waiting several weeks, the card never arrived. Andy was fantastic - he called or emailed almost daily advising his progress with the PO (or lack thereof), but keeping in contact as a responsible seller. He refunded my purchase price and subsequently received reimbursement from the USPS through his insurance claim. And as a diehard collector, I was upset that a 100 year old card that survived a century could be lost...

Case closed ... or so I thought.

A few days ago, I get an email from Andy who said he was contacted via eBay message, by an auction participant from Atlanta GA who frequently buys lots from the USPS Lost Mail Recovery Center (in Atlanta). This gentleman, had the savvy business sense to search eBay in an attempt to locate the seller and to no doubt to check on the card's value. Andy, put me in contact with the new owner of the card and we were able to strike up a deal for the card. I'm happy to report that after a couple of months of traveling around the country, Mr. Blair finally made it to my collection...

I'm astonished that the USPS wouldn’t have someone within their staff to seek out and investigate valuable items rather than accept pennies on the dollar. Recovered items are auctioned off by the skid...

In any event, if you’ve ever lost a package in the mail..... there is hope.

Herb.