Frustrated with USPS tracking?

[BCauley]

My mother had mailed two boxes of Christmas gifts for our son, daughter, and dog on December 7th in CT. One of the two boxes arrived here in VA in Jan 4th.

My mother is not too savvy with stuff online so I had her forward me the shipping info/tracking number and submitted one of those package inquiry things this past Sunday and the 2nd box just arrived about a half hour ago.

Not sure if it was the inquiry that kickstarted it but I like to believe so.

[ruth-gehrig]

Jan 12-14 an Ebay package of mine bounces around Lehigh Valley, PA being "processed through facility" 4 different times. 9 hrs after last scan in PA it arrives in San Diegeo CA! I live in Oklahoma

[carlsonjok]

Is it just me, or does it seem like a lot of the disappearing packages originate in or near, New York/New Jersey?

I had two packages get picked up on January 4, one in Maryland and one in Long Island. The package from MD was delivered on the 7th. The package from New York hit the Garden City Distribution Center the same day and has disappeared. I get that it is a densely populated area and NYC is the financial capital of the world, but I've seen issues dating back years, especially with the facility in Kearny, NJ.

[jayshum]

Some excerpts from an article today on philly.com about delays in the Philadelphia area:

"Are you still waiting for packages from early December to arrive? You’re not alone, but be patient, postal workers warn, because it might be a while. In U.S. Postal Service facilities in Pennsylvania and across the country, hundreds of thousands of items sent in late November and early December are sitting at the bottom of massive piles of delayed mail that continue to grow with new packages daily. Employees inside the Philadelphia Processing and Delivery Center said they are prioritizing the packages coming in now, and doing their best to scrounge up items under the mass when time allows. But as the agency continues to experience record package volumes amid the pandemic, the pile keeps growing. “Honestly, it’s going to be at least six to eight weeks” until the backlog is cleared, said Laurence Love, a clerk craft director at the Philadelphia facility on Lindbergh Boulevard."

"More than 90% of packages were delivered on time in the Philadelphia metro area through November, according to ShipMatrix data. Then, Jindel said, it dropped dramatically in early December. By Christmas week, on-time delivery was below 50%. Jindel couldn’t give precise data to compare Philadelphia to other cities. “There were some days when the Post Office got 40 million packages, unlike any other business,” Jindel said. Now, as more packages continue to be sent, tracking shows “it’s last in, first out,” he said. For many people, the USPS tracking hasn’t shown an update on their item for weeks, creating an agonizing wait for not only presents, but also essential items like bills, medication, and important records."

"The unprecedented package volumes were coupled with poor preparation and a severe employee shortage due to rising COVID-19 cases, as nearly 19,000 workers were in quarantine at the end of 2020 after being infected or exposed to the virus, according to the American Postal Workers Union. The result was a backlog that veteran postal workers said was unlike anything they’ve ever seen. Facilities across the region were so full that trailers filled with mail were sitting in parking lots, and a miles-long caravan of trucks waited for hours outside the Southwest Philadelphia site because there was no room to unload parcels. Using USPS tracking, people watched their items arrive in Philadelphia, then never leave."

[YazFenway08]

Thanks for that blurb on philly/Pennsylvania...I had not seem something that specific about the backlog. But now it makes sense. I have had a parcel stuck in the Warrendale PA facility since dec29 with zero movement.

[Orioles1954]

Three parcels in Oxford, MS with no movement since 12/16. Will send refunds on Monday totaling around $125. Won’t kill me but still sucks.

[Fballguy]

I've had two packages missing since November. One coming to me and one I sent. Finally after nearly two months of patience, the buyer of the second packaged asked for a refund. Totally understandable, but when I went to issue the refund within ebay I kept receiving an error message directing me to PayPal. I thought this was because too much time had elapsed (about 57 days at this point). PayPal did allow me to refund, but there was no mention of the final value fee refund, so I called ebay to see how that would work.

Long story short, I knew more about the refund process than the person in Manila I spoke with. He kept repeating my situation back to me incorrectly and putting me on hold to either ask someone or find an appropriate answer in his script. He eventually came back and told me he was going to close the case against me (with no refund given at this point) and in 48 hours I would be able to refund the money within eBay. Ummmmm...ok. I hung up with zero confidence this was going to work and it didn't but the case was indeed closed now. I ended up issuing the refund from PayPal, but still no final value fee credit on my account.

And while on the subject of customer service, though the service ebay provided was woefully lacking, they are light years more helpful than those at the USPS. This is how opening a case with the USPS works. You open the case and request a call back. A rep from the DESTINATION post office calls you and says "We have no idea where your package is. Per tracking it never made it to us". Click.

Wow...Thanks I never thought to check the tracking. So amazing. And some want to raise the minimum wage?

[obiwan1129]

I had a pocket schedule I ordered get lost. The seller was very gracious and refunded me. I felt bad as it was an old schedule, it ain't coming back.

I've been selling some comics to fund my baseball card buying. Those have been going out Priority Mail which seems to be more reliable. The cost is significantly more...but now I am worried about some of the cards I've bought that haven't come in yet. I was hoping things would settle down a bit this month post Christmas...but that doesn't seem to be the case.

[jchcollins]

What's concerning to me is that things have gotten somewhat better since the Christmas rush, but there are clearly still problems. We are closing in on February. Where does it end?

[LJACards]

Sold a card on ebay that took 28 days to go from missouri to ohio

i bought an item from indiana and the seller shipped with 2-day priority shipping. The item took almost 3 weeks to get to me after being stuck indianapolis for 15 days. The seller put an intercept on the item because it seemed to be lost and they refunded me. a week later it randomly it shows up at my door..so i had to refund the refund.

USPS is a complete joke and needs major rehaul. I am sure there are other companies who would love a shot at delivering on time.

[mikemb]

Sorry to bring this topic up again.

Just about all the items I have ordered or sold have been delivered timely. I think the post office is doing a great job.

But I recently ordered a book of stamps on March 16 (coming to New Jersey).
Here is the tracking (read from the botttom up)

Tracking History

March 24, 2021, 8:52 pm
Departed USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER
Your item departed our KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER origin facility on March 24, 2021 at 8:52 pm. The item is currently in transit to the destination.

March 24, 2021, 7:14 am
Arrived at USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 23, 2021
In Transit to Next Facility

March 20, 2021, 9:55 pm
Arrived at USPS Regional Destination Facility
KEARNY NJ DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 18, 2021, 11:53 pm
Arrived at USPS Regional Destination Facility
JERSEY CITY NJ NETWORK DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 18, 2021, 9:12 am
Arrived at USPS Regional Destination Facility
KEARNY NJ DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 7:52 pm
Departed USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 3:44 pm
Arrived at USPS Regional Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 3:14 pm
Departed USPS Regional Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 12:17 pm
Arrived at USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 11:02 am
Accepted at USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

Mike

[sportsnut25]

Originally Posted by mikemb

Sorry to bring this topic up again.

Just about all the items I have ordered or sold have been delivered timely. I think the post office is doing a great job.

But I recently ordered a book of stamps on March 16 (coming to New Jersey).
Here is the tracking (read from the botttom up)

Tracking History

March 24, 2021, 8:52 pm
Departed USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER
Your item departed our KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER origin facility on March 24, 2021 at 8:52 pm. The item is currently in transit to the destination.

March 24, 2021, 7:14 am
Arrived at USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 23, 2021
In Transit to Next Facility

March 20, 2021, 9:55 pm
Arrived at USPS Regional Destination Facility
KEARNY NJ DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 18, 2021, 11:53 pm
Arrived at USPS Regional Destination Facility
JERSEY CITY NJ NETWORK DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 18, 2021, 9:12 am
Arrived at USPS Regional Destination Facility
KEARNY NJ DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 7:52 pm
Departed USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 3:44 pm
Arrived at USPS Regional Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 3:14 pm
Departed USPS Regional Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 12:17 pm
Arrived at USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

March 16, 2021, 11:02 am
Accepted at USPS Regional Origin Facility
KANSAS CITY MO DISTRIBUTION CENTER

Mike

That's both sad and hysterical at the same time!