Sigh... not again...

On occasion i have made mistake selecting USPS instead of UPS when ordering things in haste. I think it happened 2-3 times in the last five years, and of course again this Saturday. Note to self, do not order things when tired and sleepy. Now i have to wait for slow truck crossing USA, no ETA etc. Notifications only say "it is on target to destination....". Destination eh? Very precise... What genius programmed that tracking software? Would it be possible to name the state or city perhaps?

 

Sigh... not again...

On occasion i have made mistake selecting USPS instead of UPS when ordering things in haste. I think it happened 2-3 times in the last five years, and of course again this Saturday. Note to self, do not order things when tired and sleepy. Now i have to wait for slow truck crossing USA, no ETA etc. Notifications only say "it is on target to destination....". Destination eh? Very precise... What genius programmed that tracking software? Would it be possible to name the state or city perhaps?

I go out of my way to avoid shipping anything USPS. I've probably had a dozen shipments (some in either direction) simply disappear and several others have gotten severely damaged. I've never had anything disappear using FedEx or UPS and have only had a couple that have been damaged.

When I have had to ship by USPS (back when that was the only way to send something to a P.O. Box), it was almost always the case that the tracking information wouldn't even be in their system until after the package had finally arrived at the destination. Yet when I would ship something by FedEx, the tracking information would be in the system by the time I got back to the office, which was only a ten minute drive away. Amazing the difference it makes when profit is the motivation and it tied to customer satisfaction.

 

As you are also a Canadian, if ordering items via UPS, FedEx etc from the USA, You should explore whether there is a CBSA office near you where you can clear your own customs, otherwise you may be dinged, big time.
I was registered with UPS as Clear-Own Customs, if inadvertently a shipment came and the driver wanted to collect the clearance charge, I would tell them to return it to the warehouse and I would clear it.
There is the B3 form on the CBSA site if needed.
Max.

 

The worst of all worlds are the "Smartpost" and other euphemisms that combine UPS or FedEx with USPS for local delivery. For me, depending on the reliable carrier, the package comes close to Cleveland, then goes to a USPS center, e.g., Detroit, and comes back to Cleveland via USPS. Tracking on the common carrier is fine, but tracking on USPS generally says, "Awaiting package from partner" until the day of delivery. Usually adds at least 2 days.

 

USPS isn't as bad, for inside the USA as you guys make it out to be. I get stuff from California to Ohio in 3 days by USPS. Panic mode, you should try getting thing to the US from Canada! The last thing I bought from there sat in a holding warehouse for 10 days before even crossing the border.

 

USPS isn't as bad, for inside the USA as you guys make it out to be. I get stuff from California to Ohio in 3 days by USPS. Panic mode, you should try getting thing to the US from Canada! The last thing I bought from there sat in a holding warehouse for 10 days before even crossing the border.

Actually, I agree on First Class, domestic. The delays are when there is a transfer (UPS or FedEx) or internationally when customs can take more than a week (USPS articles clear Customs one by one, other carriers clear by the container). USPS does seem to screw up a bit more, and its tracking is feeble compared to the others, particularly when there are exceptions. California to Cleveland seems to work well, as you note.

 

John, I agree with your "shipping" partner thing too. Don't know how many times I've had stuff sitting in Stow after being shipped by an unknown "partner", and because they were doing the distance but not the local, USPS still tracks it saying where it is.

 

The only advantage I see is when I buy US and it is shipped USPS/CanPost. Is now due to the high volume of items handled by CanPost (China for e.g.), there is no import charges tax etc collected, as there was some years ago.
For electronic items I tend to use Digikey (US) , they ship FedEx next day air for $8.00, no import charges.
Max.

 

The only advantage I see is when I buy US and it is shipped USPS/CanPost. Is now due to the high volume of items handled by CanPost (China for e.g.), there is no import charges tax etc collected, as there was some years ago.
For electronic items I tend to use Digikey (US) , they ship FedEx next day air for $8.00, no import charges.
Max.

Except to the USA, last time I checked. Bummer.

 

i also always use FedEx, DHL or UPS. but occasional mistake does happen. just did big order from DigiKey. normally i would recreive next day but it was delayed by customs so didn't catch the delivery truck. called them and was able to pickup. this one was not so time sensitive but now... it most likely will be.

 

I love USPS priority mail. 2 day shipping from Virginia to California for $8 (flat padded envelope) or $18 for large stuff. Covers most everything I work on. Never lost or miss delivered any of my packages. I ship to Canada once in awhile, seems quick enough to me. 5-7days maybe?

UPS is slow as molasses unless paying big $$.

Fedex drivers around my neighborhood have been reported as stealing packages or delivering them to unknown locations.

 

I love USPS priority mail. 2 day shipping from Virginia to California for $8 (flat padded envelope) or $18 for large stuff. Covers most everything I work on. Never lost or miss delivered any of my packages. I ship to Canada once in awhile, seems quick enough to me. 5-7days maybe?

UPS is slow as molasses unless paying big $$.

Fedex drivers around my neighborhood have been reported as stealing packages or delivering them to unknown locations.

USPS actually does a pretty good job these days. I use their fixed rate Priority Mail stuff a lot. FedEx and UPS have dropped tremendously from what they were. FedEx used to be the absolute gold standard but not so much now. Our FedEx guys have been known to alley-oop packages from their trucks onto porches, sometimes from impressive distances. As for UPS, I quit using them after EVERY ONE of my packages from Mouser / Digikey were stomped on. I never could get a long box of ICs in tubes that wasn't broken in the middle. I used to have a box at our local UPS store and would duly file claims but the process isn't worth it. Inside the loop in Houston, Amazon has a gig economy deal where if you have a few minutes on the way home from work, you can pick up packages and deliver them to earn a few bucks. I've had packages dropped off by Uber guys and Amazon shipments delivered to the USPS mailbox. It's a last-mile free-for-all. Amazingly, the shippers like Amazon seem to have all of the lost/damaged stuff figured into the process. I just call and they send another por nada.

The delivery process here is very online and cloud based. Drivers deliver to GPS coordinates instead of addresses. We get packages for the next door complex continually. Despite the fact that the street number is different and the unit numbers here are letters and they're numbers there, we get packages addressed to there delivered to our little group of townhouses here. I finally flagged down a driver after another wrong delivery and he showed my his smartphone with the app showing 'here' and that's where he left the box. Turns out the GPS coordinates are wrong but that doesn't matter - flashing pin, drop the box - done.

/rant
BTW: For all USPS mail, you can sign up for 'Informed Delivery'. It's no charge and you get an email daily with images of the first class mail you should be receiving to your box. Invaluable.

 

'Informed Delivery' sounds interesting but it is for USA only.

 

And here is another victim, this time Canada Post. For this i had no option choose different shipping method.

you want something done slowly and inefficiently, just leave it to the government.

 

Sounds like something our Veterans Administration would pull. There was (and to some degree still is) a big scandal over the huge wait times that veterans have to get seen by a care provider. So a number of regional centers simply cooked the books. Must be the same software that CanPost uses. Even though you scheduled your appointment weeks or months ago and are still waiting, it always shows that your expected appointment date is only a few days after the initial scheduling date and that is what they pull for their reports to show how quick and responsive the service is.

 

On the bright side, you don't have to pay fees.

Kind regards, Samuel Lourenço

 

I live in an apartment building, with no common area. USPS is the only service with access to the building. I’ve had FedEx and UPS deliveries disappear or sent to a holding facility to which I have to drive some distance.

UPS does have a service they call access point. I have all UPS shipments delivered there. I have to drive 15 minutes round trip, but I know my order is safe.

FedEx is the worst. They try to deliver three times (you’d think they’d know on the first delivery) adding 3 days onto the delivery time. Then, I have a 90 minute round trip to a FedEx warehouse out in the boonies.

 

FedEx is the worst. They try to deliver three times (you’d think they’d know on the first delivery) adding 3 days onto the delivery time. Then, I have a 90 minute round trip to a FedEx warehouse out in the boonies.

That was my problem with them before GPS, they have improved. Everybody was on a first name basis with Danny the UPS guy until he retired and then UPS went downhill. And USPS, if they use my physical address, won't deliver it because we have a PO Box from when we lived in town and they would only deliver to the station box. Such is rural life...

 

UPS does have a service they call access point. I have all UPS shipments delivered there. I have to drive 15 minutes round trip, but I know my order is safe.

Your local access point must be better than the one here. Even the UPS drivers can't open the boxes to put in the package. They enter the access message into the system before actually doing it and then when I go there nothing is available so then need to go to the depot the following day.

 

It’s not like the Amazon lockers, which is what I think you’re describing. The UPS access point is a UPS Store, a full retail location, which holds your packages for you.