The U.S. Postal Service....

[NH Shooter]

….is once again demonstrating how badly it sucks.

The latest fumble is with a Malkoff Bodyguard head I ordered on Tuesday, 6/26. As always, the Malkoffs got it out the door immediately via Priority Mail. It was slated to be delivered by end of day Friday (yesterday).

USPS got it from their AL distribution center to the one here in NH (which is just 12 miles away from where we live) in 32 hours. But since arriving there on Thursday the package remains "in transit to the destination" which as of this morning has been delivered to the wrong post office. God only knows where they'll send it next....

I wish this was a rare occurrence but unfortunately when it comes to USPS, incompetence is no surprise. I guess I should be happy to see it before the 4th of July holiday.

[Rich@CCC]

I feel for ya' Shooter.

In the interest of full disclosure, I worked as a systems/electronics technician for the USPS for 12 years. I left due to the fact that I was losing my ability to not choke the life out every manager on the floor for their sheer stupidity and general malignancy.

I do have to say that in my experience, the USPS does a pretty damn good job in spite of being hog tied and sabotaged by vindictive management and Congress.

I ship many hundreds of packages annually via USPS Priority Mail and First Class Parcel. I have had very few problems with delivery or damage. I can't think of more than five instances with any problem over the last 12 years of running my business.

They're not perfect by any means. I do see strange tracking routes from time to time and The one time a customer paid for second day express, it took 5 days and the customer had to go to the post office to pick it up. The postage was refunded.

Now UPS and FEDEX are another story altogether. But that would take it's own thread.

[NH Shooter]

With USPS, delivery is like a box of chocolates.

Latest tracking update shows package is now at the correct post office. There is hope....

[hufnagel]

I'm having last-mile problems locally, and a postmaster general that doesn't give a damn about how shit his pickup/delivery employees have been doing lately. I've taken to personally dropping off all my out-bound packages to the depot in the next town; ironically they're closer to me than my town's.

[blues]

In fairness, I have to say that the vast majority of my deliveries are accomplished without incident or drama. Sometimes quicker than I might have expected.

Occasionally one goes off the rails like the OP has stated. Most recently some diamond lapping paste that was accepted in upstate NY (from a Canadian vendor) and ended up down in AL or MS before being turned around and being sent back north to my location.

That said, I've had very few instances, and none that come immediately to mind at the moment, where I never received the item.

Now, their tracking website...that there is an abomination and needs to be updated and upgraded, imho.

I suppose around these parts my biggest complaint with USPS is that sometimes they don't take enough care to get the right mail in the right mailbox. Might be more or less prevalent in my rural area...don't know. The carriers themselves are good folks.

[Hambo]

I got a package this week via Fedex Smartpost that actually came a day early, but I've also had stuff move from zip code to zip code within the Opa-Locka sort facility.

All things considered it's better than the days of mailing a check and waiting four weeks to get your stuff.

[NH Shooter]

Update

Out for Delivery - highly likely it shows up today and their fumble is only going to cost me a day. I'll take it.

[Trooper224]

I have the biggest issues with packages coming from the northeastern seaboard. I watch the tracking and if it gets routed through Chicago or Detroit, God only knows where it's going after that, or it may set there for a couple of days.

[txdpd]

USPS is pretty shitty. We constantly get the intended recipients of packages that want to report stolen packages so that they can get USPS to settle insurance claims. USPS refuses to process a claim without a police report from the recipient, even though the insurance is contract between the shipper and USPS. If the police do make a report USPS will use that report as proof of fulfillment of their contract and deny the claim.

The recipient of a package can't report a package as lost or stolen to the police unless they can show that they were in care, custody or control of the package.

[BJJ]

I dated a gal from Peru. She told me if you mailed something there, it was a 50/50 chance of whether or not it would ever get delivered. Hearing that made me appreciate the USPS a little more.