Postal Letter

USPS didn't deliver my package! What are my options?

Hi folks! So today is two months since I sent a package, a B-day gift for my mom, to one of the Central Asian countries from the US using USPS "services". The package was never delivered and USPS seems to take zero responsibility for this. After the first month I started calling the 800 number trying to figure out where the package was. I found out that the package was sent with the First Class International, aka “forget about it”, mail which offers no tracking, and more importantly no scanning which means no one can even tell you if it was shipped out of the US. For hours I was hanging on the phone filing all sorts of claims, inquiries, and even complaints with USPS. No response. Only once I got a call back from some lady at some USPS warehouse who was mad at me for some reason, said that she had no idea where my package was, and hang up on me. Then I was actually visiting various USPS offices where instead of helping people were accusing me of sending my package with the cheapest mailing service and not insuring it. When the same conversation happened at my state’s USPS HQ I lost it and almost yelled out that I had no idea about the differences, I just brought the package to the postal office, said where I wanted it, paid what I was asked, and left. No one offered me other types of mailing and/or insurance at first place. Guess what happened, they said I could “go and talk to people in DC”, and you know what, I did. I flew to DC last week to just talk to USPS HQ people. A lady I spoke to carefully wrote down my story, took all the confirmation numbers I had, and at the end said she was sorry but couldn’t do anything since I mailed it with the “First Class International”. Urgh!!! The bottom line is, I paid money for services that were never performed, I lost my package, spent even more money trying to investigate, and no one at USPS is willing to help or somehow return my money. If you had same experience or know what to do, please advise! I was thinking to talk to an attorney, but I guess it costs money which I don’t really have, and am not sure if there’s a basis for litigation. Thanks for reading, feels a bit easier now that I’ve talked it out to someone…

Public Comments

1. Yeah, sorry, but honestly, just let it go. Learn. DON'T use USPS for parcels, either domestic or international. USPS is running under a deficit, which means that they are laying people off to save money, etc. They are a rather desperate and under-staffed organization right now.
2. How do you know that USPS lost it? Once it gets to the destination country, it's handed over to THAT country's postal service. Could have gone missing there. As far as the shipping method having no tracking, etc., YOU'RE the one who chose the shipping mode - by your own statement.
3. So, this isn't really a question, but a way for you to vent? Sorry, but this isn't the place for it. How about you taking some responsibility for this? Everyone knows by now that items CAN be tracked, but that tracking is NOT done unless you pay for it. What the tracking would have done for you was show you the trail of the item up until the time and place it left the US. After that point, USPS has ZERO responsibility for it. USPS delivers within US territories only. It does not deliver in China or Russia or Timbuktu or anywhere else outside of its jurisdiction, and nears no responsibility for the actions (or lack of them) of any foreign postal service. Things 'magically disappearing' in overseas post is legendary. Using Registered or International EMS offer some additional degree of security and both are trackable, but even those are not free from foreign 'mishandling' (translated, theft), which is why insurance is wise. 1st class international or Priority International carry no such safety nets unless you buy insurance. To Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and Japan, there's hardly ever a problem. But to the former Soviet Bloc countries, even places like Greece and Italy, most definitely Africa and most of the rest of Asia, you are taking your chances. The world ain't a nice, safe place everywhere you go or do business, and precautions are to be taken. Could someone at the PO suggested you take extra steps? Sure, and if I was the boss, I'd be angry that they didn't, because the clerks are SUPPOSED to 'upsell' services. But sometimes it's busy and they have to get customers in and out and they just give the customer what the customer says they want. You share some responsibility for making sure you ARE getting exactly what you want. If you bought a car and then got in an accident because you skidded and then found out the car didn't have anti-lock brakes, when you thought ALL cars had them, would you blame the salesman for not telling you the car didn't have them, or for not asking you if you wanted a car that had them? Or would it be your fault for not asking? You just said, 'I want to buy a car.' You just said, 'I want to mail a package to here.'