Just about every one of those forms specifies block printing, because it’s intended to be machine-readable. If it’s not, then it gets kicked out to be processed by a human or even misprocessed and sent to the wrong place, thus delaying your mail.
You have a definite point but you are also falling into the trap of blaming USPS employees for things that are not in their control.
Well, this gives me hope they won’t all be replaced in the future.
I think asking what’s going on with the mail carrier to make him handle this this way is reasonable but also writing it off as a bad day and not to judge is absurd. If you don’t wanna just hate the guy because he sucks personally, you can look up stream and think about how the pressures on the mail system as they currently stand could disincentivize taking better care of packages.
I sometimes wonder if the mail system is due for an overhaul in light of how much things have changed in the last however many decades. Receiving packages in the mail used to be a rare event, now it’s become pretty routine to the degree that people make a living snatching the packages. There was a time when most people received letters, and then they stopped writing letters and all that came via snail mail was bills. Might be time to really rethink all this with the new assumption that all addresses are gonna receive a lanky teenager’s worth of weight in boxes every year.
I have no idea what would need to be put in place system-wise to make things more functional for frequent package delivery, but I imagine a lot of people in the actual day to day work of doing it could imagine something.
I feel like both too much and too little anger can both easily turn into letting things like this go. Too little anger and you’re like “he’s fine, leave him alone” too much and you’re like “he’s horrible, and so are all mail carriers, so it can’t be fixed so I guess we leave him alone and seethe about it”
Exactly! When I see a delivery person at the driveway the first thing I think of is I should help. Oh wait, I’m a boomer. Sorry for not understanding the entitlement.
Did boomers actually run down the street like children chasing an ice cream truck to collect their deliveries? I’m having a hard time imagining that.
I’m thinking eliminate bulk advertising junk mail, but that’s the USPS’s bread and butter, isn’t it?
This is just pre-emtive percussive maintenance, provided at no extra cost for the customer.
That computer will know to behave from the first time it ever boots up.
Actually, very few USPS packages are stolen, largely because they generally DO NOT leave packages sitting out. They use a package box (if you live in an apartment complex that uses them), drop them at a rental/leasing office, or leave a notice of delivery attempt with redelivery/pickup info on your door, if you are not home to sign for the package.
Remember, packages are handled very differently from First Class (standard letter) mail.
Frankly, I’ve had MUCH better luck with USPS when shipping packages. They are also a) usually significantly cheaper, and b) guarantee delivery to any address in the world, no matter where, unlike the private parcel handlers. In fact, this is exactly why FedEx and UPS dropped their bid to take over the duties of the USPS; they couldn’t guarantee deliveries of letters to ANY locale for the cost of a First Class stamp (currently $0.55), that simple.
In fact, after that attempt, FedEx and UPS both use Postal facilities for much of their hub handling. The USPS just plain does it better and cheaper, even as a subcontractor for the private companies!
Good to know! It seemed common enough as a complaint to be a sign of how common it was to receive packages generally, if most of them can get to their proper owner as intended but still frequently hear about.
Like hearing about car crashes - they don’t happen for the vast majority of car trips and may never happen to you at all, but we drive so ridiculously often it still happens a lot.
Was surprised to learn it’s not what brings in most of their revenue, but if the proposed overhaul succeeds the package rates might change:
Actually, if you look up the numbers, complaints re: the USPS are quite low, overall, even considering their volume. At least, that was the case when I last looked it up in 2017; sorry, simply too lazy and THC-addled at the moment to do it again for a proper cite ^^’ .
Since my point was about a difference between now and when package deliveries were seldom for most Americans, 2017 works just as well, but I’d still want to know how it compared to complaints from like, the 90s since the difference is the issue.
Honestly though you should know the only thing standing between me and wanting to see this guy hung by his toes for his crimes is being like “woah, woah, wait, maybe if we asked the mail carriers they’d tell us perverse incentives make them do things in a less than ideal way because they have too much to deliver in not enough time/aren’t getting paid enough/don’t have enough man power to deliver heavy packages/some other problem they’d be able to tell us about that I don’t even know about”
Not trying to excuse this particular carrier at all! Just noting what should be, but isn’t common knowledge.
I didn’t dispute anything else you wrote. But you wrote “taxes” — but this is a common misconception, since USPS doesn’t take anything in taxes.
Did I really need to explain this? Sorry, I thought I was clear. Maybe I was pressed for time or something.
I have to say Canada Post in general works quite well. USPS connecting to Canada also works well. DHL on the other hand seems to hold packages in limbo for several weeks.
You got up their butt about something that had already been pointed out to them and acknowledged. They were understandably a but cranky about it. This is why I tend to check the replies before adding my own.
This is no longer the case. Priority Mail packages are left on doorsteps all the time now. In the past decade the only things I’ve had to sign for are certified mail and international packages.
Well, it is a couple of stamps short.
Ouch; good to know =/ .
Buoyancy in a flood condition.
