Wait, isn't USPS government too?
Not any more. That changed some years ago.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Why dosen't anyone ship USPS?
- Thread starter Craigster
- Start date
Not any more. That changed some years ago.
It's actually a GSE, like Fannie and Freddie. Not distinct nor independent in reality, just on paper. They have a direct draw on the US Treasury, which is why they can lose billions every quarter for years at a time without going under. They also have to ask Congress to make business decisions, like closing post offices and raising rates.
Alkali Ike
Gold Supporting Member
- Jan 1, 2011
- 2,849
- 15,645
- Disclosures
- I never actually learned to play very well
USPS has been mandated by Congress to fully-fund all their future retiree health benefits. That's what causes them to lose money. USPS is actually profitable on its core business delivering stuff.
Invalid Link Removed
Invalid Link Removed
Obviously, we can argue about whether they are profitable or not. The USPS wants to pay for retiree benefits from cash flow, rather than fully pre-fund them. Congress decided since USPS revenue was declining, they would be better off funding them now, rather than later when they didn't have the revenue to do it. Doesn't look like it's going to matter, because the tax payer is covering their losses now, rather than later.
But your point is well made. Congress can dictate business terms directly to the USPS, much like any other government organization. Their independence from the government and taxpayer is in name only.
But your point is well made. Congress can dictate business terms directly to the USPS, much like any other government organization. Their independence from the government and taxpayer is in name only.
I see we divulged on a tangent. The original short-lived conversation involved customs delays and USPS being blamed. USPS can't be blamed because they are not the organization in charge of customs. It would be like as I stated before, blaming the judicial system for something congress did.
The reasons USPS is unprofitable is because 1/2 of the mail that used to run through their machines is long gone due to the internet. You try losing half of your business and see how you fare. Also, it has to do with shifting populations. Before, it was easy to deliver mail in a large city. Now, PO drivers have to drive all over expansive suburbs. Also, population losses in areas don't cause PO's to shrink or shut down as fast as population increases in other areas cause them to open and grow. Also, oil prices. A postal service is one of the few "agencies" that the original Founders demanded.
The reasons USPS is unprofitable is because 1/2 of the mail that used to run through their machines is long gone due to the internet. You try losing half of your business and see how you fare. Also, it has to do with shifting populations. Before, it was easy to deliver mail in a large city. Now, PO drivers have to drive all over expansive suburbs. Also, population losses in areas don't cause PO's to shrink or shut down as fast as population increases in other areas cause them to open and grow. Also, oil prices. A postal service is one of the few "agencies" that the original Founders demanded.
- Jun 25, 2006
- 3,226
- 341
- Disclosures
- Owner, Pike Amplification & 3Leaf Audio
All of those issues were known many years in advance. The reason they're losing money is because of pension obligations.
USPS has been good to me on my multiple international sales. Within the states, it's just far more convenient and informative (via tracking) to ship with UPS or FedEx.
UPS and Fedex won't deliver to my house. USPS doesn't either, but at least I don't have to drive 10+ miles to one of their "service centers" that aren't open when I get there.
At least USPS will put it in one of the big storage lockers there and give me the key in my PO box.
At least USPS will put it in one of the big storage lockers there and give me the key in my PO box.
10's of thousands of people ship UPS every day. Most of the gear I buy comes UPS, all of it has arrived unharmed, same for fedex. I donno how anyone can think one is so much better than the other. You could read horror stories about either one all day for a year and still not get an accurate representation of the quality of either.
I get packages and send via all three. For shipping stuff like amps and basses, I use either UPS or FedEx. Internationally, they're about the only game in town. I work with a buyer if they are outside the US to pick the shipper that works best for them. If I'm sending smallish stuff, especially to Canada, I use USPS.
If I don't have the packing materials, my local UPS Store does a great job (and is a good reason I get a lot of kudos when I ship). I make sure it always gets there in good shape and intact.
Around me, my local USPS delivery can sometimes be pretty bad, but never an issue with my FedEx or UPS deliveries.
If I don't have the packing materials, my local UPS Store does a great job (and is a good reason I get a lot of kudos when I ship). I make sure it always gets there in good shape and intact.
Around me, my local USPS delivery can sometimes be pretty bad, but never an issue with my FedEx or UPS deliveries.
The internet has barely been known for 20 years by most of the population! There are youtube videos of newscasters from the early 90's asking "what is the internet?" That issue came on pretty fast, I'd say. They may have been slow to react - but how do you react to something like a mail volume drop they've had to endure in merely a decade and a half! And knowing it in advance? Not hardly.
As for oil prices - are you saying we know about oil price issues years in advance? C'mon.
Putting all the burden on the pensioners for the issue is silly. It's part of the issue but it's part of any issue with a business who honors their agreements. It's a cost of doing business. But it is merely the tip of the iceberg as to why USPS is struggling.
If you listen to the USPS apologists, the USPS would be turning a profit if it weren't for having to fully fund their pension. The commitments were made years ago, in much better times. Now the piper has to be paid, and they're struggling to figure out how to do it.
Back to the thread topic, the USPS is the best bet I've found for small stuff. Not so much for anything that is valuable.
Back to the thread topic, the USPS is the best bet I've found for small stuff. Not so much for anything that is valuable.
I don`t get all the "FedEx is cheap" comments. I shipped an acoustic guitar & case a few months ago with them. Bought a suitable box and some packing newsprint, plus shipping. Final total : $119. Yes, that`s domestic, and not overnight. Never again. Since then, I sold a bass through USPS. Insured, priority, deliv. confirmation : $24. I had a bass delivered UPS a few weeks ago. Box was fine, but inside, all the molded styrofoam pieces supporting the bass were snow. Bass was okay luckily, but it wasn`t going to take one more toss onto the tarmac 
Wow, that's expensive. I have a fedex account, which is a little cheaper. I've shipped basses across the country in a mattress box for $40 recently. I've NEVER paid $100 to ship anything fedex, and I've shipped stuff of all sizes everywhere in the US. It'd be interesting to run your shipping parameters through the fedex shipping estimator to see what it spits out.
Have you ever tried and actually gotten a claim of insurance coverage from either UPS or Fedex? I've tried several times and they never pay.
I had a cymbal damaged in shipping with USPS and I submitted pics from my Ebay auction and the receiver sent me a picture of the damage. I was paid in full within 1 1/2 weeks from when I first filed the claim.
Oh and if you have an account you get 10% off and free delivery confirmation, just print out the label and drop it off at the local PO. Also most of their services arrive quicker than estimated.
I had a bass make it to Hawaii from the East coast in 2 days when sent Priority. Oh yeah I've also noticed less ape handler damages too.
Dirk
I had a cymbal damaged in shipping with USPS and I submitted pics from my Ebay auction and the receiver sent me a picture of the damage. I was paid in full within 1 1/2 weeks from when I first filed the claim.
Oh and if you have an account you get 10% off and free delivery confirmation, just print out the label and drop it off at the local PO. Also most of their services arrive quicker than estimated.
I had a bass make it to Hawaii from the East coast in 2 days when sent Priority. Oh yeah I've also noticed less ape handler damages too.
Dirk
I've had damage claims (as the seller) with UPS before and no problem. No inspection was done and all was requested were pictures of the damage. I got paid within 2 weeks.
Yep - 2 damage claims with FedEx, submitted the online paperwork and got paid within 10 days with a check.
Even the UPS delivery driver told me they give their customers hell with claims. USPS is notorious as well.
I don`t get all the "FedEx is cheap" comments. I shipped an acoustic guitar & case a few months ago with them. Bought a suitable box and some packing newsprint, plus shipping. Final total : $119. Yes, that`s domestic, and not overnight. Never again. Since then, I sold a bass through USPS. Insured, priority, deliv. confirmation : $24. I had a bass delivered UPS a few weeks ago. Box was fine, but inside, all the molded styrofoam pieces supporting the bass were snow. Bass was okay luckily, but it wasn`t going to take one more toss onto the tarmac
You got ripped off. Majorly. Newsprint is a heavy packing material - that didn't help you much. Where did you go? Fedex Office? Oversized boxes need to be watched out. One or two inches can change a price $10. I had a guy try to tell me that it was going to cost him $189 to ship a guitar and amp from California to Maine. The amp with a 15w practice amp. I told him he was insanely wrong and to try something else. It ended up costing him $40 to ship both of them, once he did the research. It also helped that he got half off UPS from his work (I still wonder why didn't he take that into account when he was original calculating???)
Using that extreme answer would be akin to someone saying your experience at the zoo will surely involve a monkey trying to drag you into a cage or a polar bear ripping your head off. It's just not valid as long as long as you keep your ducks in a row.
That USPS bass must have went 20 miles down the street because if I were to type in a 12-14 lb. oversized package into the USPS website right now from me in NY to FL or the west coast, it WILL cost $60+. That's not counting insurance. From me to ship a 13 lb. 48x20x7 box to California will cost $68 uninsured with USPS. If I were to ship it 3 zones over to my old place in Maine it will cost $25, uninsured. Insured that would be roughly $30. FedEx states that the same exact size box will take $37 to get shipped to California. That's $23 cheaper. To ship it to Maine will cost $22. $3 cheaper. USPS insurance is a little more expensive (and so is their signature confirmation) so those will add a few bucks more. Almost across the board, FedEx is cheaper. How FedEx relates to UPS, I'm too tired to calculate. They will be roughly the same.
There's more to prices than just weight. There's size, zone distances, surcharges, etc. etc.
Yeah , the guitar box was a bit oversized. The newsprint was balled up and stuffed - it did not add any substantial weight. "Extreme example" ? Yes. But still, a 25 lb package shouldn`t cost THAT much. It shipped about 1200 mi. The box itself was around $22, and $13 for the newsprint = rip off; not so much the actual s/h fees, but the packaging. Equally my fault for paying it as theirs for charging it, I know. The bass, OTOH, shipped about 350 mi. - not "down the street", but not cross - country either. UPS wanted $60 to ship it; they too have always quoted me higher prices.
