USPS Delivery issues

Questions on how we spend our money and our time - consumer goods and services, home and vehicle, leisure and recreational activities
Post Reply
Topic Author
Cousin Eddie
Posts: 216
Joined: Fri Dec 25, 2015 10:27 am

USPS Delivery issues

Post by Cousin Eddie »

Venting post here. I am in the process of moving funds from the Government TSP program to an IRA so that I can start Roth conversions this year. I have used the USPS to send documents to Vanguard for them to fill out, which afterwards they sent back to me so that I could then send to TSP per TSPs requirements for this sort of thing.

Step 1: Sent documents to vanguard via USPS certified mail took 3 weeks to get to Vanguard and I received a confirmation of delivery to vanguard *after* I received the filled out forms back from vanguard.

Step 2: This is the step I'm currently in. I sent the completed forms to TSP via certified mail on March 12, one month ago. As the TSP imposed deadline is fast approaching I logged on to USPS website and the letter has been sitting in Birmingham AL, which is the destination of the letter as well, since March 13. One day to get it to Birmingham and 30 days to sit there(!).

Step 3: This is the next step I'm going to be in - back to step 1 since I'll have went past TSPs deadline. Only this time I'm going to use FedEx.

I started this process in January and am now worried if I will have funds transferred to Vanguard before the end of 2021 to be able to do a roth conversion.
livesoft
Posts: 85971
Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2007 7:00 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by livesoft »

Cousin Eddie wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 10:42 am...
Step 2: This is the step I'm currently in. I sent the completed forms to TSP via certified mail on March 12, one month ago. As the TSP imposed deadline is fast approaching I logged on to USPS website and the letter has been sitting in Birmingham AL, which is the destination of the letter as well, since March 13. One day to get it to Birmingham and 30 days to sit there(!).
One cannot trust the USPS website to give you factual information of where your mail actually is. Try another method.
Wiki This signature message sponsored by sscritic: Learn to fish.
rixer
Posts: 758
Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 4:18 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by rixer »

The USPS service lost two seperate checks for $80K each that went out certified mail or whatever their special service is called and with a verified reciept. They lost them both and didn't even care.
I send important mail through Fed-ex after that.
User avatar
HueyLD
Posts: 9782
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2008 9:30 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by HueyLD »

Have you called the TSP? Try that on Monday because they do answer the phone.
neilpilot
Posts: 5003
Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2015 12:46 pm
Location: Memphis area

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by neilpilot »

Doesn't solve the OP's issue, but this reinforces why I chose a brokerage firm with a local office when consolidating my accounts years ago. I can just drive over to their office, about 1 mile away.
123
Posts: 10387
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:55 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by 123 »

I have found that USPS performs excellent for me when I send regular first class mail. It is fast and fairly inexpensive. When I've used tracking or a service like Priority Mail, which sometimes you may need to, I've often been disappointed. From my experience there's a certain magic, mysteriousness, and reliability in regular first class but you have to have faith that it will work. It goes in at one USPS place and comes out another, sometimes it's better not to know what happens in between.
The closest helping hand is at the end of your own arm.
Jack FFR1846
Posts: 18461
Joined: Tue Dec 31, 2013 6:05 am
Location: 26 miles, 385 yards west of Copley Square

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by Jack FFR1846 »

I would tend to send mail first class. The post office knows how to deliver first class. If you're going to send certified, is the postman going to be looking for a signature? Is there anyone at the TSP office to give a signature? If you send 2 copies, one first class, one certified, there's a good chance they'll get it.
Bogle: Smart Beta is stupid
User avatar
gwe67
Posts: 1364
Joined: Mon Dec 23, 2013 8:52 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by gwe67 »

neilpilot wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 11:14 am Doesn't solve the OP's issue, but this reinforces why I chose a brokerage firm with a local office when consolidating my accounts years ago. I can just drive over to their office, about 1 mile away.
I used to use a large national bank that had two local branches. And then, they closed both branches in a cost-cutting move. Unless your brokerage firm is making nice profits off of that local office, it will likely close down. If they are making nice profits, some of that is coming out of your pocket.

Costs and customer service in the industry are both heading to zero.
VTI 48%, VXUS 12%, BND 40%
OnTrack
Posts: 799
Joined: Wed Jan 20, 2016 10:16 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by OnTrack »

123 wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 11:20 am I have found that USPS performs excellent for me when I send regular first class mail. It is fast and fairly inexpensive. When I've used tracking or a service like Priority Mail, which sometimes you may need to, I've often been disappointed. From my experience there's a certain magic, mysteriousness, and reliability in regular first class but you have to have faith that it will work. It goes in at one USPS place and comes out another, sometimes it's better not to know what happens in between.
Not my experience. I've had several regular first class mail items take over a month to be delivered.
neilpilot
Posts: 5003
Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2015 12:46 pm
Location: Memphis area

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by neilpilot »

gwe67 wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 11:24 am
neilpilot wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 11:14 am Doesn't solve the OP's issue, but this reinforces why I chose a brokerage firm with a local office when consolidating my accounts years ago. I can just drive over to their office, about 1 mile away.
I used to use a large national bank that had two local branches. And then, they closed both branches in a cost-cutting move. Unless your brokerage firm is making nice profits off of that local office, it will likely close down. If they are making nice profits, some of that is coming out of your pocket.

Costs and customer service in the industry are both heading to zero.
I certainly would not consider "a large national bank". OTOH both TDA (aka Schwab) & Fidelity have local office.

While they maybe making a nice profit overall, they certainly don't make much on me. Everything is in Vanguard ETFs, mostly index funds, and I haven't paid a transaction fee to TDA in 4 years. In fact, since I started using TDA in 2015, I've collected $k in new account bonus & retention money. With the bonus money I've collected, my expenses have been significantly lower than if I held the same "Vanguard" investments in Vanguard accounts.

I've never had to mail a form to TDA. It's either completely handled during a visit to the local office or done via email. If paperwork does need to go to TDA's main office, I just drop it off at the local office and they've handled to rest.
talzara
Posts: 4745
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by talzara »

Cousin Eddie wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 10:42 am Step 1: Sent documents to vanguard via USPS certified mail took 3 weeks to get to Vanguard and I received a confirmation of delivery to vanguard *after* I received the filled out forms back from vanguard.

Step 2: This is the step I'm currently in. I sent the completed forms to TSP via certified mail on March 12, one month ago. As the TSP imposed deadline is fast approaching I logged on to USPS website and the letter has been sitting in Birmingham AL, which is the destination of the letter as well, since March 13. One day to get it to Birmingham and 30 days to sit there(!).
There's already a thread on USPS delivery delays, but it was locked when people started arguing about politics: viewtopic.php?f=11&t=335288

The USPS cannot sort all of its mail right now. A lot of sorting machines were removed, and employees are no longer allowed to go into overtime, so they cannot run the remaining machines longer to finish sorting the mail. If there is still unsorted mail at the end of the day, it will remain unsorted until there is a day with low mail volume. Then they use the spare capacity to run the old mail through the sorting machines. That may take a month.

The USPS had a 55% on-time delivery rate for 3-5 day single-piece first-class mail in October-December 2020: https://about.usps.com/what/performance ... mance.html
criticalmass
Posts: 2839
Joined: Wed Feb 12, 2014 9:58 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by criticalmass »

talzara wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 1:09 pm
Cousin Eddie wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 10:42 am Step 1: Sent documents to vanguard via USPS certified mail took 3 weeks to get to Vanguard and I received a confirmation of delivery to vanguard *after* I received the filled out forms back from vanguard.

Step 2: This is the step I'm currently in. I sent the completed forms to TSP via certified mail on March 12, one month ago. As the TSP imposed deadline is fast approaching I logged on to USPS website and the letter has been sitting in Birmingham AL, which is the destination of the letter as well, since March 13. One day to get it to Birmingham and 30 days to sit there(!).
There's already a thread on USPS delivery delays, but it was locked when people started arguing about politics: viewtopic.php?f=11&t=335288

The USPS cannot sort all of its mail right now. A lot of sorting machines were removed, and employees are no longer allowed to go into overtime, so they cannot run the remaining machines longer to finish sorting the mail. If there is still unsorted mail at the end of the day, it will remain unsorted until there is a day with low mail volume. Then they use the spare capacity to run the old mail through the sorting machines. That may take a month.
I don't believe this is accurate information. A relative works in a processing and distribution center, which is where mail is sorted. She reports the center operates 24 hours a day. November through January had huge back logs due to super high volume, reduced density due to COVID, and reduced employees due to being sick with COVID or exposed to COVID, but those are largely past. When mail is backed up, it gets put in large containers until it can be sorted again.
khunron
Posts: 137
Joined: Tue Apr 18, 2017 6:29 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by khunron »

Birmingham is notorius for not updating the status of mail passing through them. I have a Priority Mail package enroute that shows it arrived in B'ham on 8 Apr, but no updates after that. Last package showed it to be in B'ham after it was delivered 120 miles away.
ballons
Posts: 782
Joined: Sun Aug 18, 2019 3:05 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by ballons »

Send it via Overnight Delivery AM delivery with delivery confirmation @ $25-$45/each.

Tell vanguard you'll pay their Overnight Delivery fees as well.
talzara
Posts: 4745
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by talzara »

criticalmass wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 2:50 pm I don't believe this is accurate information. A relative works in a processing and distribution center, which is where mail is sorted. She reports the center operates 24 hours a day. November through January had huge back logs due to super high volume, reduced density due to COVID, and reduced employees due to being sick with COVID or exposed to COVID, but those are largely past. When mail is backed up, it gets put in large containers until it can be sorted again.
You're describing the parcel backlogs that began in November 2020. UPS and Fedex limited the number of packages that they would accept from large mailers, so all the overflow went to the USPS.

The OP is seeing 3-4 week delays on letter mail, where the delays began much earlier and continued much longer. The on-time rate for 3-5 day single-piece first-class mail was 81% in April-June 2020, exactly the same as it was in 2019, even though it was during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The on-time rate fell to 72% in July-September 2020.

First-class mail volumes have fallen by half since the 2001 peak. There should be plenty of spare capacity, but there isn't.
User avatar
anon_investor
Posts: 15111
Joined: Mon Jun 03, 2019 1:43 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by anon_investor »

OnTrack wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 11:40 am
123 wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 11:20 am I have found that USPS performs excellent for me when I send regular first class mail. It is fast and fairly inexpensive. When I've used tracking or a service like Priority Mail, which sometimes you may need to, I've often been disappointed. From my experience there's a certain magic, mysteriousness, and reliability in regular first class but you have to have faith that it will work. It goes in at one USPS place and comes out another, sometimes it's better not to know what happens in between.
Not my experience. I've had several regular first class mail items take over a month to be delivered.
+1. If it's important use FedEx.
Nyc10036
Posts: 1663
Joined: Wed Oct 05, 2016 6:29 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by Nyc10036 »

pre-Covid, my mother sent a check to a non-profit's PO Box via certified mail with return receipt.

Never received the return receipt.
Going to a PO Box seems to be like going into a black hole even with the certified mail with return receipt.

Registered mail is different. I would suggest that or Express Mail.

.
RetiredNewbie
Posts: 82
Joined: Sun Dec 10, 2017 6:52 am
Location: Southeast Virginia

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by RetiredNewbie »

I am the executor of my dad's estate, and have sent over a dozen letters using certified mail in the past 6 months. Some disappear, some take 30 days to get there. I also found out that the signature you get on the certified mail receipt is useless. I saw on the informed delivery email I got one morning that I was getting a certified letter that I had to sign for. I met the mailman on my porch and he handed me the letter. I asked him, "Don't I have to sign for it?". He told me no. He said that due to covid, postal employees don't ask for signatures anymore. They just sign the certified receipt themselves, verifying that they delivered it.

America needs a dependable alternative to everything the USPS does.
Your attitude about risk changes significantly when the bear begins to maul you.
criticalmass
Posts: 2839
Joined: Wed Feb 12, 2014 9:58 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by criticalmass »

talzara wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 3:47 pm
criticalmass wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 2:50 pm I don't believe this is accurate information. A relative works in a processing and distribution center, which is where mail is sorted. She reports the center operates 24 hours a day. November through January had huge back logs due to super high volume, reduced density due to COVID, and reduced employees due to being sick with COVID or exposed to COVID, but those are largely past. When mail is backed up, it gets put in large containers until it can be sorted again.
You're describing the parcel backlogs that began in November 2020. UPS and Fedex limited the number of packages that they would accept from large mailers, so all the overflow went to the USPS.

The OP is seeing 3-4 week delays on letter mail, where the delays began much earlier and continued much longer. The on-time rate for 3-5 day single-piece first-class mail was 81% in April-June 2020, exactly the same as it was in 2019, even though it was during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The on-time rate fell to 72% in July-September 2020.

First-class mail volumes have fallen by half since the 2001 peak. There should be plenty of spare capacity, but there isn't.
You are providing numbers from 2019- September 2020. That is interesting, is not related to my earlier comment. PDCs continue to operate 24 hours a day; there is no "end of day."
dukeblue219
Posts: 4071
Joined: Fri Jan 29, 2016 11:40 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by dukeblue219 »

RetiredNewbie wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 4:17 pm I am the executor of my dad's estate, and have sent over a dozen letters using certified mail in the past 6 months. Some disappear, some take 30 days to get there. I also found out that the signature you get on the certified mail receipt is useless. I saw on the informed delivery email I got one morning that I was getting a certified letter that I had to sign for. I met the mailman on my porch and he handed me the letter. I asked him, "Don't I have to sign for it?". He told me no. He said that due to covid, postal employees don't ask for signatures anymore. They just sign the certified receipt themselves, verifying that they delivered it.

America needs a dependable alternative to everything the USPS does.
Admittedly even UPS and FedEx are doing the same. They've both left wine at my front door in the last month despite the ADULT SIGNATURE REQUIRED stickers. They often had discretion in the past, or you could sign a release, but alcohol was always the one case that they HAD to get a signature. Not anymore.
neilpilot
Posts: 5003
Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2015 12:46 pm
Location: Memphis area

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by neilpilot »

dukeblue219 wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 4:24 pm
RetiredNewbie wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 4:17 pm I am the executor of my dad's estate, and have sent over a dozen letters using certified mail in the past 6 months. Some disappear, some take 30 days to get there. I also found out that the signature you get on the certified mail receipt is useless. I saw on the informed delivery email I got one morning that I was getting a certified letter that I had to sign for. I met the mailman on my porch and he handed me the letter. I asked him, "Don't I have to sign for it?". He told me no. He said that due to covid, postal employees don't ask for signatures anymore. They just sign the certified receipt themselves, verifying that they delivered it.

America needs a dependable alternative to everything the USPS does.
Admittedly even UPS and FedEx are doing the same. They've both left wine at my front door in the last month despite the ADULT SIGNATURE REQUIRED stickers. They often had discretion in the past, or you could sign a release, but alcohol was always the one case that they HAD to get a signature. Not anymore.
I typically receive a wine shipment via FedEx every 6 months. Sometimes it's been left without the required ADULT SIGNATURE, and sometimes not.. This has occurred randomly for the past 4-5 years and is not a recent development and/or Covid related.
talzara
Posts: 4745
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by talzara »

criticalmass wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 4:22 pm You are providing numbers from 2019- September 2020. That is interesting, is not related to my earlier comment. PDCs continue to operate 24 hours a day; there is no "end of day."
It is related to your comment that there were backlogs from November 2020 to January 2021. That's only for parcels.

The OP is mailing paper forms, not a package. The USPS on-time statistics show that the backlog began much earlier for first-class mail. The OP and several other people have reported 4-week delays for first-class mail, so the backlogs are still ongoing.

If a P&DC is running 24 hours a day, then "end of day" means midnight. If there are still backlogs when running 24 hours a day, then you need more machines. That could mean having technicians work overtime to improve availability, reliability, or efficiency.
shunkman
Posts: 666
Joined: Mon Feb 26, 2018 8:59 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by shunkman »

From my experience, sending anything certified mail is like taking the slow boat to China. Instead I use USPS Priority Mail with tracking/tracing/delivery confirmation. This works much better for me.
Last edited by shunkman on Sun Apr 11, 2021 5:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
criticalmass
Posts: 2839
Joined: Wed Feb 12, 2014 9:58 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by criticalmass »

talzara wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 4:51 pm
criticalmass wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 4:22 pm You are providing numbers from 2019- September 2020. That is interesting, is not related to my earlier comment. PDCs continue to operate 24 hours a day; there is no "end of day."
It is related to your comment that there were backlogs from November 2020 to January 2021. That's only for parcels.

The OP is mailing paper forms, not a package. The USPS on-time statistics show that the backlog began much earlier for first-class mail. The OP and several other people have reported 4-week delays for first-class mail, so the backlogs are still ongoing.

If a P&DC is running 24 hours a day, then "end of day" means midnight. If there are still backlogs when running 24 hours a day, then you need more machines. That could mean having technicians work overtime to improve availability, reliability, or efficiency.
The delays November 2020-January 2021 affected parcels and letter deliveries.

For the current time, I was saying shifts run continuously, not that there are current backlogs. Machines are taken offline when volume decreases for maintenance, etc.

The longer term post office trend has been the closing of many Processing and Distribution Centers, circa 2011-2016. That was done in the name of "efficiency," but has also resulted in longer first class delivery times, as mail has to be frequently rerouted to centers further away and back again. The USPS called this various names over the years, including network rationalizations, area/ facility consolidations, etc. A side effect is a lack of surge floor space and capacity during pandemics.

Vanguard noticed when the SOUTHEASTERN PA P&DC was closed, which had been almost next to the Vanguard campus. All (Pennsylvania) suburban Philadelphia mail now gets routed to/from the Philadelphia P&DC. For the distant suburbs, that was a significant change.
talzara
Posts: 4745
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by talzara »

criticalmass wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 5:25 pm The longer term post office trend has been the closing of many Processing and Distribution Centers, circa 2011-2016.
As the P&DCs were shut down, mail delivery got slower. From 2011 to 2016, the on-time rate for single-piece first-class mail dropped from 91% to 84%.

However, that's not the cause of the current situation. It took five years for the on-time rate to drop 7%. It took just three months to drop 9% for July-September 2020.

That is not a long-term trend. That is a sharp and abrupt drop in on-time performance. It is more conspicuous because on-time performance remained stable at 81% in April-June 2020, during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

81% to 72% to 55% to what? The USPS will release the statistics for January-March 2021 in June 2021.
criticalmass
Posts: 2839
Joined: Wed Feb 12, 2014 9:58 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by criticalmass »

talzara wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 5:57 pm
criticalmass wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 5:25 pm The longer term post office trend has been the closing of many Processing and Distribution Centers, circa 2011-2016.
As the P&DCs were shut down, mail delivery got slower. From 2011 to 2016, the on-time rate for single-piece first-class mail dropped from 91% to 84%.

However, that's not the cause of the current situation. It took five years for the on-time rate to drop 7%. It took just three months to drop 9% for July-September 2020.

That is not a long-term trend. That is a sharp and abrupt drop in on-time performance. It is more conspicuous because on-time performance remained stable at 81% in April-June 2020, during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

81% to 72% to 55% to what? The USPS will release the statistics for January-March 2021 in June 2021.
You are confusing what I wrote about long term PDC consolidation vs. recent performance issues during the pandemic.
Closure of PDCs and the various consolidation projects have been a long term trend at USPS, 2011-2016, with objections by APWU.
The mail delays / on-time performance drops during and after the huge avalanche of mail in-voting deliveries plus unprecedented holiday season post office volumes are well known. You do not need to convince me or any USPS worker of that. There was not any extra capacity, in fact around 19% of employees were unable to work due to COVID exposure or symptoms.
User avatar
SmileyFace
Posts: 9080
Joined: Wed Feb 19, 2014 9:11 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by SmileyFace »

I thought it was pretty well known for some time to NOT use the USPS for anything time sensitive. Use UPS Expess or FEDEX. But thanks for sharing another story letting us know this is still true.
clip651
Posts: 1582
Joined: Thu Oct 02, 2014 11:02 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by clip651 »

SmileyFace wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 6:26 am I thought it was pretty well known for some time to NOT use the USPS for anything time sensitive. Use UPS Expess or FEDEX. But thanks for sharing another story letting us know this is still true.
Yep. And even UPS and FedEx have suspended their guaranteed delivery times, last I looked. But with them, that usually means you may have to allow an extra day or two at times. Not that it might take extra weeks, or months.

I was still receiving Christmas cards, as well as returned Christmas cards which were addressed properly and should have been delivered, in March. Who knows how many others I sent or were sent to me are sitting at the bottom of a pile somewhere.
talzara
Posts: 4745
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by talzara »

criticalmass wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 11:16 pm The mail delays / on-time performance drops during and after the huge avalanche of mail in-voting deliveries plus unprecedented holiday season post office volumes are well known. You do not need to convince me or any USPS worker of that.
We're going around in circles here. I'm explaining to the OP why the backlog in first-class mail exists. You're talking about things that happened after there was already a backlog.

The drop in single-piece first-class mail performance began in July 2020. That is before the "huge avalanche of mail in-voting deliveries plus unprecedented holiday season post office volumes." Mail-in voting is only a small fraction of first-class mail volume, which was still 52.6 billion pieces in 2020.
talzara
Posts: 4745
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by talzara »

SmileyFace wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 6:26 am I thought it was pretty well known for some time to NOT use the USPS for anything time sensitive. Use UPS Expess or FEDEX. But thanks for sharing another story letting us know this is still true.
We've already had 9 months without reliable mail delivery.

The statistics show that single-piece first-class mail delivery began experiencing unusual delays in July 2020.
talzara
Posts: 4745
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by talzara »

clip651 wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 10:58 am Yep. And even UPS and FedEx have suspended their guaranteed delivery times, last I looked. But with them, that usually means you may have to allow an extra day or two at times. Not that it might take extra weeks, or months.
UPS and FedEx are not back to normal yet, but they're in much better shape than the USPS. Both companies restored their next-day air delivery guarantees last week:
Memphis, Tennessee-based FedEx will restore guarantees on all domestic air shipments delivered early morning, midmorning and midafternoon during the next business day. ... UPS said Monday that it reinstated money-back guarantees on its next-day air delivery products and a slew of international air offerings.

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fedex ... deliveries
Topic Author
Cousin Eddie
Posts: 216
Joined: Fri Dec 25, 2015 10:27 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by Cousin Eddie »

Here's an update for those interested, I called TSP and they let me know that I will have to resubmit the package, the deadline has come and gone. My lesson is learned and I will never use certified mail for time sensitive material again, or the USPS if at all possible.

I've never called TSP before so didn't know what to expect, but I was patched right through to a rep and she was very helpful. She also said that they have been fielding quite a few calls about the slowness of USPS and recommended UPS or Fed Ex.

Anyway, it's mostly my fault, I could have scanned and submitted it electronically, but I don't have a scanner at the house and didn't want to spring for a new one just to get this one document over to them. My thrifty bogleheadish way was my downfall. Oh well, live and learn.
student
Posts: 10720
Joined: Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:58 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by student »

Cousin Eddie wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 4:03 pm Here's an update for those interested, I called TSP and they let me know that I will have to resubmit the package, the deadline has come and gone. My lesson is learned and I will never use certified mail for time sensitive material again, or the USPS if at all possible.

I've never called TSP before so didn't know what to expect, but I was patched right through to a rep and she was very helpful. She also said that they have been fielding quite a few calls about the slowness of USPS and recommended UPS or Fed Ex.

Anyway, it's mostly my fault, I could have scanned and submitted it electronically, but I don't have a scanner at the house and didn't want to spring for a new one just to get this one document over to them. My thrifty bogleheadish way was my downfall. Oh well, live and learn.
Can you use a scanner app on your phone?
Topic Author
Cousin Eddie
Posts: 216
Joined: Fri Dec 25, 2015 10:27 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by Cousin Eddie »

student wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 4:15 pm
Cousin Eddie wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 4:03 pm Here's an update for those interested, I called TSP and they let me know that I will have to resubmit the package, the deadline has come and gone. My lesson is learned and I will never use certified mail for time sensitive material again, or the USPS if at all possible.

I've never called TSP before so didn't know what to expect, but I was patched right through to a rep and she was very helpful. She also said that they have been fielding quite a few calls about the slowness of USPS and recommended UPS or Fed Ex.

Anyway, it's mostly my fault, I could have scanned and submitted it electronically, but I don't have a scanner at the house and didn't want to spring for a new one just to get this one document over to them. My thrifty bogleheadish way was my downfall. Oh well, live and learn.
Can you use a scanner app on your phone?
I've tried a phone but I never can get a quality scan. Probably my cheapie cell phone doesn't help with that. I'll probably take it to a family member and use there scanner.

Thanks for the suggestion though.
gtg970g
Posts: 206
Joined: Tue Mar 27, 2012 11:52 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by gtg970g »

Cousin Eddie wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 7:02 pm I've tried a phone but I never can get a quality scan. Probably my cheapie cell phone doesn't help with that. I'll probably take it to a family member and use there scanner.

Thanks for the suggestion though.
Try using a black matte background. I actually use a cast iron skillet as a background when taking pictures of checks to deposit via mobile app.
Katietsu
Posts: 7662
Joined: Sun Sep 22, 2013 1:48 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by Katietsu »

I just use my iPhone for most of my day to day scanning needs. I use the SwiftScan app. But cheap phones do seem to cut the most corners on the camera so maybe that is the limitation.
talzara
Posts: 4745
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by talzara »

talzara wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 1:09 pm The USPS had a 55% on-time delivery rate for 3-5 day single-piece first-class mail in October-December 2020: https://about.usps.com/what/performance ... mance.html
The USPS has released the delivery data for January-March 2021:
https://about.usps.com/what/performance ... iance.html

The on-time delivery rate for 3-5 day single-piece first-class mail has improved from 54.6% to 57.9%.

The USPS also began reporting data for mail delivered up to 3 days late. In fiscal year 2020, which already had one quarter of poor performance, 98.0% of 3-5 day mail was delivered up to 3 days late. In October to December 2021, it was only 91.3%. In January to March 2021, it dropped even more to 89.3%.

Although on-time delivery has improved, delayed delivery has gotten worse. 10.7% of 3-5 day mail is not getting delivered within 6-8 days! If this is 6-8 postal days, then it's 7-10 calendar days.

If you switched to Fedex or UPS to mail important documents, don't switch back to the USPS yet.
RudyS
Posts: 2819
Joined: Tue Oct 27, 2015 10:11 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by RudyS »

Cousin Eddie wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 7:02 pm
student wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 4:15 pm
Cousin Eddie wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 4:03 pm Here's an update for those interested, I called TSP and they let me know that I will have to resubmit the package, the deadline has come and gone. My lesson is learned and I will never use certified mail for time sensitive material again, or the USPS if at all possible.

I've never called TSP before so didn't know what to expect, but I was patched right through to a rep and she was very helpful. She also said that they have been fielding quite a few calls about the slowness of USPS and recommended UPS or Fed Ex.

Anyway, it's mostly my fault, I could have scanned and submitted it electronically, but I don't have a scanner at the house and didn't want to spring for a new one just to get this one document over to them. My thrifty bogleheadish way was my downfall. Oh well, live and learn.
Can you use a scanner app on your phone?
I've tried a phone but I never can get a quality scan. Probably my cheapie cell phone doesn't help with that. I'll probably take it to a family member and use there scanner.

Thanks for the suggestion though.
I have two rather inexpensive printers Brother laser and Canon inkjet; each also can scan and produce either a JPeg or PDF file. Something to consider when next buying a printer.
Swansea
Posts: 1528
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2016 4:16 am

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by Swansea »

I had not receive a bill I had been expecting, so I called the business. The woman told me to allow for 5 weeks for mail to be received.
kaudrey
Posts: 1143
Joined: Fri Nov 22, 2013 1:40 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by kaudrey »

Anyway, it's mostly my fault, I could have scanned and submitted it electronically, but I don't have a scanner at the house and didn't want to spring for a new one just to get this one document over to them. My thrifty bogleheadish way was my downfall. Oh well, live and learn.
[/quote]

Download the CamScanner app on your phone - you take a picture of the document, it turns it into a PDF, and then you can email it.
tibbitts
Posts: 23589
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by tibbitts »

ballons wrote: Sun Apr 11, 2021 3:19 pm Send it via Overnight Delivery AM delivery with delivery confirmation @ $25-$45/each.

Tell vanguard you'll pay their Overnight Delivery fees as well.
Vanguard does not send rollover payments overnight or via any service other than first class mail, and has no mechanism that allows you to pay fees to them for to do so. I asked, specifically because at prevailing rates, it was costing me more per-day to have the amount of the check not earning in my fixed account than it would have cost me for faster delivery and tracking. Vanguard's position was firm.
tibbitts
Posts: 23589
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by tibbitts »

Cousin Eddie wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 4:03 pm Anyway, it's mostly my fault, I could have scanned and submitted it electronically, but I don't have a scanner at the house and didn't want to spring for a new one just to get this one document over to them. My thrifty bogleheadish way was my downfall. Oh well, live and learn.
I thought the issue was needing to forward a check along with paperwork but it's been a long thread. In my case with a different custodian I investigated that possibility as well and electronic transmission of the (third-party) check wouldn't have been accepted, and I think that's the general case.
tibbitts
Posts: 23589
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Re: USPS Delivery issues

Post by tibbitts »

Recently I've had some positive experiences: someone sent me a "2-day" (really 2/3-day) Priority Mail box on Saturday, from about 200 miles away, and it arrived Monday. And I sent a Fedex Ground package to a location 800 miles away on Friday that arrived Monday. I've never had Fedex Ground deliver that fast over a weekend.
Post Reply