LTT, please do not use USPS

[TempestCatto]

Hello there. I ordered a water bottle on the 6th of November. It took a day or two to get across the border, but once over, it was smooth sailing. So I thought. It's been taking it's sweet time to travel across the state of Washington. But finally, on the 15th of November, it leaves Washington state. But this is where the big issue comes in. It was last scanned as "in transit to next facility" but never scanned as "arrived at facility". It took 7 days for it become visible again when it was finally scanned in as "arrived at facility". Even though it traveled across the United States, it should not have taken 7 days for it to be scanned again. After that, it took only one other full day to finally arrive in my hands. What exactly is my issue?

 

Well, USPS used to be pretty decent. I've bought stuff on Ebay that has come from Nevada and arrived within 3 days as standard shipping with USPS. But when I bought my water bottle I had to pay nearly 9 USD to ship the thing. Fine, whatever, it's traveling pretty far. But it should not have taken 17 days to arrive, let alone the fact that it took 7 of those days for it be scanned again. The shipping used was USPS Priority. Which they say is supposed to take 1-3 business days. But with Covid, okay, maybe it takes 3-5 days instead. But here we are, 17 whole days later and now I finally have it. Ever since USPS went from Government to private, things have not been going well. Pay cuts and lack of motivation. People are retiring early, or just leaving for better work/pay.

 

I'm not the only one with issues. One of my close friends ordered some stuff from an online firearms store (foregrip, sights, stuff like that). His orders were shipped USPS, and he had very similar issues as I did. Same thing where it took many days for his package to be scanned. One of his packages was actually declared lost just the other day. He'd been waiting just over 1 month for the other half of his order. I know he and I are only two examples, but I've talked to my co-workers about it, and they all claim to have similar issues.

 

Maybe I'm not patient enough, or maybe I'm just being pedantic about the whole scanning thing. But from what I gather, USPS has gone to the dogs and isn't coming back anytime soon. So I would like to see LTT cease their use of USPS, and instead use UPS. Now, I'm gonna guess it's more expensive and that maybe they don't have much control over that? I don't know, I don't know how it works behind the scenes. However I just simply do not trust USPS anymore. Not that I have the money, regardless, I'm too nervous to order anything more from the LTT store in fear it will get lost in transit.

 

I'm sorry if I come off sounding like a 12 yearold who joined the forum to make one post. But I just felt strongly enough about it to at least say something. Thank you for taking the time to read.

 

@nicklmg @LinusTech

[GDRRiley]

I've had way more issues with UPS than I have with USPS. USPS has had a hard time this year.

[Zando_]

3 minutes ago, GDRRiley said:

I've had way more issues with UPS than I have with USPS. USPS has had a hard time this year.

^^^ Indeed. They just had the small thing uh... yeah, the US Presidential Election where there were a shitload of mail in ballots to handle on top of the already irregularly massive load because it's pandemic time and a lot more people order stuff in, aaaaaaand it's coming up on the holidays. And IIRC on top of all that they've had a guy made boss who removed a bunch of shit they need to do their job so that's further hurt their efficiency. Feels like a lot of really shit events piling up on top of each other and not any sort of malice or laziness on USPS's part. 

[Semper]

These issues aren't isolated to USPS. It's a game of chance sending a small (relatively) package across a large network handling many, many more packages just like yours.

I guarantee you that you don't have to look far to find issues with OnTrac, DHL, USPS, UPS, FedEx, CEVA, or any of the other carriers.

In fact, you only have to look right over there
<---

Every major (and some minor) carriers in the US have lost packages of mine (mostly packages to/from a place I used to work). Every single one of them has seen delays. Most of them have damaged packages, including the items inside.
USPS insurance is actually among the easier to deal with, in this regard. FedEx was the most difficult.

[Mark Kaine]

I agree, horrible company, I ordered something from LRG years ago and the thing took months to arrive! 

 

I think it was in 25 different "Springfields" and also in every other settlement in the USofA before finally arriving somewhere in Africa (because why not!) then England, then Italy, then France, and finally Germany lol... 

 

 

Though I remember something, Linus commented on this before iirc, something about pricing I think... Don't remember fully tho

 

 

7 minutes ago, Semper said:

I guarantee you that you don't have to look far to find issues with OnTrac, DHL, USPS, UPS, FedEx, CEVA, or any of the other carriers.

Well, idk how it is currently, it may be bad generally, but normally UPS can and *will* bring any package from anywhere to any location within 3 days, it'll be expensive, but you'll have your anime figurine, pillowcase, video game or mug within the week (if customs play ball) 

[Guest]

Yes Linus.

Hand deliver the water bottles.

[TempestCatto]

Love all the backlash I'm getting! /s

 

Shoulda seen that coming. I still think USPS needs to be avoided.

 

As for the mail in ballots, aren't they done with all that? They're aren't shipping any since the election is well over by now.

 

 

[WhitetailAni]

I sold an old ISA sound card on eBay, and somehow USPS screwed it up and had it "sent" back to me.

This was in September.

I sent it Media Mail though.

[WhitetailAni]

Just now, TempestCatto said:

As for the mail in ballots, aren't they done with all that? They're aren't shipping any since the election is well over by now.

I wish...

Some states (I think) are still counting.

[Semper]

6 minutes ago, Mark Kaine said:

Well, idk how it is currently, it may be bad generally, but normally UPS can and *will* bring any package from anywhere to any location within 3 days, it'll be expensive, but you'll have your anime figurine, pillowcase, video game or mug within the week (if customs play ball) 

Generally speaking, yes.

That doesn't mean that packages haven't been delayed, lost and/or damaged, from any carrier.
If everyone that had an issue with a carrier stopped using said carrier, a lot of people would very quickly run out of options to ship things. Realistically, the only "carrier" I haven't had issue with yet is Amazon's own service.

[Senzelian]

13 minutes ago, Den-Fi said:

Yes Linus.

Hand deliver the water bottles.

Yeah, fantastic idea. He'll find a way to drop the delivery truck off a bridge somehow.

 

 

Personally I don't order much from the US or Canada, so I don't have to deal with USPS often. Usually only when I order a dbrand skin and that's mostly fine.

 

But I'm mad at Amazon for using their own garbage and utterly worthless delivery service here in Germany instead of DHL. I can't even choose to pay for the delivery and have it delivered by DHL. Why does this matter? Well because DHL is ALWAYS on time and doesn't appear at 21:00 in the evening at my doorstep.

 

F*ck you Amazon. I hope a bird sh*ts on Bezo's bald head. 

[TempestCatto]

3 minutes ago, ragnarok0273 said:

I wish...

Some states (I think) are still counting.

They are recounting, but does that mean they're still shipping? I would think they simply stay at a special/secure facility.

 

 

2 minutes ago, Semper said:

I haven't had issue with yet is Amazon's own service.

Linus has said before in another thread "we aren't amazon". I do get that, but this whole experience was just wack. But I must agree, Amazon has somehow nailed it (mostly).

[WhitetailAni]

For USPS, it's like catching up on missing assignments.

They dropped a lot of non-ballot items and now have to scramble to pick them up, combined with also defunding, it would be pretty hard.

They did their big summative assignment, and now have to do all of the little ones

[abc_123]

34 minutes ago, TempestCatto said:

What exactly is my issue?

 

A global pandemic and millions of mail-in ballots sent via an already strained system that has seen almost half a century of defunding?

[Fasauceome]

25 minutes ago, TempestCatto said:

As for the mail in ballots, aren't they done with all that? They're aren't shipping any since the election is well over by now.

 

the ballots are mailed but there was also a federal mandate to dismantle USPS locations for unknown reasons. Gunked up the system really badly right before the election, slowed pretty much all USPS operations down. USPS locations are still trying to reinstall some hardware to make mail sorting faster.

[Donut417]

1 hour ago, TempestCatto said:

Well, USPS used to be pretty decent

Thats because the ass hole that the president put in charge of the postal service is trying his hardest to make it fail. Its no secret that certain people within the government want to privatize our postal service. HOWEVER, a new president = new postal management. I would suspect some things will be fixed come next year. 

[GDRRiley]

1 hour ago, Semper said:

OnTrac

They've always been great but its kinda hard to screw up LA to SFbay

[whm1974]

46 minutes ago, Donut417 said:

Thats because the ass hole that the president put in charge of the postal service is trying his hardest to make it fail. Its no secret that certain people within the government want to privatize our postal service. HOWEVER, a new president = new postal management. I would suspect some things will be fixed come next year. 

the OP mentioned that the USPS went Private, but did it? Or just some "Free Market" Worshipers in the US Federal Government/Congress merely desire that the USPS go private?

 

 

[Donut417]

4 minutes ago, whm1974 said:

the OP mentioned that the USPS went Private, but did it? Or just some "Free Market" Worshipers in the US Federal Government/Congress merely desire that the USPS go private?

 

 

No. It did not go private. To be honest, USPS is the only federal agency that is really listed in the Constitution. As the constitution says its the governments duty to deliver the mail. Based on that, it could be considered unconditional for them to privatize the postal service. 

 

USPS is the only Federal agency who has to fund pensions 75 years in the future. So now they are in a budget short fall. Everyone cries that USPS doesn't make any money. Well USPS is the government, its job is not to make money. 

[Mark Kaine]

1 hour ago, Senzelian said:

Yeah, fantastic idea. He'll find a way to drop the delivery truck off a bridge somehow.

 

 

Personally I don't order much from the US or Canada, so I don't have to deal with USPS often. Usually only when I order a dbrand skin and that's mostly fine.

 

But I'm mad at Amazon for using their own garbage and utterly worthless delivery service here in Germany instead of DHL. I can't even choose to pay for the delivery and have it delivered by DHL. Why does this matter? Well because DHL is ALWAYS on time and doesn't appear at 21:00 in the evening at my doorstep.

 

F*ck you Amazon. I hope a bird sh*ts on Bezo's bald head. 

Yh they recently changed that here, might be a covid thing (which would make sense) HOWEVER in my case this is definitely preferred as it means I get my stuff on time on the day it was planned and not on the other day because the DHL dude is "beim saufen im Kaufland" and I'm not kidding lmfao

[Bombastinator]

UPS and FEDEX are often multiple times as expensive to ship with unless you both fit their route and have enough product that they can pick up multiple things at once.  If you do they can be cheaper.  This is why you see very large companies use FedEx or ups and basically no one else.  The only reason usps doesn’t flat out beat FedEx and ups at everything is they’ve been banned from certain kinds of delivery.

[Senzelian]

5 hours ago, Mark Kaine said:

Yh they recently changed that here, might be a covid thing (which would make sense) HOWEVER in my case this is definitely preferred as it means I get my stuff on time on the day it was planned and not on the other day because the DHL dude is "beim saufen im Kaufland" and I'm not kidding lmfao

Yeah I heard mixed storries about DHL.

Personally for me they've always been close to perfect. Nothing ever got lost, 99% of the time they are on time and the packages are always in good shape.

 

I'm not against Amazon using their own service, but please let me choose to pick something else. I want to use a company that I trust with my packages and that I want to support. DHL is after all a German business.

[NineEyeRon]

In the UK I’m a huge fan of DPD

[yolosnail]

5 hours ago, NineEyeRon said:

In the UK I’m a huge fan of DPD

DPD, at least in my area, have gone downhill considerably. 

 

The only courier that I've had any luck with over the past year or so has actually been Hermes! But, that's totally down to who your local delivery driver is.

 

I also quite like Amazon's own service, I'm on the border of two different areas, so sometimes I get my deliveries from Newcastle, others Carlisle and I've never had an issue with either. The only thing is you have to basically ignore the time slot they give you, yesterday I had a few things getting delivered and it started off as 1pm to 4pm, and by the time it got to 4pm it was 3:30pm to 6:30pm, with it finally turning up at 5:30pm, but considering it came 70 miles I'm not really surprised!

[Roswell]

13 hours ago, TempestCatto said:

Ever since USPS went from Government to private, things have not been going well. Pay cuts and lack of motivation. People are retiring early, or just leaving for better work/pay.

 

@nicklmg @LinusTech

The USPS is absolutely not private... It’s part of the executive branch. It’s a government agency.