Seems the USPO is getting worse and worse every day now

I have been trying to check on a few packages for my boys birthdays shipped via the USPO and they seem to never ever update their online data.  Last package i ordered i actually received the package on monday (it was two days late) before they even showed any status at all for it online.

We gave them more money for postage, bailed them out, we put up with rude people who seem to hate their job.  Whats next!! 

Its not like they are going to ever go away, too many people depend on them for other things.  Its just really sad that they just keep getting worse and worse as time goes about providing proper service.  Its sad too that such a landmark of America is falling so short of its duties.

I have never had any luck with their online tracking, so it may not be getting worse as it never worked.

Technically, it's not USPO.....it's USPS, but still the same crappy service no matter how you look at it.  Their tracking leaves a lot to be desired.  One thing I have found that seems to be better than just using their tracking service is another part of USPS.....Informed Delivery.  You can sign up for an acct there and it's free of course, and it seems to be quite a bit better than their tracking service at letting you know what's coming.  There is a tab for seeing your regular mail and a different tab for packages coming your way.  Check it out, it may be more helpful for you.

I just used the USPS's package tracking and it worked pretty good. I used the text message status alerts and my package was delivered when the text indicated. Sounds like I was fortunate this time.

djw2112 said:

I have been trying to check on a few packages for my boys birthdays shipped via the USPO and they seem to never ever update their online data.  Last package i ordered i actually received the package on monday (it was two days late) before they even showed any status at all for it online.

We gave them more money for postage, bailed them out, we put up with rude people who seem to hate their job.  Whats next!! 

Its not like they are going to ever go away, too many people depend on them for other things.  Its just really sad that they just keep getting worse and worse as time goes about providing proper service.  Its sad too that such a landmark of America is falling so short of its duties.

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Its not the USPO or USPS that's the problem. Its up to the Post Master to make sure that processes are being followed. Every post office should be scanning every package with a tracking number to keep it updated. I have noticed that areas with a higher population don't usually keep up with that. They probably skip a good portion of those in order to save time and increase efficiency.

In my neck of the woods, they are always up to date, and things come in and go out the same day, but if I need to order something from the west coast, it usually takes a week before it makes it to the truck and only 2 days to arrive from there.

We had a nightmare scenario last Summer for a while.  We had a terrible postal carrier and we couldn't do anything about it.  If it got towards supper time, this person took the mail home and delivered it the next day.  Sometimes we got no mail for three days at a time.  We complained to the Post Master and were told she couldn't do anything because of this persons status.  Luckily this person finally claimed a back injury and was put on disability.

Now we have had several newer carriers try to take over the route and finally we have one who is working out.

My USPS tracking results have been unimpressive. Usually late and sometimes unavailable until after delivery.  A couple times it has been helpful, though, e.g. tracking showed a package being returned as undeliverable that I was able to intercept at the local PO (a substitute carrier had screwed up).  It's interesting that when Amazon/UPS hands off a package to USPS for local delivery, I get tracking status on Amazon that is well ahead of what shows on the USPS tracking site.  Amazon knows before USPS bothers to tell me about my package.

The local postmaster has almost no control anymore - everything is processed at regional sorting facilities and mostly arrives at a local PO already sorted by routes.  Larger cities of course have enough mail to have their own sorting, but most towns and small cities are essentially just substations for the big regional centers.  I live on a long rural delivery route and my carrier says he now just shows up at the PO to load his SUV from pre-sorted tubs of mail. It's even broken down by segments of his route. He loads up in minutes whereas it used to take him a couple hours.
Fortunately we have a carrier who is competent, hard-working and friendly. Ditto for the carrier at our summer home in NC.  The city route carrier at my daughter's house, just 15 miles away, is just the opposite, rude and unhelpful.

I think they do an incredible job considering all the mail they process each day. And we have the least expensive postage rates. Do they always get it right, no. Am I always happy with their service, no. But I'm not always happy with FedEx, UPS or Amazon either.

https://facts.usps.com/one-day/

Here's a good story.  My neighbor that lives about four houses down from me was expecting a package.  When he came home from work that day, there was a door tag hanging on the front door of his house.  When he retrieved it off of the door it read....package undeliverable...cannot locate address!  True story.

Cooperhawk said:

We had a nightmare scenario last Summer for a while.  We had a terrible postal carrier and we couldn't do anything about it.  If it got towards supper time, this person took the mail home and delivered it the next day.  Sometimes we got no mail for three days at a time.  We complained to the Post Master and were told she couldn't do anything because of this persons status.  Luckily this person finally claimed a back injury and was put on disability.

Now we have had several newer carriers try to take over the route and finally we have one who is working out.

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If a Postmaster said that she couldnt do anything about a carrier who didnt finish his route every day and took mail home, she told you a damned lie! It is the responsibility of the Postmaster do see too it that all the mail is delivered every day, if that means replacing a carrier, or giving the carrier help, that is what they are required to do, but for some incompetent Postmasters it is easier to blame the carrier or the Union than do their job. Then there is the incompetent upper management who will put undo pressure on the Postmaster to not use enough carrier hours to see that all the mail is delivered or enough clerk hours to get what needs to be done every day, such as in Quartzsite every winter.

Then there is the Postal Board of Governors, many of them over the years were appointed by Presidents who wanted the USPS to fail, and the same way with the Postal Rate Commission who sets Postal rates.  Up until a few months ago the Postal Rate Commission did not even have enough members to have a quorum to conduct business, and it may have been that way for over a year, I believe!

xrated said:

Here's a good story.  My neighbor that lives about four houses down from me was expecting a package.  When he came home from work that day, there was a door tag hanging on the front door of his house.  When he retrieved it off of the door it read....package undeliverable...cannot locate address!  True story.

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Sounds like someone was just lazy that day.

Cooperhawk said:

We had a nightmare scenario last Summer for a while.  We had a terrible postal carrier and we couldn't do anything about it.  If it got towards supper time, this person took the mail home and delivered it the next day.  Sometimes we got no mail for three days at a time.  We complained to the Post Master and were told she couldn't do anything because of this persons status.  Luckily this person finally claimed a back injury and was put on disability.

Now we have had several newer carriers try to take over the route and finally we have one who is working out.

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Ours is almost as bad. We frequently see her on the side of the road in town reading her phone or reading the paper. It takes her about 3 hours longer than when we have anyone substituting, but at least we get it every day...as far as I know anyways.

lynnmor said:

I have never had any luck with their online tracking, so it may not be getting worse as it never worked.

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Interesting. I have almost never had a problem with USPS tracking.
UPS, on the other hand, I have had quite a few "adventures" with shipping through them.

Well in my neighborhood the USPS does a sensational job of delivering junk mail.

I have really good luck with the USPS delivery, though I agree the tracking is pretty poor. When shipping things like presents across multiple states, it is rare when anyone else is less expensive, providing I mail parcel post. Even parcel post, the slowest way, gets to the destinations in 3-5 days.

They seem to be pretty good for what I do - packages and mail to the kids - out of state.  AND they live in relative remote areas of ME and SC.
I see them as mainly carring junk mail.

It's a communistic system.  If we have issues with a certain Post Master, there is ZERO way to file a complaint against them, because every complaint for your zip code is vetted by them.  You can not complain to your elected officials because the USPS is not under their jurisdiction.  My current carrier is smoking while driving around talking on her cellphone.  I get mail at times close to 8 pm, and I live in a major city.  I have made absolutely everything I can electronic, I mostly get only junk mail.  Packages, I just try my best to stay on top of them, I generally know when something is out for delivery. 

We probably mail three letters a year. If we buy something for someone we have it delivered directly to that person, usually through Amazon. But generally we do not have a problem with the USPS.  When we lived in the UK the USPS would deliver mail and packages to the APO, I think in NY, and the military took over from there. There was evidence of theft when it arrived at the APO.

I've had very good results with the occasional complaints I've had over the years by going through the USPS Inspector General's office. If your make it clear that the postmaster is part of the problem, they won't vet the complaint via that route.

https://www.uspsoig.gov/form/file-online-complaint

NY_Dutch said:

I've had very good results with the occasional complaints I've had over the years by going through the USPS Inspector General's office. If your make it clear that the postmaster is part of the problem, they won't vet the complaint via that route.

https://www.uspsoig.gov/form/file-online-complaint

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Thank You  )

Dragginourbedaround said:

Am I always happy with their service, no. But I'm not always happy with FedEx, UPS or Amazon either.

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I heard once that UPS and FedEx were going to merge and call it Fed-Up.  ;D ;D ;D