USPS is so frustrating. I’m trying to submit a missing mail search request and it just keeps freezing up.
Yesterday I’d get to the end, after spending 20 minutes filling out information…just to give me an “error…try again later” message.
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So buyer is now requesting a refund. And I have recieved nothing back from the mail search.
This was shipped ground advantage, which supposedly comes with $100 of “insurance.”
Anyone have any experience with submitting claims for insured packages? Success and/or failures? Or am I blazing a trail for CHU nation on this one…?
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Yes I have done many mail searches in the past with Fedex, UPS, USPS, Canada Post. All were quickly resolved and packages were found and delivered shortly. Here’s some quick tips from my experiences that may or may not work for you. Your mileage will vary.
When you call for a mail search just know that the customer service rep will have no further information than what is reported in the tracking history. I will always be kind to them and usually it will be found. Sometimes the packages are a little harder to find and thus I will ask to speak to their supervisor. Now know that a lot of people are very rude to the customer service reps and the supervisors because they have important packages and their mail is lost. There’s even a recording on the messages that they will not tolerate rudeness.
What I do is kill them with kindness. When I’m speaking to the supervisor I will say things like “Hello, how are you (supervisor’s name), just wanted you to know that (customer service rep’s name) is doing a wonderful job and was very helpful but I needed to speak to someone with a little bit more authority, I’m sorry I know that you are very busy”.
Some BS like that. Helps that my voice is very soft spoken and jovial when I’m talking on the phone and I’m very professional at it. Usually this disarms them as they know that you’re not on the phone going to yell at them and that you’re a professional. Just my hunch that when you’re kind to them they go out of their way to put in a little extra work to help find your package. I don’t know if this is true or not but every instance that I’ve had to do this my package was always found very shortly afterwards. I will address the supervisor by name and thanked them for their time.
Just don’t talk to them like Monopolyjackson and you’ll be fine. They have your package, it’s sitting in a truck or in their shipping warehouse somewhere. The supervisor will make sure that your package is found.
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Well, it’s at the distribution center (that’s the last true scan) and they don’t answer the phone. I did speak to my local PO, but they said not much they can do…likely got stuck in one of their “orange bags” that get dumped upon arrival and put aside…which seems a bit far fetched for a package the size of a Gemini mailer. You’d think those bags get used a lot…
Anyway…I was more curious about the claims side…I’ve never had much success getting a claim when USPS clearly damaged something…they could always just deny it as there’s nothing to say it won’t “eventually” show up.
But the buyer wants their money….and I can’t say I blame them…going to drag it out as long as so can in case it suddenly gets delivered…
A supervisor from USPS will have the authority to speak to someone at the distribution center and will make sure someone looks for it. You should have no problems getting your claim if they don’t find your item or that it was damaged. Usually the supervisor tells me if they don’t find it by this date they will process my claim and give me a refund. One time they just initiated a refund for me but somehow they found the package and it they ended up delivering it.
As for customer service, you should refund the customer. It’s not their fault that USPS is effing up and it’s not appropriate for them to be saddled with it. Just refund the customer and deal with the claim from USPS.
They are. I don’t know how their Lunar side packs books, but the DCBS side has always had excellent packaging.
I sold a comic and the buyer told me how it landed in Nashville and disappeared a week ago. Fun. It’s still being tracked, but no updates since it arrived in the black hole of Nashville.
So still nothing back from USPS on the search. But in hindsight I realize a misstep in my handling of this situation.
So I thought I would share this as a PSA:
When you file a missing package search for an item you mailed, and you are entering where you would like the package to go if found…DO NOT put in the buyers address. Put in YOUR address. And just refund the buyer and let it play out.
I made the mistake of requesting it be sent to the buyer if found…so basically if (when) they find it it is going to the buyer…even though they have been refunded.
Apparently I cannot change or modify the request to have it sent to me. So I inadvertently screwed myself as the buyer will get a full refund and I’m out the comic…likely not getting reimbursed by USPS.
So live and learn on that one. Was trying to do the right thing…but didn’t think the scenario through. Don’t think it’d take weeks to find a package in a distribution center…makes you wonder how much mail are they holding on to there that they can’t find my simple package? I’m quite confident it’s 100% intact.
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It finally arrived to them and they gave me a positive rating. They appreciated how I was encouraging when they messaged me about it. I had said to keep me updated and that I would make it right if it never arrived. Thankfully, it eventually did.
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You could ask the buyer to send it to you or refund the refund? If they’re ethical they will. So, you’re probably screwed, sadly.
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The other thing you can do is account for it as a loss. Save the amount and write it off as a damage/loss.
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Aaaaaaand they found it.
Aaaaaaaand they Delivered it.
Aaaaaaand I had already refunded the cost.
Aaaaaaaand F$&@ me.
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I am contacting eBay about it. And contacting the buyer.
You don’t have to do that for me, but I appreciate the offer.
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Ha. Sorry. It should say I would contact them. Meaning if I was in that situation. Wasn’t trying to pick a fight for you
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… See 
Sold this book…getting ready to ship.
You don’t think it’s really going to Arthur Suydam…?
Just a fan who is using his name as his PO…?
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Some creators actively buy old issues of theirs so they can resell them at shows. Wouldn’t surprise me if that’s the case here. Lots of space he could remarque on.
Looked it up, he lives in the East Village. Member of the Society of Illustrators Museum around a few blocks away.
I’m actually a big fan. Have many of his Marvel Zombies homage covers. I’m actually keeping a second copy of this book for the PC. Hoping to see him at NYCC, will be a conversation starter either way.
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