Anyone else notice USPS's quality of service has severely declined?

[Maverick44]

A few years ago, USPS was by far the most reliable carrier in my area. I think I might have had one minor issue in several years. I've had two issues with them this week.

1. A package was supposed to be delivered Monday. At no point did the tracking update after it left the the original USPS location. It finally showed up yesterday (Wed). Weird, but not that big of a deal.

2. Another package was supposed to be delivered on Monday. They sent it to the wrong town about an hour North of me, attempted delivery, realized their mistake, and then sent it back to Tulsa which finally sent it to the right town. Here's the thing that pisses me off. Yesterday, the only thing they put in the mailbox was a single letter. The package they were supposed to be delivered is small. It's a 2" bolt and a part the size of a Zippo. There's absolutely no reason why it couldn't fit in the mailbox. They didn't deliver it, and they didn't leave a notice. Instead, they waited until almost 7:30pm to update the tracking. They claim they attempted to deliver it (lie), could not find a suitable place to leave it (lie) and left a notice (lie). I had to reschedule a delivery attempt of that. This is not the first time they've pulled this stunt.

I can deal with stuff being late. Shit happens. The lies do not sit well with me though. That's bullcrap.

 

[TX14239]

I noticed this back in around 2012, unfortunately.


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[Axxe55]

I'm thinking it might be because they rotate carriers at times. Different carriers, with different attitudes towards the job, so therefor different work ethics.

And couple that with it's very difficult to get fired from the USPS. You have to really, really screw up badly.

 

[Kotadaas]

1. The Packages get scanned when it gets to every stop along the way and including your local PO. If there were no tracking updates it was probably due to the system being down. The clerks will still case it and the carriers will still deliver. USPS runs 24/7

2. Most likely a new carrier misplaced the package and didn't find it till the end of their route, and brought it back to the PO. Based on the timestamp, it 100% was their supervisor who had to input it to the system, since NO package can be unaccounted for. Absolutely sucks but theres not much anyone can do. Most PO HAVE to be closed by 8pm, and that new carrier (CCA or RCA) is long home.

The sending it to the wrong town happens occasionally when the automated sorter read the address wrong (smudges on address, etc) or it get knocked into/misplaced into wrong sorting bin. Sounds like the machine read it wrong, and the process is automated untill the actual carrier has to deliver it

I'm thinking it might be because they rotate carriers at times. Different carriers, with different attitudes towards the job, so therefor different work ethics.

And couple that with it's very difficult to get fired from the USPS. You have to really, really screw up badly.

Carriers have a route that they always work, and the new carriers work as their substitutes on the days they take off for their weekends. Once a year carriers can bid for new routes based on seniority, but other than that its 90% your usual carrier. Id put money down that the new carriers keep getting fired or quitting and they keep getting new ones, expecially if you live in the county. Its taxing on your car to be a RCA. Those that last over a year or 90days work (since they are subs, usually the year comes first) will get union benefits and protections, but not before. Your normal carriers have to screw up bad but the new carriers get one chance or they are out

 

[Lonesome Dove]

USPS just needs to close its doors.

 

[pronstar]

Yeah I recently sent a certified letter to Indiana.
It literally took a month to arrive.

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[baboon]

When I lived in Houston I thought very little of the USPS. How sending something registered mail could be totally refused at one post office but readily excepted at another?

Then there was getting mail delivered at 7:30 pm by a carrier yapping on their cell phone wearing a head light totally puking up!

Knocking on the office door of the postmaster door was like knocking on Biden head!

 

[DubiousDan]

I ordered a shell holder from Midway that shipped on 7/14, still waiting. I'm guessing it will never arrive or was delivered to the wrong address.

 

[striker55]

Yeah they suck. How about receiving a letter with a check, envelope open, no check. Or a gift card never getting to the recipient?

 

[Brains]

Hey, they're good enough for ballots.

 

[oldag]

Service went seriously downhill decades ago.

 

[m5215]

USPS is a total mess since this covid BS started. I recently had 2 packages that according to USPS tracking were delivered and they were not. Now I am in an uphill battle with the vendor that I purchased the items from because all they can see is that it was delivered to me.

In another instance a package from Germany took 4 months to reach me. It left Germany in a timely manner but once USPS received it everything went to hell.

I am now asking anyone that I buy items from to NOT send them via USPS even if I have to pay extra for shipping. I have already noticed some vendors now refuse to ship via USPS.

 

[TAZ]

USPS has always sucked at anything other than stuffing mailboxes full of unwanted junk. Typical government bureaucracy, gets you crap you don’t want or need, but screws you on the stuff you want


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[Axxe55]

And the price of stamps will continue to go up.

 

[DubiousDan]

My health insurance wants me to use an online pharmacy which would be convenient if they didn't use USPS. I've received other peoples packages and have had packages that I've never received that USPS claimed they have delivered. No way I'll trust them with my meds.

 

[avvidclif]

That's delivery problems. Now can you imagine the problems with a damaged package? I don't even bother anymore on filing a claim.

 

[Sasquatch]

Sadly, they are the most reliable carrier here. They're not even good. We had friends send us a care package for our new puppers - it never arrived. I have USPS Informed Delivery, they showed that the item was sent and marked "delivered" but it was never delivered to us. None of the neighbors on our neighborhood facebook page copped to getting it, but we have half a dozen "did you get my mail/package" threads a week in the group - we recently got a new letter carrier. This one is one of the contract/rural route drivers, driving her own vehicle. She's only been our carrier a few weeks, so we'll see how she does.

The other carriers we had - both sucked ass. And one of them thought our 20mph neighborhood speed limit didn't apply to her. They're all public, county roads (all dead end roads at that) but she would easily zip 30-40mph between boxes. The shop must hate dealing with her LLV, she's gotta burn thru brakes every month.

FedEx is by far the worst offender though. Literally the shittiest service ever. Drivers either mis-deliver to other houses, or they throw packages willy nilly on the lawn, in the mud, in the ditch. They're all too goddamned scared to drive the 100 yards from the road to the house, despite the big tear drop driveway.

As much as I loathe them, we've done more and more business with Amazon when buying things because their drivers actually drive in, leave packages on the porch, and shit almost never goes missing. When it has, they reship the merch *and* give you extra credit for your trouble. If Amazon were to branch out and offer a shipping service like FedEx/UPS, or if you could break the gubmint monopoly on first class mail - the USPS could be dissolved and Amazon would be a front-runner for mail and package delivery. Bezos could build a whole fleet of his dick-shaped spaceships at that point and just become Darth Tater.

 

[Bozz10mm]

Well, I'm still waiting on this item. Don't know if Amazon didn't drop it off or USPS didn't pick it up.

 

[pronstar]

USPS has always sucked at anything other than stuffing mailboxes full of unwanted junk. Typical government bureaucracy, gets you crap you don’t want or need, but screws you on the stuff you want


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Agreed.
Junk mail is a cash cow for them…


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[SA_Steve]

Mostly service has been good for me but a special tool I ordered last year spent 10 days bouncing across the country before finally getting to me. Seems their computer tracking could identify things badly off course. Easy for me to see its travels.