A word of advice

If you are going to send anything through the USPS that is of value to you then I would recommend REGISTER mail. This mail is completely seperate from the rest of the mail that gets sent out. Most post offices use whats called CONTRACTORS. ( which I was ) All mail that is to be delivered has to get loaded onto a semi. Any registered mail is put into LOCK bags. The person from the post office signs then the driver signs. Once the driver arrives at his or her destination, the bags must be signed for again. Each pick up and Delivery of these bags is followed with a signature. I can personally say that I have had to pick up bags from coin collectors, mint, and stamp stock. These bags are usually light, but when you get the HEAVY ones you know there is something serious in there. I can say that nothing and I mean NOTHING in thoes bags are worth 25 years in a FEDERAL PEN. Registered mail is followed more closely than regular mail.

 

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This ought to be interesting news to the US Mint which uses Fedex for all shipments above a certain value. You can request registered mail, but you have to request it and you have to pay extra for it. It also ought to be news to the major auction houses, like Heritage who use Fedex for shipments.

Has anyone here ever had to make a claim with the US Mint for coins shipped by Fedex?

 

Varied Government agencies, including the U.S. Mint, contract with FedEx. The terms and conditions of these specialized contracts take precedence over the "public" Terms and Conditions. Thus, the shipment of coins is not prohibited since that is a term of the contract.

One would have to have A LOT of shipping traffic to be able to get a special contract like that with FedEx or UPS. I believe the USPS also has similar contracts with UPS with some mail shipments, if I am not mistaken.

 

Could you start a thread LSM. I have had my problems with the USPS and it's mainly been ignorance on the employees part.

I realize there are a gazillion rules but if THEY can't understand them how can we?

clembo

 

well said. in other words they can use fedex they also have huge insurance contracts but if an individual tries it there is only pain

 

Thanks for the information. The seller I mentioned who lost the 1955 DDO switched to Fedex. I"m sure he'll want to know to use registered mail instead.

I'm amazed that I haven't heard this before. What about the many independent dealers that aren't the size of Heritage Auctions Galleries? Many of them use Fedex also.

I don't want people to lose sight of my original point. Priority mail has no tracking information other than confirmation of mailing and delivery; nothing in between. Priority mail seems to be the default for most auctions on ebay and it seems that people are taking big risks by using it. Even when something is insured, some items are not replaceable.

 

I recently had an interesting experience with the USPO. I bought a coin on eBay (nothing expensive) and the seller mailed it Delivery Confirmation. I got a note in my PO Box telling me I had an item with $2.82 Postage Due. It was the coin.

The clerk explained that the sender had mailed the envelope First Class but Delivery Confirmation requires Priority Mail and I would have to pay the difference between First Class and Priority. (I think he said Priority. It could have been something else. Anyway, whatever it was costs more than First Class.) I asked him why the Post Office accepted the envelope with insufficient postage but still sent it with Delivery Confirmation. He agreed and cancelled the Postage Due since it was a screw up by the USPS, not me.

I contacted the seller and told him about it. He said his Post Office said that it was fine to mail something First Class with Delivery Confirmation.

Even the USPS cannot figure out its rules.

 

just as a follow up on that i have personally been told all of the above as well in addition to it being required a certain thickiness weight for delivery confirmation. Going tot he post office is a lottery. If its stuff worth a few dollars i usualy let it go if its expensive stuff i end up with a fight. i would love to use UPS or Fedex but sadly cant even though i get a 90
% disc at fedex figure that one out

 

Yes, there are requirements for delivery confirmation. However, it does not have to be priority mail. They even have a rate published for first class mail. Here is the rule/fate for electronic mail services.

 

That's clear as mud. It all comes down to who you talk to. The problem is there are two USPS employees - one on the sending end and one on the receiving end. There is a high probablility that they will not be in agreement.

 

That's when the DMM (Domestic Mail Manual) comes in handy. There *should* be a copy of the DMM at EVERY service counter available for the Postal Employee to refer to. Delivery confirmation is available for all Priority LETTERS as well as packages. However, only First Class PARCELS may have Delivery Confirmation. First Class LETTERS are excluded. As well, there are additional requirements for a First Class Parcel to meet in order to qualify for Delivery Confirmation:

If those requirements for First Class Parcel are not met, then the "package" is supposed to be delivered via the Priority Mail rate since both parcel and letter may have Delivery Confirmation without restriction other than the postage, addresses, and labels all fit on the face of the package.

Where the disagreement occurs is in the requirements, for instance, thickness. If a bubble mailer was measured at just over 3/4" at the originating office, but lost air in transport, I could very well see the Post Office charging the extra for Priority because the "letter" no longer fit within the requirements for First Class Parcel. And rightly, in my opinion, the receiving Postal Employee did the right thing waiving the fee because the originating office was in error and omission if they did not measure the required dimensions properly.


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My bad! Forgot to put in the section number. DMM Section 503, Extra Services