Missing USPS Coin Package... Is it gone forever???

Glad you got your coins! I've waited as long as 4 weeks when a package was "in transit" before I received a domestic first class mail package.

One thing to recognize is a good amount of first class, priority, and express mail are, in fact, transported from city to city via either FedEx or UPS under contract to the USPS. FedEx has been doing it for about 13 years and just started a new $10.5B contract in October to continue doing it for the next 10.

I would stay away from UPS' "SmartPost" service. You "book it" through UPS and they pick it up but it's delivered the "last mile" by the USPS. Problem is the USPS doesn't know the package is coming until it's dropped off at the local postal facility so you have to track it through both services. It also takes longer to get the package through it than through either one separately (based upon my experience).

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

I mailed 3 silver proof sets that I sold ebay to a buyer in Colorado. I sent the package on September 6, out signature confirmation from a post office in Philly. 2 weeks went by, no box. Box was last checked in in Florida on September 28. After a few calls to USPS and such i got tired of waiting and I just refunded the buyer his money and called it a loss. He finally received the box 1 day before Halloween, and sent me a check in the mail for the coins...

Why was a box going to the mid-west, wind up in Florida? And why did it take just under 2 months to get to him?

USPS has always been good, this was the first time I had an issue.

good thing the buyer was honest when he got the box...

Kudos to him...

 

You're lucky you got the coins.

About 3-4 years ago I mailed a very well-packaged group of Lincolns. After a few days the buyer said they never arrived. I checked the delivery confirmation and it said "delivery failed". Long story short - the package vanished and I was out about $150.

Dealing with PO over the phone is a bunch of BS. I must have called 10 times over the course of 6 months because the last scan was in Atlanta. That's all they could ever tell me! WORTHLESS

 

Stories like these are the main deterrent when it comes to sending coins to TPG, and the biggest reason why I've never tried it yet.

 

congrts!

You got them faster than I did.

 

That's cool news Frank. I always figured they would show up but this has to be a record for a box of that size.

 

Larry

Yes, I presumed it was lost forever.

 

I have herd about postal employees going through mail. It is sad when you can not trust the mail man. I have never had a problem like that but would not be very happy if i did.

 

i'm pretty surprised at all this i'm reading although I did do my research on USPS and their customer reviews when I made my most expensive 1 item purchase months ago and came up with very conflicting reports. thankfully though, absolutely none of my probably 100 packages have ever gone missing. slowest was slightly over a fortnight. in fact the slowest was from hong kong/ china, the latter of which at worst took 41 days and the former I thought had gone missing until it showed up 2 months later. never lost anything though. sorry to hear about the losses some people have to suffer. guess you never know when you might get unlucky

 

My wife had a package go missing for three weeks. We tracked it from Arizona and witnessed its progress, only to see it drop off the radar further along. Finally, after contacting the shipper and putting in a claim, the danged thing showed up beaten, bruised, bloodied, bested, and battered. The contents were OK though. Poor thing must have gotten 'eaten' by the automated machinery, till the medics found it and sent it on its way..........

 

I'm glad they finally arrived. Congrats!

 

If you want to make SURE your package arrives, send it Registered. Delivery may be slow but it is almost a certainty that it WILL eventually get there.