Question regarding USPS

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cfind

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I was hoping a US member could shed some light on a recent purchase for me.

I bought a relatively high end card and upon payment I had the option of upgrading the shipping method. I chose Priority Mail which cost $13.50. I was under the assumption that for $13.50 I would get some sort of tracking, but the seller is telling me there isn't any.

Does that make sense? How is something shipped Priority without any way to track its delivery or speed? If I had known that, I would have just paid the regular airmail charge.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
 
I have always been told by my USPS shop that there is no way to track to Canada. You can track it TO Canada, but no way of tracking it once it passes the border. This is that debate about Canadian shipping. For me to have any kind of trackable parcel, shipping has cost me as much as $20+...I am not sure if this is common or not, but where I live, there is only one post office within 30 miles of me...so I dont have much of a choice
 
vegaspuck said:
Only two ways to get tracking to Canada from the USPS. Registered (slow) and Global Express (expensive). Global Priority doesn't have any type of delivery confirmation which is retarded. If a similar Express Post service from Canada can do it, I don't see how difficult it is to go the other way with Global Priority.
Click to expand...

Does Global Priority actually cost $10+?
 
In the past, I want to say in the early 2000's, International Priority was something like $6 and had the option to trace for a small fee similar to US delivery confirmation. That service was done away with/ the price dramatically increased. When I need to send something traceable to Canada I just use the Registered service which runs about $15 total. I find it takes maybe a few days extra than standard airmail, but not much.
 
Thanks for the clarification guys, I was kind of shocked to hear a $13.50 charge didn't include tracking, but now that I know, I just have to hope it arrives sooner than normal to justify paying that much.
 
Pretty sure Priority is just a faster method of shipping.

If you want any sort of tracking, it would have to be Registered.
 
Burner said:
Pretty sure Priority is just a faster method of shipping.

If you want any sort of tracking, it would have to be Registered.
Click to expand...

From my personal experiences with Priority - it is slower than regular First Class mail. It is more secure from what I am told at the Post Office however it always seems to take an extra couple of days. There is really no good reason for using Priority that I can see.

As mentioned - Registered seems to be the best way to go - just remember not to put any plastic tape on the outside of the package or they lose their minds - paper or cloth tape only!
 
The reason for the Paper Tape on the Registered Mail is so that the Post Office Round Date Stamp can be applied. This ensures that the seal is not broken between when you drop it off and it reaches it's final delivery. If the paper tape seal is broken ANYWHERE along the way the item is to be sent back to senders Post Office.

Some misconceptions that seem to be repeated a lot on these boards (by US and Canadian Members!).

1) There is no more security for Priority Mail over Regular Mail, and there is no guarantee by the US Post Office for ANY delivery times on any service except :
Global Express Guaranteed. The post office does not do anything but suggest the usual delivery times.

2) Registered Mail is kept under lock and key EVERY night along the way from drop off to delivery. This is one reason for the delivery delays - and the other is that Canada Customs seems to think that Registered US Mail is important - so they tend to gold onto it for days and days. Also the statement that Registered cannot be tracked is only partially true - it cannot be tracked online, but the Post Office can actually track the location of these packages.

The cost of Registered Mail to Canada is:
Value $0 - $10.60 + the actual cost of mailing based on weight.
Value $.01 - $100 - $11.50 + the actual cost of mailing based on weight.

Please not that the MAXIMUM insured value on Registered Mail from US to Canada is only about $36!

3) Global Express Mail - there are two classes of Express Mail.

Global Express Guaranteed is $35.50 to start and increases based on weight. Insurance is available for up to $2499 in value (some cases up to $5k!). HOWEVER the amount of insurance is PLAINLY marked on the envelope - and Customs will nail you!. This service averages 1-3 days and is not subject to delivery time guarantees if Canada Customs chooses to hold onto it longer. This is Customs fault and not the US Post Offices!!!!!!! I personally have found that Express Mail Guaranteed - marked as business documents and insured for $250 is almost never stopped or delayed.

Express Mail International is supposed to be 3-5 business days starting at $26.95, but I have found that it almost never gets there in less than 7-10 days and sits in Customs for 3-5 days. This like the above Express Mail can be tracked online - and it often shows where the package is on a day by day basis.

Those are the only 3 ways to actually get tracking on mail from US to Canada.

I know I will get grief on this, but ..............

Almost all of the delays that I see on mail going from the US to Canada involves border crossing and Canada Customs issues. I average about 5 Express Mail and 10-12 Registered Mail items per month - and I watch them closely. I also have a Postal Substation in my building, and we use them a lot both for work and my hobby. As such I get a lot of tracking through their terminal that normal people may not get without jumping through hoops.

If you ask most traders they will tell you that Michigan to Canada is one of the fastest delivery areas for moving mail across the border. The US Mail is by no means perfect - but they are rarely responsible for the delays I see. At the same time - there are ares in the US that seem to be the black hole of Calcutta as far as mail speed. My above statement does not apply to those areas .

Bruce
 
Bruce, Registered is actually trackable online. i have tracked a package all the way to the border, into customs, out of customs, and delivered after that. they provide times of when the package actually changes hands. you can also see how long your item stays in customs... so if it's a few hours or days vs. a few minutes, you can bet you're gonna get it in a very uncomfortable way from the Canadian govt.
 
warsawknuckles - that is why I said partially.
You will find that there are areas during the delivery process that are either unable or unwilling to scan the package at every stop. If the item goes to major metro area - yep you get tracked at every stop. If it goes to a very rural area where the post office is also the corner grocer - sometimes not.

Bruce
 

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