[aceman67]

So, on January 7th, I ordered the PS4 Complete Edition of Final Fantasy XIV so I can play from the comfiness of my couch, and as it turns out, ordering it from the SquareENIX store directly was a mistake, despite it being 50% off at the time.

How does this relate to how bad the US Postal Service is? Let me tell you.

The package was originally handled by DHL, and the order was promptly sent to them, processed quickly and handed off to the USPS within hours of me placing the order. They're a German company, so efficiency and promptness is to be expected I guess?

It then was sent to the USPS' sorting facility in Los Angeles, where it didn't even show up on their tracking until the 9th. It was then processed 3 times in the same sorting facility where it was then handed off to their international sorting facility (I would assume it's in the same building?), where I got the notification that "Item has left originating country"

I thought "Great, it'll be here soon!".

No.

No, it would not.

It would then leave and return to the same sorting facility 3 times in one day on the 9th.

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.............../...................................................,:"........./
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............./__.(....."~-,_..............................,:`........../
.........../(_...."~,_........"~,_....................,:`........_/
..........{.._$;_......"=,_......."-,_.......,.-~-,},.~";/....}
...........((.....*~_......."=-._......";,,./`..../"............../
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...................................,

There was then radio silence on the package until the 22nd, where, again, it would 'leave' the 'originating country' twice, until, finally, it actually leaves the country and landed in the Vancouver, BC sorting facility with the Canada Post on the 24th.

Time for the professionals to take over.

Package accepted on the 24th at 6pm, sent for customs clearing.
Package cleared customs on the 25th at 5am, and leaves sorting facility.
Package arrives on the 26th in Calgary, AB at 4am.
Package leaves Calgary, AB on the 28th, 3am
Package arrives at my Local Post Office, Notice left in my PO Box for package pickup at 2pm.

This package has been on a whirlwind adventure and I shudder to think what kind of condition it's in since it obviously was not delivered in a timely manner. Keep in mind that I paid for standard shipping, which is 6-10 business days, and it took 16 business days.

Moral of the story: If given the option, pay for a courier company to ship your order, it's worth the money.

[Taku]

I had a similar issue with a package that was handed off between DHL and USPS. DHL received and processed the package, and shipped it to the local USPS sorting facility. It was promptly reported that there was an issue with the delivery and that it may be up to two days late. The package was not reported as being received by USPS even though DHL said they had handed it off. There was a weekend in the middle of the handoff, so I thought that might have been the problem. I checked daily to see if USPS had processed the package, and it still said they had not received it from DHL. It was set to be delivered on Tuesday. Tuesday morning, I checked the USPS site and they were STILL claiming that delivery was going to be delayed because of some ambiguous difficulty. Literally minutes after reading the USPS site, there was a knock at the door and the postman handed me the package. By the time I got back to my computer and checked the delivery status, it had changed from, "We have no idea where your package is" to "Delivered." This was the first time I have ever had an issue with USPS. Typically they are very good at tracking and delivering the weird stuff I order.

[aceman67]

I'll update this rant when I pick the package up after work.


I really do hope it's in good condition or I'm going to be pissed.

[Dark]

Funny enough, DHL is known to be questionable around here.

Whereas the USPS has been fairly reliable - something went from Amazon's US warehouse to the USPS to Canada Post into my hands overnight. It was free shipping with an expected delivery of 2 weeks.

Really boils down to the local employees.

[Stormy]

I know the routine well.......

[Sul-Matuul]

Typically they are very good at tracking and delivering the weird stuff I order.

Mail order brides......?

[Taku]

Mail order brides......?

From Japan. 絶対領域!!