posted on May 14, 2004 08:25:45 PM new
This is a first for me! I mailed out a package on May 11 from the post office. It was going to Australia. Today it appeared back in my home mailbox, with a bright green sticker slapped on the front which reads:
Important Customer Information. We regret that your mail is being returned to you because of heightened security measures. All domestic mail, weighing 16 ounces or over, that bears stamps and all international and military APO/FPO mail weighing 16 ounces or over, MUST be presented to a retail clerk at a post office. Postage that is affixed to the returned mail may be used for re-mailing the item.
Now, I have shipped other packages to other countries that weigh as much and more than this one (23 oz) and have never had this happen. And why the heck didn't the post office clerk that weighed it and stamped the customs form and put the postage label on it in the first place say something to me?!?
So tomorrow morning I get to trundle down to the post office with this package, open it, show them the evil embroidery book inside, and re-seal it...
posted on May 14, 2004 08:32:39 PM new
Wow, that's a new one. I've been sending things to Australia, Japan, etc. with no problems at all. They were even boxes wrapped in brown paper. I don't quite understand what the problem is if the postal clerk put the postage on and stamped the customs form.
posted on May 14, 2004 08:37:42 PM new
Actually, I'm starting to think that I should wait until Monday. The post office that is open on Saturday is not the one I mailed this out from, and I wonder if I should have a word atthat post office to find out why something wasn't said to me when I mailed the book in the first place. But then I might get abit under the collar if I did that, so maybe it's best to just re-mail it & let it go at that...
____________________
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy
posted on May 14, 2004 08:37:48 PM new
Maybe the key here is "that bears stamps", as opposed to a postage sticker created by a PO clerk.
Might be worth checking it out with the postmaster at your local PO. Maybe they will replace the stamps with a PO-generated postage sticker.
Just a thought...
Lucy
Edited to add... Looks like you did have a PO created postage sticker. Maybe the customs people goofed up? Did you have the full-on customs form on it or just the little green one?
[ edited by OhMsLucy on May 14, 2004 08:40 PM ]
posted on May 14, 2004 08:43:02 PM new
It doesn't have any postage stamps on it--just the postage amount label the post office generated itself.
Maybe they x-rayed it and thought the embroidery diagrams in the book for left-handed embroiderers were actually detailed plans to overthrow the world....bwahahahahahaha!!
____________________
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy
posted on May 14, 2004 09:02:15 PM new
Was the postage put on by you from an internet service or by the Postal Clerk? The only thing I can tell is that if the Postal Clerk didn't put the postage on her/himself and ask you the questions about the content then it probably will come back. Maybe they weighed the package in Australia and found it to be heavier than what the postage suggested put on here in the states. The postal service is looking every which way to make sure what is mailed is legal.
posted on May 14, 2004 09:08:49 PM new
Bunni...The proper way to mail that package is to present it to the clerk at the window. As he pulls it toward him, you take a Polaroid picture of him. Attach the picture to the top of the package securely with transparent tape. Attach a note which states that any future returns should go to the dummy in the picture. I gurantee, you'll never see that package again.
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on May 14, 2004 09:13:31 PM new
Libra: no, I handed it to the clerk to be weighed, and she put the postage sticker on herself. And she stamped the green customs sticker, too.
Sparks: hey, maybe I'll try that
____________________
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy
posted on May 14, 2004 09:19:48 PM newDid you have the full-on customs form on it or just the little green one
I used the newer Large green customs label they have now, PS Form 2976.
____________________
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy
posted on May 14, 2004 09:26:42 PM new
When I say full-on customs form I mean PS Form 2976-A, Customs Declaration and Dispatch Note. It's a four-part carbon form that is put in a stick-on envelope. It has more detail on it than the green sticker.
I don't know for sure, but maybe which one you use does make a difference when the parcel is going through customs.
posted on May 14, 2004 09:32:52 PM new
Oh, the only time I've been told I have to use that one is when a package weighed over 4 pounds. That's what the post office specifically told me--that the 4+ pound weight meant I had to use the 4-part form. I filled it out there & they stuck it on after removing my regular customs slip. And, come to think of it--that package would have been more a candidate for this "heightened security measure" crap than the slim package I got back today!
____________________
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy
posted on May 14, 2004 10:49:27 PM new
It never ceases to amaze me how post offices around the US all work different, but have the same Manuel. They seem to have their own way of doing things and not compatible with another one. I wonder how we can all get it right and they can't. It seems like when the postage started through PayPal I almost had to have an inservice with my postal clerk. Same with printing the labels. I gave up with the 13 cents on 1st class because he told me it wasn't necessary. I said it was but he is the boss so I let him do it his way. It's to bad I have to go there for insurance. Now I know I can get it on line but then that's another CC I need. I pay all my fees with my paypal account so I don't need that dredded card. Keeps me out of trouble.
posted on May 14, 2004 11:08:44 PM new
Bunni - to tell you the truth, this sounds like the only thing was was done wrong was that it was returned to you. That sticker is used almost exclusively for people that attack their own postage and then drop off the package at a drop point or just pass the tub over the counter. You did everything right. You used the right customs form, you dealt directly with a postal clerk who had the opportunity to evaluate you and confirm that there were no potentially dangerous contents. Someone just screwed up on the postal end.
~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~
If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
[ edited by fenix03 on May 14, 2004 11:09 PM ]
posted on May 15, 2004 02:18:15 AM new
Is it possible this package was chosen by random at customs? The same as audits are done by the IRS?
Just fishing here people. If everything else is correct, then it must be a random thing. Why must they return it to you? Why don't they just open and reseal it after checking?
Weird, just too too weird! Big brother at work making our life a living hell!
posted on May 15, 2004 03:40:07 AM new
This has happened to me THREE times over the past six months -- all three times due to bozo-incompetant clerk error, & MEnRALPHIE are sick of it!
Apparently, it has to be OBVIOUS that the package was presented to a clerk, therefore, it is required that the clerk POSTMARKS THE CUSTOMS FORM upon acceptance -- HOWEVER, unless I SPECIFICALLY instruct the clerk to do so, THEY DON'T!
HOW STUPID?? Especially, as I don't print my own postage for international shipping, hey, ain't it OBVIOUS that I presented to a clerk, since it has a clerk's POSTAGE STRIP ON IT????
posted on May 15, 2004 04:01:49 AM new
No doubt this is part of an effort by the world to prevent the export of US state-sponsored terrorism (you know - like the mining of foreign harbors in peacetime)... tongue firmly in cheek
posted on May 15, 2004 07:14:21 AM new
sheesh. Well my PO said it had to be presented at the counter and I said, hello? for what? For you to look at me? And then he backtracked and said well ok, just make sure you tell one of us you have a customs package. As far as Customs go, I think he said it all goes out of New York or something, and once it hits that point, that's where it bounces back. The Official Customs, not PO.
He said all packages going overseas must have a label on it that looks like their postage meter stamp with or without the postage price on it. Showing that a clerk has seen it and processed it. (the long narrow white label) That's what they're looking for. Mine because of my Endicia Postage would have a label but not the postage printed on it...or it shows .000 something like that.
posted on May 15, 2004 07:51:29 AM new why do some of you assume it has gone to australia??
Well,I don't know how far it got, but it would be interesting to know where it was for 3 days! I took it tothe post office on May 11, and it landed in my mailbox yesterday on the 14th. So did they sit there staring at it in fear and anxiety for 3 days?
I don't know, it's just weird. Hopefully I'll get some answers when I goto the post office I mailed it from on Monday. I've emailed the buyer to explain why his package will take a little longer than we'd thought to get there--haven't heard back yet but I hope he takes it in good grace.
____________________
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy
posted on May 15, 2004 11:53:45 AM new
We don't know all the hows and whys, we have to trust that this procedure helps in the fight against terrorism. So, until everyone gets comfortable with the 'new' system, we will suffer some discomfiture. Please help the clerks to understand the requirements, they are probably the same buyers that don't read TOS.
posted on May 15, 2004 12:08:48 PM new
This is not new people and it has nothing to do with 9/11. This is not even a customs regulation. This a domestic regulation dating back pre 9/11..... Use your imagination and your pop history knowledge.... domestic mail... over 1 lb..... security issue... need postal officials to see the mailer....
Unibomber.
~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~
If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
posted on May 15, 2004 09:29:48 PM new
Regular post office.
____________________
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy
I went to the post office I'd mailed the package from this morning with the package and asked the clerk why it had landed back in my mailbox.
She looked the package over, then took it into the back. After a few minutes she came back & said that she'd shown it to her supervisor and that they both had the same reaction: neither of them could understand why this had happened, and that I had done everything right.
They removed the bright green sticker that had been slapped on when it was returned to me, and re-stamped the package with today's date and sent it on its way again.
So I guess this is just one of those unsolveable post office mysteries that crop up every once in a while... Fortunately, my buyer is being very understanding about the extra week that it will be taking his package to arrive.
____________________
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy
