Jenise Hale, retail specialist for the Kentuckiana District, said the inspections were triggered by a drastic increase in media mail postage requests. Hale said the influx occurred after media mail was listed on the eBay Web site as the cheapest way to mail packages. During initial inspections in pilot programs across the country, up to 32 percent of mailings posing as media mail were not media mail, she said.
posted on July 8, 2004 12:10:27 PM new
Won't it be fun when buyers who have already paid for postage get slapped with postage due? I wish the fraudsters much anxiety and trouble.
posted on July 8, 2004 12:25:25 PM new
what does it tell you about ebay as a venue?
cant make money on the item,so make money on shipping.
someone won a persian wool rug for 1,oo and shipping is 70 dollars,won another one at 49.99,and shipping is 170.
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on July 8, 2004 01:50:48 PM new
FINALLY!!! I had hoped there would be a crackdown on this. I also hope there will be a crackdown on sellers who ship items as "gifts" overseas so that bidders can avoid their countries customs charges and tax.
It is a step in the right direction to protect those of us who abide by the law.
posted on July 10, 2004 09:31:00 PM new
Hey Fenix,
Look who was right again.
Yes, yours truly.
Like I have been stating in the past. There are notices posted at most of the Post Offices around here stating to bring in your media mail unsealed because of this abuse. Looks like it is finally getting more nation wide.
posted on July 10, 2004 09:57:37 PM new
What is so special about software, casettes, cd's and LP's that entitles them to a lower rate to send through the postal system? I can understand books, but the rational behind the old "Book Rate" is historical dating back to the horse and buggy days and is going to be harder to justify in the future. Personally, it wouldn't bother me a bit to see the Postal system reinstate the Book Rate for books and magazines only and eliminate media Mail altogether. It would eliminate the abuse and the users of Parcel Post and Priority would no longer have to subsidize a money losing service.
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on July 11, 2004 08:13:44 AM new
I am curious at what end does this inspection take place? I had a shipment of books and I showed the postal clerk the open boxes, then I went back out and taped them up in my car. But would the receivers postal office have the right to inspect them as well? If they want to?
I think thats gotta be annoying if its already passed the sending PO? Another excuse for some of those nosy PO clerks to be opening people's mail too.
Tessa, the inspection can take place at either end.
Recently I received a heavy (almost 5 pounds) package sent media in a wrong-side-out new Priority mailer. My PO clerk noticed it. He slit open one end to check. Fortunately for me, we're all pretty good friends at my post office and he didn't charge me postage due. It would have been $12.15 instead of the $3.10 my seller paid.
posted on July 11, 2004 01:37:20 PM new
Wow Lucy. I did not know that! Or that they did that.
I kinda of feel the same way about me and the USPS here. lol. I dont ship alot of media, and both post offices I use here know me and know I do ebay. So I've never really thought it a problem. One time I did sell a weight watchers cookbook with some other literature and one clerk questioned me on it. Opened it and he said I couldn't send the the twister-like scale chart thing (that came with it) as media. I thought he was being a little stupid about it, as it was all w/watchers stuff and there was a book there. But I took it out and sent it aside 1st class. I think he said some of it was advertising material or something?
But he also is the one who said every piece of mail going out of the country has to have a customs form regardless of weight. (I usually only go to that po when I have to or if its convenient to.)
