Media Mail fraud

[theteamsetguy]

Any idea on how to handle the a seller taking advantage of media mail.

A few months back I buy some trading cards on eBay and the seller mailed it media mail. I leave the seller neutral feedback indicating the item was mailed media mail. The seller messages me and said he was in the hospital recovering from cancer and a friend mailed it for him. He indicated the friend thought it was a book because that is what he usually sells. Unless he uses a different ID for books he was full of it. He also uses forever stamps and not eBay labels.

I make another purchase on ebay of trading cards and received it today only to see it was mailed by media mail. The name on the return label looked familiar. Long and behold it was the same guy that said his friend mail  it media mail by mistake before. I didn't pay attention to who seller was.

What can we do about this? It is not fair that these sellers take advantage of the USPS. Honest sellers pay higher rates because of clowns like this. 

[tobaccocardyahoo]

Report him to the postal inspection service.

[onlinecentral]

In a perfect world, there would be a Blocked Seller List. I add IDs to a notepad file and check that before making purchases.

[onefootflippers]

The stamps are probably fake as well.

[chapeau-noir]

I hate when sellers do that. I was once sent one of those little mart-style espresso machines media mail. Fortunately, the USPS is cracking down on that.

[retro_entertainment_collectibles]

---

@tobaccocardyahoo wrote:

Report him to the postal inspection service.

---

They won't do anything.  I was on the Postal Community Council (PCC) for years.  Postal system reminds me of local schools systems, "What happens in Dodge and what is Dodge prefer stay in Dodge."  It's bled money for ages gifting sweetheart benefit/retirements much as public schools did pretty much no matter the employee's even elements of Support Staff.  I'd worked Jack of All Trades Master of None for near 15 years right out of High School for district.  At 10 years in I had five weeks vacation time paid, three personal days and two hundred paid sick days.  Unionization was such a horrible thing in business, so much that most every public service entity has unions atop their unions now.

Media Mail is supposed to be checked at point of receipt but if you're a regular and know the clerks they dont do it.  Its an effort and they just dont do it.  That is to say, accepted and later checked before it ever leaves that post office or the main in the area.

I suspect the USPS is going to do away with it anyways.

[1786davycrockett]

@theteamsetguy 

This time, instead of a neutral feedback, send him a holiday present of a negative feedback.

Gift-wrapped, of course, with your comments regarding the misuse of USPS Media rates by this seller.

Happy holidays.

[theteamsetguy]

@retro_entertainment_collectibles ,

It’s obvious they didn’t because it should be obvious that the size of the package it couldn’t be a book. Plus if you shook the package you could feel the cards moving slightly.

The clerk that put the tracking label on the package at the post office should have noticed it could’ve a book, or dvd.

[theteamsetguy]

@onefootflippers ,

And that’s another story.

[retro_entertainment_collectibles]

---

@theteamsetguy wrote:

@retro_entertainment_collectibles ,

It’s obvious they didn’t because it should be obvious that the size of the package it couldn’t be a book. Plus if you shook the package you could feel the cards moving slightly.

The clerk that put the tracking label on the package at the post office should have noticed it could’ve a book, or dvd.

---

I get it but they generally just don't care.  They'd need open it, inspect it, close it, stamp it front back "Media Mail Rejected" (at least thats what the red ink stamp used to say), they have to cover the actual recipient label, write in the return address and back into the mail system through the main post office.  I know many a clerk locally some even still there from the days I was assigned a clerk walking in the door.  We'd come in daily with 5-8 of those big white dingy Postal Sacks filled with Priority Mail to process, software was once popular!  Back then some of the sites were real hum-dingers like uBid.  uBid would not allow us use our own merchant account and secure server take cards, nope.  They did the charges and bi-weekly issue a check assuming they didn't need to pay Paul in which case, monthly.  Incur a heap of shipping expense awaiting they're payment, it was also the absolute worst site to relist!  OH MY GOSH.  Run Auctions every with two days spans, so 15 a month per product all manual.  So you list, go through two confirmation screens, back button twice, adjust the start date, over and over and over and over.  Used to take me eight hours a day, three days straight.  Dreadful, simply dreadful.  I even offered to code em' up a .CSV file muncher but nope.

I suspect they'll gonna cream media mail sometime perhaps as early as next year at some point or perhaps call it "Book rate" and all else wont fly.  They're trying become profitable and vowed Congress they would yet still bled like 6.5 Billion Dollars in 2023, incomprehensible number!

As I'm learning need be done, break that down, 18 million dollars a day at 365 days in the year, $742,000 an hour.

"Hooston!  Oh my we have a problem!"

"I'm sorry...  Do you an appointment?"

"I know, lets just boost the rates AGAIN so we knock low-ticket merchandise of the face of the Internet... AND... Don't honor high ticket insurance!  It sings!"

Volume goes down, do it again!  Do it again!

Never hear a word about, "Lets stagger deliveries every other day."  Nope.

The Postal Service stands as one of the finer examples of being its own enemy.  At least the Public School System hire good PR people to hoodwink the public proper.

[lux.ra_14]

---

@retro_entertainment_collectibles wrote:

I suspect the USPS is going to do away with it anyways.

I've heard this speculation for all of the 30 years that I've been using (not abusing) Media Mail.

It obviously hasn't happened, and I suspect it won't. What USPS has done instead is raise rates significantly for MM in recent years.  It's no longer dirt cheap, but it also isn't as slow as it used to be.

---

[lux.ra_14]

---

@theteamsetguy wrote:

It’s obvious they didn’t because it should be obvious that the size of the package it couldn’t be a book.

---

There's no obvious size for a book.  A true miniature is less than 3 inches tall, while a folio can be 25 inches or more.

I shipped an early 19th century folio that looked more like a large piece of framed art when packaged in a long, flat box. I didn't want it opened en route, so I brought it to my PO,  showed a clerk it was indeed a book and then finished packaging it there.  She marked the exterior of the package as inspected and approved for MM and off it went.

[nobody*s_perfect]

The only resource that MIGHT possibly care about this abuse is the seller's own local Post Office.  Their staffing levels are based in part on sales volume, so every package that pays for a MM label rather than the correct rate for Priority or Ground Advantage is a few dollars off of their total for the year.  As noted in other posts, they might not actually care, but you could try calling them.

Look up the PO for the sender's ZIP Code, and then click on the little red arrow so their phone number shows up.  

https://tools.usps.com/find-location.htm? 

OTOH, an eBay "Standard envelope" or a Ground Advantage label for a package up to 4 ounces going to Zones 1 - 6 costs LESS than sending via MM, so the PO might be letting choosing to let those MM items through.

[deserdog]

Exactly what I would do. 

[retro_entertainment_collectibles]

---

@lux.ra_14 wrote:

---

@retro_entertainment_collectibles wrote:

I suspect the USPS is going to do away with it anyways.

I've heard this speculation for all of the 30 years that I've been using (not abusing) Media Mail.

It obviously hasn't happened, and I suspect it won't. What USPS has done instead is raise rates significantly for MM in recent years.  It's no longer dirt cheap, but it also isn't as slow as it used to be.

---

---

As I said, I suspect they'll deem it book rate or do away with it.  Media mail came about for printed matter long long long time, 1930's if my memory is intact.  The reason isn't so much its usefulness, the problem is when media mail moves any real distance zone's wise, they loose money, significant money.  Freighting within a zone USPS uses its own assets but the moment that changes, its almost always UPS Tractor Trailer or UPS Rail Freighting.  Compare USPS Media rates to UPS Ground Freight Rates, see the disparity.

Amazon was the #1 mailer of everything parcel and still does enormous business with the USPS but the USPS has vowed to become profitable and they've basically six years left to do so.  Mr. Trump made Mr. LaJoy Postmaster General for several reasons and if anyone care recall news of the day it was quite controversial for several reasons.  The Postmaster in place wasn't in favor per se of playing with the issues of mail in ballots, FPO ballots and was thrown under the bus in statement of the USPS bleeding money.  Reality was he wanted mail in ballots ended, thats what was testified to Congress by White House Staff albeit, thats not illegal.

The reason in the last rate hike statement of better policing of Media Mail was put there is because pretty much every single media mail package looses money.  It was intended for educational materials back in the day, textbooks and such.

See this concept of, "America needs be run like a business" has made a ton of sense to daft voters along with the "Make America Great Again", "Put America First" statements, thats all they are, statements, advertising taglines.  American has ALWAYS put itself first since inception, thats the truth.  America has also always been Great at doing so and are by far in the way the most generous people in the world.  The only nation of any size in todays world that run in part like "business" is the nation of China.  Yet folks here never make that connection... Aka: I work for some business, do I want my entire life being run like that?

Believe I've talked to people, "Oh that's not what I mean when I say that!"

Well of course not, but IT IS WHAT WASHINGTON DC hears because you can't have both.  You cant have "I want government run like business" without how business runs its workers, assets and more governed.  Amazing how daft people can be.  Life here in America has separation of powers, laws in support of that even to point of localization.  That's why others around the globe have wanted come here for ages upon ages among other reasons.

The ONLY way the USPS gonna stop the money bleed is for Tier A retiree's to go away, Tier B retiree's to go away, stagger mail delivery and make moves towards a whole lot more Paid PO Boxes.  Several years ago (like 20) Walmart offered up a concept of Paid PO Boxes at retail locations, Postal Service flipped out! NO WAY!

So now at many a Walmart you see things like a Subway store, a bank accessor on and on.  Walmart was seeking to help the situation, believe it or not as brutal a competitor as Walmart is in resale they like polish their image in communities.  They do allot of giving.

Anyway time will tell.  What we do know is the vow to become profitable is real and the rates are going to continue to rise.  I'm guessing due to the whopping losses in 2023 come 2024's late stage rate increases (not yet announced) are going to be quite significant.