Stuff about shipping you might not know
(aka the nerdiest thing I have ever done.)
Holiday season upon us but also for just in general (this America-centric and also still just my limited knowledge so additions are welcome). Some people I talked to didn’t seem to know these things, so I thought I would share.
Quick difference between shipping and mailing:
Shipping means a courier service, UPS, FedEx, DHL, GSO, etc… Courier services are essentially offering you door-to-door delivery, which is why they cost more. They also have slightly different rules the Postal Service about what they will and will not ship. Like with any corporation, read the fine print when it comes to dealing with them. Courier services automatically give you a tracking number, and if you are shipping to another country, they will track it even through Customs.
Mailing is using the United States Postal Service. Mail means lower prices (It’s cheaper because it’s Federal and not a private company) but that tracking is not available on all items. They also have rules for what they will and will not ship (found on their website USPS.com). (The USPS gets a bad rep for things that are largely not its fault. Congress has been undermining them for years. Because Republicans want it privatized, which would make our mail system about as bad as our cable/internet situation where Comcast and AT&T and the other giants can set their own prices for terrible service because consumers would not have another option, but thaaaat’s a rant for another day.)
Mailing: Usually (but not always) your cheapest option. Mail has several different rates for what you are shipping. These are a few of them.
Media Mail: if you are just shipping books (and only books) this is the cheapest rate, but also the slowest. It is supposed to be for educational material, and all packages going media mail are subject to inspection. Putting anything in with the books, even a card, is a no-no. You can also ship CDs and, I think, movies this way, but they are supposed to be educational, and I’ve never personally tested this. This rate comes with a tracking number. Always get the tracking number.
Parcel Post or First Class Package is also the cheap route. The package has to weigh under a certain amount of ounces (I think it has to be under a pound) for First Class Pkg. These also come with tracking. Always get the tracking number. I cannot stress this enough.
Priority boxes are wonderful. Go to your post office and grab some. They are free. You can fit anything into those boxes and it will ship at the box’s listed price (provided you don’t go over the weight limit, or you aren’t shipping something illegal/forbidden). They also have Priority envelopes. Grab some of those too. Priority’s travel time is usually only a few days, and you get tracking. (Yes, get the tracking number.)
International Mailing: This will always be your cheapest option for international shipping. Bad news is, your tracking number will only work within the United States and US territories. Once your mail/package is in another country, it’s handled by that country’s postal service.
(Quick note about Certified Letters. Certified Letters are for things where you not only want tracking, but you want proof of delivery in the form of a paper with a signature written on it. People usually send them to places like the IRS or to people they are doing business with.)
Insurance is up to you. You have to pay extra to insure items with USPS, although I believe their base rate is about $50.
I believe the Postal Service also has a special rate (and special boxes) for shipping to US military bases.
Go into your post office with your mail or packages ready to go and it will save you so much time. Addresses should be on the envelope or the box you are mailing.
Bring in your packages already taped! Both the USPS and many courier services will charge you for tape.
Many of the same rules apply. It will save you time if you bring in your packages taped up and addressed and ready to go, just know that the shipping service will generally print out a label to put on the package as well, so leave some room.
Courier services automatically come with tracking. Keep your receipt. Track everything. These are giant corporations and you have to watch out for your own stuff, kids.
Because Couriers like to offer themselves as Guaranteed services, some things you should know: They will generally have a basic or ground rate. This is their cheapest. After that, they will push other Guaranteed services called things like Express or Next Day. Generally, these services do work if that is what you need. And if they don’t, the companies should give you a refund—If you ask for one. … I say should because these are corporations and there is always fine print. Be sure to check it. And they will not voluntarily return your money without prompting.
Courier services can also offer proof of delivery, usually in the form of an electronic signature. Most will charge extra for that.
They are also good for international shipping if you want your item/s tracked all the way into the other country. They can also be faster at shipping internationally (but not always).
Unlike the Postal Service, courier services can ship alcohol although the rules will vary. Some can ship hard alcohol, some can only ship wine or beer. But many of them cannot ship to a post office or a PO Box. Got a letter for the IRS? It pretty much has to go through the postal service. (FedEx does have a relationship with the postal service, but I’m not sure how extensive it is.)
Insurance will also cost you extra with a Courier service, although some will include a basic amount in the price you are already paying, like $50 or $100.
How to mail or ship things as cheaply as possible:
· Go straight to the source if you can. An actual post office or FedEx service center will not have the markup that a franchise or an independent shipping store will. Don’t get me wrong, these small businesses need the markups to survive, but if you want the cheapest way, they are not it.
· Go to a city or urban center if you can. USPS does not charge extra to ship to and from rural or hard to get to areas, but Couriers absolutely can and will.
· Get your package as small and light as you can. They price based on the area you are shipping to, but also based on something called dimensional weight (which comes from the weight combined with the measurements of the Height, Length, and Width of the package.)
· Tape it up before you go in (unless it’s international, and the employees might need to itemize what you have in there for Customs).
· Buy your envelopes/tape/boxes somewhere else if you can. Dollar store padded envelopes or bulk packages of envelopes from Costco or wherever are much less expensive than what these places will sell you, and will work about the same. The only exception to this is shipping boxes versus moving boxes. Shipping boxes means a box with reinforced cardboard, meant to survive both pressure and a fall. They cost more, so use them for fragile or valuable items.
· When you get your packages from Amazon/Zappos/wherever, STOP TEARING INTO THEM, YOU ANIMALS. AND KEEP THE BOXES! You might need the original packaging if you have to return them. Some companies even put a reusable little strip of tape inside those plastic bags your shoes or shirts came in, *so you can reseal them without trouble.*
· Reuse boxes! This is a tricky one, but you can. Courier services do not care if you reuse a box except in certain situations. You can send a Priority box or an old shoebox through UPS, for example. BUT! Using an old box negates any insurance you put on the item. The old box has no structural integrity, so the Courier is not going to refund you for damage. ALSO! If your reused box says “wine” or “alcohol” or has “hazardous materials” or something similar printed on it, the Courier will reject it. Remove those, cover them up, or get a different box.
· (Note: the Postal Service is the same on this issue, except they will not accept a UPS or a FedEx box for postal rates. Neither will they let you use a Priority or Express box for anything but Priority and Express.)
· DO NOT wrap old boxes in brown paper. Brown paper tears off on conveyor belts, and then your package loses its label and basically disappears off the face of the earth.
· Ask about discounts! UPS Stores, for example, give discounts for things like AAA or AARP. You can’t stack the discounts, but even one will take a little bit off the total.
· Ship ahead of time if you can so you can ship with the slowest—cheapest—rate possible.
· If you can, ship to a business. Places zoned for business sometimes get a cheaper quoted price.
· (Oh and about Amazon. Seriously, check to see who you are buying from and if they offer free returns. If they don’t, check to see if they pay for returns but will deduct the cost from your refund. That still is a better deal than if you pay for the shipping. When you as the customer pay for the shipping, your rate is going to be higher than what a business or a corporation would pay. Places like FedEx or UPS offer business, especially large companies like Amazon, shipping rates that are basically pennies. So even if the company you bought from says they will take the return shipping cost out of your refund total, it will often still be less than what you would pay out of pocket.)
Insurance: Each service is going to have different rules about insurance. But basically, your item will have to be packed a certain way. Usually with bubble wrap or peanuts (not paper! Paper flattens in transit.)
Remember your package is going to be moving A LOT. Trucks and vans vibrate, so do planes and trains. Then there is the handling. You want to make sure your breakable items do not move. The parcel should be able to withstand a short fall, and the weight of other boxes on top of it.
Your package is one of thousands that drivers and handlers will see every day (and that isn’t even Christmastime). You can go ahead and write Fragile on it, just remember—they don’t care. You wouldn’t care either if you were them.
If your item is damaged: KEEP THE PACKAGING. Take pictures! This is like any other insurance game, and they are going to want proof it was wrapped well. Also, they are going to ask for Proof of Value. This doesn’t have to be the actual receipt, although that is great. They will accept an ad for the same item, or a print out of webpage showing what you bought etc…
If your item is lost, you have so many days to request the service try to find it. The postal service… is actually the worst at this one, in my experience. Because each local post office seems to have its own rules, idk. Good luck with that, but anyway, at least you have that tracking number so you have a way to argue with them.
Customs: Every country has its own rules. Look them up beforehand if you aren’t sure about something. Otherwise, the person you are shipping to might have to pay duties or taxes before they can receive the item. In general, list everything in your package as detailed as you can and *cough cough* undervalue your items. You will get less on insurance that way, however. The more details on the invoice or label, the less likely customs will open your package for inspection.
However, Customs inspectors may open and search your packages, even with a Courier service. And whether or not your package gets held at the border can sometimes just depend on one Customs agent having a bad day.
The Postal Service now has the Customs forms online. Courier services tend to type these up for you in the store.
This is important, especially around Christmas when people steal packages off doorsteps. Courier services in general have a policy of driver discretion. This means that unless you have requested otherwise, the delivery driver can leave or not leave your package on your doorstep entirely at their own choice, and they will not responsible for anything stolen.
If this is a problem for you, you either have to request a signature upon delivery (which can delay delivery if no one is home) or arrange to have the package shipped somewhere else—a business is a good option.
Same with the postal service. If they can’t fit the item in your mailbox, and they don’t feel like taking it up to your porch, they will take it back to their center or hub with them and you will have to either wait for another try, or go pick it up yourself.
Sometimes they leave a note, sometimes they don’t. Check the tracking.
And always give yourself more time to get something out than it might need. Accidents and emergencies happen. Weather happens. Give yourself some breathing room on the delivery date.
Hopefully someone can fill in some of those blanks or correct my mistakes in order to better help people out.
