Shipping - clueless sellers

[D. Bergin]

Originally Posted by SetBuilder

These stories are just so weird. It's like the x-files of USPS package shipping. First the seller that sent you the ephemera with no protection. I'm convinced some sellers really hate their customers.

Then the cardboard tube...wow. I've mailed stuff in those poster tubes. They are strong and sturdy. What on earth could have happened to it that only the label survived? Did it burn in a fire? Did a delivery truck fall off a cliff and then they found the label in the rubble?

Yeah, you do this long enough that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I just got a package returned to me yesterday. Said "Vacant Building - Return to Sender". Contacted the buyer and they said the person next door died recently, so that house is empty, but he is alive and well, and I had the right address on the package so......................

Maybe the delivery driver didn't have their glasses on that day and got confused by the house number or something.

[midmo]

Years ago I bought an old glass advertising sign (photography company) and the woman said she packed it really well. She used a couple pieces of crumpled up newspaper and a handful of packing peanuts. The box was less than 25% full. I received a pile of broken glass.

[ZachS]

I sent this out earlier today. Graded card wrapped in multiple layers of bubble wrap in a Priority box with extra tape to hold it together and insured for the value of the card. That's the mail lady holding the box bc I told her I wanted to get a picture of it before it shipped out.

[OLDBILL]

My (almost) worst experience was caused by USPS, with cudos to the seller. Seems my card in a postal box got soaking wet somewhere in Texas and arrived with the box still soaking wet, but sealed in a plastic bag , with a "I'm so sorry note from USPS." Instead of letting it dry out first, they sealed the moisture in. Fortunately the graded card was so well packed by the seller, the card was o.k...what was someone thinking!

[Tabe]

Forgive me for going slightly off-topic as my example isn't card-related. It's just so dumb and funny I had to share:

My wife is a crafter. She ordered a jar of some glue from Amazon. Jar was maybe 4" in diameter and 4" tall. Amazon shipped it in a box 18" long on all sides - with no padding or protection whatsoever. The jar, of course, was damaged and glue got all over the inside of the box. I contacted Amazon and the ASKED ME TO SHIP IT BACK. I said I didn't think the USPS would appreciate me shipping a box of glue like that (duh). They agreed and said they'd ship another. And they did.

Exactly the same way as the first. Exactly the same damage.

So they sent a third.

Exactly the same way as the first. By some miracle, it arrived in one piece.

I just thought that was funny. I've had unbreakable stuff shipped by them with tons of protection but a breakable jar of glue? Who needs padding for that?

[Leon]

My large 1903 AL Horner Composite came to me with the glass frame broken and in many pieces. Talk about luck that the photo wasn't damaged. There were a few breathless minutes checking it out when I received it. The seller said he paid a lot to have it shipped but whomever the shipper was failed miserably.

[frohme]

Originally Posted by Tabe

Forgive me for going slightly off-topic as my example isn't card-related. It's just so dumb and funny I had to share:

My wife is a crafter. She ordered a jar of some glue from Amazon. Jar was maybe 4" in diameter and 4" tall. Amazon shipped it in a box 18" long on all sides - with no padding or protection whatsoever. The jar, of course, was damaged and glue got all over the inside of the box. I contacted Amazon and the ASKED ME TO SHIP IT BACK. I said I didn't think the USPS would appreciate me shipping a box of glue like that (duh). They agreed and said they'd ship another. And they did.

Exactly the same way as the first. Exactly the same damage.

So they sent a third.

Exactly the same way as the first. By some miracle, it arrived in one piece.

I just thought that was funny. I've had unbreakable stuff shipped by them with tons of protection but a breakable jar of glue? Who needs padding for that?

We had a similar experience with a twist ... a few years ago we ordered 1 bag of some special potting mix or perlite (don't recall). Got a message saying it was on back order and expected to be available in about 10 days ... next day UPS shows up with the bag. Day after that he shows up ... with the bag. He was laughing each time I saw him over the next 8 days when he showed up with the bag, which finally went off availability hold.

Unlike your glue, Amazon didn't want any of them shipped back, so we got more of the stuff than we really need. Too bad it wasn't something more generally useful for others around us, but folks attending the annual city-wide yard sale were OK with it.

--
Mike

[DaveW]

I once bought a bunch of 1967 Topps high number cards from a guy on EBay. He just shipped them completely unprotected (no penny sleeves, no top loaders, no stiffeners of any kind) in a plain white envelope. Fortunately, they were all still in great shape when they arrived.