Anyone lose a package through PSA?

[vintagecpa]

What do you consider a "vintage" card? I'm just curious if these were cards from your collection when you were 13 years old?

[jezzeaepi]

The Jordan was the only new card. I still have a ton of cards from when I was 13, but I know they arent worth anything right now. The ones I sent in were from 1955, 1956, and 1961. One of the cards was a 1955 Johnston Cookies Hank Aaron that was in great shape, and I doubt Ill ever be able to replace it if my package doesn't turn up =(

[Peter_Spaeth]

I thought PSA directed that Fed Ex packages be sent to a Fed Ex location to be held for pickup, not directly to their offices. I haven't sent anything there by Fed Ex for a while, but that is always how it worked.

Start by getting from Fed Ex the name of the person who signed.

[jezzeaepi]

Alright, so we have a major breakthrough in the case!

I went down to my shipper, and had him print up the signature confirmation page. The name didnt mean anything to me, but I did notice something else. On the regular tracking page, it doesnt give you the full address of the person who the package was delivered too. It only lists the city and state. On the signature confirmation page it gives you the full address, and the place I sent it too(PSA) was not the place that fedex delivered it too. They actually delivered it to someone 2 blocks away. Go fedex.

Thank you for your help guys. The signature confirmation page was the key to the mystery. My nightmare still isnt over, but let it be said:

PSA does not lose packages. Fedex does.


Peace,
Jesse

[jezzeaepi]

Oh man, I just realized that whoever opened that package has my full contact information as well as my credit card information. And they chose not to contact me. Not a good sign, lol.

[ChiefBenderForever]

Originally Posted by jezzeaepi

PSA does not lose packages. Fedex does.

So does UPS, they just throw boxes where ever they want, no signature, barely look at the door. When they lost 5k of electronics all the idiots could say is 'our driver says he put it at your door, see it says so right here, now go f(*& yourself !' Since it was all part of a bonus from a work event it wasn't insured, good bye digital video camera, digital camera, gps, ect ect ect. Hopefully you don't get the same run around since not insured, best of luck getting your cards back.

[Doug]

Originally Posted by JohnnyHarmonica

So does UPS, they just throw boxes where ever they want, no signature, barely look at the door. When they lost 5k of electronics all the idiots could say is 'our driver says he put it at your door, see it says so right here, now go f(*& yourself !' Since it was all part of a bonus from a work event it wasn't insured, good bye digital video camera, digital camera, gps, ect ect ect. Hopefully you don't get the same run around since not insured, best of luck getting your cards back.

I've never had UPS or FEDEX actually lose a package, but they have had lousy habits of either delivering my packages to the nursing home across the street, my neighbors, or at worst leaving one of those "sorry we missed you" things on my front door while I was home and they didn't even bother ringing the bell or knocking.

[Mark]

Originally Posted by jezzeaepi

Alright, so we have a major breakthrough in the case! I went down to my shipper, and had him print up the signature confirmation page. The name didnt mean anything to me, but I did notice something else. On the regular tracking page, it doesnt give you the full address of the person who the package was delivered too. It only lists the city and state. On the signature confirmation page it gives you the full address, and the place I sent it too(PSA) was not the place that fedex delivered it too. They actually delivered it to someone 2 blocks away. Go fedex. Thank you for your help guys. The signature confirmation page was the key to the mystery. My nightmare still isnt over, but let it be said:
PSA does not lose packages. Fedex does.
Peace,
Jesse

Jesse,
What did Fedex say about delivering the package to the wrong address? will they at least refund the shipping charges? If I were you, I would find a cheap flight to LA and visit the address where the package was delivered. I would look for the person whose name is on the slip. The worst that could happen is that I would spend a couple of days in sunny California.
Mark

[jezzeaepi]

Originally Posted by Mark

Jesse,
What did Fedex say about delivering the package to the wrong address? will they at least refund the shipping charges? If I were you, I would find a cheap flight to LA and visit the address where the package was delivered. I would look for the person whose name is on the slip. The worst that could happen is that I would spend a couple of days in sunny California.
Mark

Lol, this is actually a hilarious idea if FedEx gives me a real hard time(yet strangely cost effective given the alternatives).

I second the fact that the "insurance" information you posted was extremely difficult to locate. I looked for about 15 minutes and couldn't find it anywhere because I "foolishly" was looking for "insurance" too, not "declared value."

I like the idea though about getting a lawyer involved if I am denied, since I did ship through a third party mail center, and not directly on my own fed ex account, so maybe there is a chance.

Peace,
Jesse

[Peter_Spaeth]

Since an unauthorized signatory apparently stole your package, or at least that is what the evidence suggests, perhaps you should be in touch with the Newport Beach police department to track down the person for you.

[Tsaiko]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I thought PSA directed that Fed Ex packages be sent to a Fed Ex location to be held for pickup, not directly to their offices.

Is that how it works for auction houses too?? When I sent my cards to an auction house, they insisted that I use their FedEx number, because they were insured up the wazoo.

[jezzeaepi]

"I thought PSA directed that Fed Ex packages be sent to a Fed Ex location to be held for pickup, not directly to their offices."

This is true if you send it via Air shipping, but if you send it ground it goes to a different address. Since I live on the west coast, I just sent it ground since it would get there in 3 days anyways.

[Jim VB]

Originally Posted by jezzeaepi

"I thought PSA directed that Fed Ex packages be sent to a Fed Ex location to be held for pickup, not directly to their offices."

This is true if you send it via Air shipping, but if you send it ground it goes to a different address. Since I live on the west coast, I just sent it ground since it would get there in 3 days anyways.

You should know that FedEx and FedEx Ground are two distinct divisions, albeit, owned by the same company. They have different drivers, and different rules for those drivers. FedEx drivers are employees of FedEx and are required to follow specific company rules, especially concerning drop-offs. FedEx Ground was a corporate acquisition a few years back. (Used to be RPS.) Their drivers are NOT FedEx employees. They are independent contractors. They are NOT required to follow all of the same rules. (They also do not receive the same compensation!) They are paid by the package and hence, tend to "drop and run" a lot more.

This arrangement saves FedEx money, but causes you problems. It has been the cause of several lawsuits.

[jezzeaepi]

Thanks for the information Jim. I had hoped that I could send the package through UPS, because they have a whole special system for packages with declared values over $1000. Every driver is personally responsible for these high value packages, and consequently they never get lost(I used to work at a place that shipped hundereds of UPS packages a day). I was pretty shocked to find that Fedex doesn't do something similar. As JohnnyHarmonica posted though, if its not insured, then you dont get the special treatment.

[shaunsteig]

Interesting story, thanks for sharing. I've always been a long-time fan of FedEx over UPS, mostly for convenience reasons (FedEx more willing to pick-up, easier to find drop-off FedEx service centers), service (much much better support with delivering packages requiring signatures when I'm not home during weekdays -- which for me is alway), and cost (FedEx has discount with my Amex card).

I recently sent my first submission to PSA and used FedEx. But I discovered that they won't insure collectibles such as baseball cards for more than $1000. The explanation that the service center offered was that they can't be certain of the box's contents and value, especially for such condition-sensitive items. There are many other types of items, besides collectibles, for which they also limit the insurance. Can't say that I found the explanation satisfying, but anyway it's worth keeping that limitation in mind. Next time I submitted, I sent it USPS so that I could insure it for the full amount.

[Smokey Joe]

IMHO....it is not the company (FED-Ex, UPS, USPS) but the worker. I know 4 people that work at FED-EX, 3 people that work at UPS, and 5 who work at USPS.
I have brought this subject up to most of them and they all say they know some workers who don't care. Aside from Reg. mail from USPS because if a packaged shipped Reg. mail falls on their hands and it is lost there is no if, ands, or buts....that person is responsible. If i have a package worth $1,000 or more i only ship USPS reg. mail and have never lost a package.

Correct on fed-ex not insuring baseball cards. Have asked and they won't do it.

If USPS loses a insured package they will pay but you need to wait 3 months and show proof the package was worth (X) amount of money...

[Zact]

Sorry this happened to you.

These are the guidlines I use for myself when shipping collectibles.
I always use USPS.

(1)Anything under $100 value. I ship USPS first class or priority flat rate box with delivery confirmation. I am "self insuring " at this point - I feel it is not worth the $ for the insurance.

(1) above $100 value to $250
USPS first class or priority with delivery confirmation and insurance

(3) $250 - $500. USPS priority plus signature confirmation and insurance. This (signature conf) will cover you for Ebay transactions and and paypal disputes.

(4)$500 -$1000 USPS Express with signature conf and insurance

(5) above $1000 registered mail or Express with insurance and Signature confirmation. Note that registered mail takes a long time ( up to 10-14 days) because of the step by step "lock and key" process.

[oskafagus]

Originally Posted by Smokey Joe

Correct on fed-ex not insuring baseball cards. Have asked and they won't do it.

So all the money that I've been paying to insure my return packages from SGC and PSA lo these many years has been for nothing? Doesn't SGC recommend Fedex?

[glynparson]

It was about 12-15 years ago they ran over a box I had insured for $2500. They tried to not pay me. My lawyer sent a letter to the mail n ship for you place that i used informing them we would be suing them and all of a sudden fed ex decided to cough up the money. I may have been saved by using the third party I don't know. But I had clearly stated they were baseball cards and their agent accepted them was the argument my lawyer made and they caved. Hope it turns out well for you.

[barrysloate]

My feeling, which of course the shippers don't share, is that you can insure any box for anything you want, and if it is lost you are entitled to full recovery without the need to demonstrate what was inside.

If I want to ship a ball of string via registered mail and insure it for $25K, the maximum allowed, that is my prerogative. If you take the argument that I am scamming the post office because if it gets lost I get a big payday, then guess what: if I sent a hundred boxes like that hoping even one got lost, every last one of them would make it to their destination and I would be out thousands of dollars in fees without seeing a penny. Anybody trying to scam the post office that way is guaranteed to lose.

Now I have had a few first class USPS packages lost, and they have always demanded to see the invoice, receipt, or whatever can document the amount of the item lost. Why? I am paying more than I need to to ship something with insurance, so why would I add to my own expenses if nothing were inside the box? Hoping against hope that it might get lost? I don't think so.

Of course it goes without saying that the post office doesn't buy my theory.