Unfortunately, a lot of things happen that are bad, even when we try to work around them.
One, is the the machines known as the remote bar code sorters. A lot of mail is keyed now over a monitor in another city that it may not be mailed in. (a person at the other end is seeing it on a computer as it is being sent through in another city). Unfortunately, if a letter from their own city gets in, they may key it to the other city they were just looking at. I.E., the letter may have a p.o. box number like one that the other city just had, and the person keys it to Detroit instead of Raleigh. That dratted barcode CAN keep it in a loop for days. Which is the biggest downside of automation. Even though automation can key mail loads faster than the letter sorting machines that we used when I came in 20 years ago, it can be a pain IF that barcode is wrong.
Also, credit companies are the worst! I see so many customers every week, who have mailed their bills to a credit company of some sort, and for some reason the company delays posting the payment, loses the check internally, etc. And, you can bet they aren't 'fessing up to it. But, everytime I tell someone to start sending the letter by certified mail, guess what? It always stops. Dead. Suddenly the company starts getting it on time! Wow, you mean it wasn't us all along?
As for the smaller packages, it helps if you bring in the wrapper if possible. We've seen so many weird things happen, it helps to see the wrapper to just make an educated guess as to what went wrong. Personally, I like to track down mysteries.
I don't want my customers to have a bad experience.
Also, one other thing. Use the customer complaint form in an intelligent manner. If you have a problem with your carrier, don't be telling me the window clerk (often at another station from where your carrier comes out of). That person's supervisor needs to be made aware of possible problems. That carrier may need to be made aware of it. Whether they are doing something stupid or deliberately, or even accidentally. If you have a problem with a clerk, also use the form. We are plagued with bad clerks just like any other business. Of course, some just like to use the form because we wouldn't do something that was illegal or not part of our job for them, but at least the clerk will have a chance to explain that to their supervisor.
Most of us like our jobs, believe it or not. We may not like our supervisors,
, but we do like our jobs. We do want to do the best for you the customer.
Kim
Sorry for the long post....
