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I mail quite a few cards each month. Most of them have what I call minor embellishment on them, a small rhinestone, or a sentiment popped up on foam tape. The cards are not too heavy for 1st class mail, usually a couple of layers and the card base.
I always add a piece of cardstock cut to size to shield the card and the embellishments. I usually just put a 49 cent stamp on them and drop them in the mail chute.
Today, I had other business at the counter, and handed two already stamped cards to the clerk to put in the mail. They each had a small rhinestone and were padded with the cardstock sheet. She gave me a look, put them down on the counter, and rubbed her fingers firmly across several times. She said, accusingly: You need extra postage on these. There is a bump!
Really, I could hardly feel it with the cardstock there. I said, I thought if the envelope was 1/4th inch, you could use one stamp. She said, No. If there is a bump, you need an extra 21 cents!
I bought the 21 cent stamps and put them on. Now I'm wondering if all the cards I send arrive postage due and no one has told me. I hope not.
I get cards in the mail like mine from other stampers and they only have one stamp and arrive just fine.
I hope I just got an extra picky clerk today.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
I think that person was trained by whomever trained the people at our branch.
I follow the same process you do for sending cards like that and encountered the same situation. For a while after that, I would occasionally ask people who had received my cards if they got the card, if it was in good condition, etc. Only once did someone tell me it arrived with "extra postage due" stamped on it. But it was left in their mailbox so it's not like they actually had to pay to get it. (?)
I've sold a lot of my retired cling mount or clear stamps in the thin plastic cases. I have put those (individually) in bubble mailers and paid for them to go first class (choosing the bubble wrap envelope option on the screen) and have never had a complaint. I had to take something in last time and the worker told me that that option is only suitable for paper. What? Why would someone send paper in a bubble wrap envelope?
In the stamp group I'm in, people have complained about this, having to pay extra postage when they take their cards to the window. I've never gone to the window, just dropped in the mailbox and have never had a problem with my cards being delivered (and no 'postage due'). I do cards that can be multi-layered with embellishments and also put in a piece of cardstock to protect them. I also make my own envelopes out of cardstock. My brother-in-law was a letter carrier (different from the clerks in the office) and he had told me there are many specifications on size, weight, thickness, etc. Its seems to me, maybe the issue is with letting a clerk actually handle the card so that they can determine what regulations it violates. I'm thinking if it goes through their machines then its not a problem.
Ahhh... Yet another Postal worker on a Power Trip!
I only go to the post office to buy stamps and mail Packages. I follow the rules for mailing on their website. Period!
If you had dropped it in the slot in the lobby, you wouldn't have had a problem.
Ahhh... Yet another Postal worker on a Power Trip!
I only go to the post office to buy stamps and mail Packages. I follow the rules for mailing on their website. Period!
If you had dropped it in the slot in the lobby, you wouldn't have had a problem.
That's really not fair. Just because something might slip through the machine doesn't mean the postal workers are being mean or unfair.
Anything that makes the card have an uneven thickness or makes it unbendable is supposed to be subject to extra postage. (If that rhinestone gets caught in the autofeeder, it's probably going to destroy the card.)
Take a chance if you like (I usually do myself) but just because a ton of customers get away with it doesn't mean the post office clerk is wrong to flag it. And, frankly, I don't know anyplace else you can send a card 3000 miles for a mere 70 cents.
I have a love/hate relationship with the postal service... They've lost (to date) four boxes of books (three uninsured, learned my lesson and sent the fourth with EXTRA insurance and tracking) That box made it all the way from Syracuse, NY to the sorting facility in Bell Gardens, CA, where it sat for months, and now no one can find it. I'm out $170 just on that deal (they won't let me file a claim because it's been more than 60 days, even though I've contacted them repeatedly since October). On the day of my last go 'round where they told me that my issue was "resolved", I got a card back that I had mailed to my daughter because it needed 21 cents more postage. Oh, I see - you can lose $170 of MY stuff, but you need YOUR 21 cents? That sounds fair... Word to the wise: NEVER, EVER, EVER send ANYTHING media mail - you're totally taking your chances on that deal!
The good news is that I'm kind of philosophical about the whole thing (it's just stuff, and I have plenty of other stuff), and I do still VERY much appreciate what a bargain postage in general is, and how reliable it is 99% of the time - or better. Plus, I know and love some fine postal workers, and have been one myself, and that is NOT an easy job!
I agree with you, Sue. Even though I started this thread by complaining, what happened today is not the norm in my post office dealings. Probably because I usually don't go to the counter, but use the chute outside.
I think overall they do a wonderful job of handling millions and millions of pieces of mail and getting it where it needs to be. It's kind of mind boggling when I think about it, all those pieces of mail flying around the country.
I use priority mail flat rate boxes a lot to send presents and little treats to my grandkids, and they always arrive safe and on time.
I'm on the fence about whether I'll start putting extra stamps on my cards, or just drop them in the chute as usual and hope for the best.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
Over here in the UK, we have a simple system of whether an item fits through a certain size of slot-up to 0.5 cm is standard postage. They usually have a cardboard fake slot in the post office so you can check. Doesn't matter if it has lumps/bumps, if it fits through that slot it's good to go. Any thicker and you bump up to large letter, and can go up to 2.5cm.Difference in price is 20p.
Maybe you had someone who was newly trained/ a trainee? They tend to be more vigilant.
We have had many foreign holidays, and have often come home with slightly overweight case. Never once been charged overweight. Then a couple of years ago, we were in a queue that had someone being trained, with her trainer. Everything, as you'd expect, done by the book. We got charged for one case being a quarter kilo- about 8ounces!- overweight.
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I never hand them in, only drop them in the box. I had a lady once, rub across it SO HARD and repeatedly that she ripped the envelope. Kicker was it wasn't even a rhinestone or anything, just something popped up on a dimensional. I've literally never had anything damaged or anything if I just drop them in a box!
I never hand them in, only drop them in the box. I had a lady once, rub across it SO HARD and repeatedly that she ripped the envelope. Kicker was it wasn't even a rhinestone or anything, just something popped up on a dimensional. I've literally never had anything damaged or anything if I just drop them in a box!
Must have been the same lady I had yesterday. She rubbed, and rubbed, and then turned the envelope over and rubbed again!
She is not a trainee, I've seen her at my PO for a couple of years. I go in pretty often, and once we talked and found out she lives in my neighborhood a couple of streets over when I picked up a package.
She is the same one that ALWAYS asks for my ID when I use my credit card, even though she very well knows me. She is very vigilant and obviously takes her job seriously.
I've had cashiers at the grocery store like that, too. They will scrutinize a whole stack of coupons and gleefully point out that you are trying to use a Ten Cent coupon that expired yesterday.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
It varies for me depending on who I hand it to. There's a slot thing, and if it won't go through then there's no debate, but otherwise some people make me put on the extra stamp and some don't.
I've thought about just getting some 21 cent stamps and putting them on anything with any dimension, just to avoid going to the PO to have them render a verdict, but I haven't done it.
Bugga, it's very true that some people, put in charge of anything, will immediately institute a military dictatorship over that arena, no matter how trivial. I worked in an office once where there was a woman in charge of the supply cabinet. It was a metal cabinet. It contained paper, pens, pencils and the like. If you needed to ask for something, it was like applying for a mortgage. New pencil? Show me that yours really is worn down to the eraser.
That said, I never mind when people ask for ID. I had someone at my bank once apologize for asking me for a ID during a transaction. I said "Why would I object to you protecting Robin, when I am Robin?" ;)!
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
Robin, I totally agree with you. Mainly now, we don't sign for payments, it's all Chip & Pin. But back when we did, I lost count of the times I'd had my card handed back to me BEFORE I signed, or they did not even look at the signature side of my card. So many times I was tempted to scrawl something like Minnie Mouse, but thought if I did, that would be the one time they'd check!
What does the extra $0.21 go towards? Hand processing instead of machine?
I don't mind paying the extra postage especially if it means that the recipent doesn't have to pay upon receipt. I doubt that the post office will catch every extra postage letter for hand processing. Expecially when it meets the weight/size requirements. Maybe we need a stamp for "hand process only."
It's so interesting how much things vary with USPS. I've never had to pay extra postage for a card with embellishments as long as it was under the weight restriction. I also sometimes send cards in the clear A2 envelopes SU sells and as long as I put a label on it with the address clearly visible, I have no problem at all. However I have one friend who has tried twice to send clear envelopes too - however the post office won't accept the clear envelopes no matter how much postage she adds. I once accidentally shipped some stamps in a priority mail padded envelope but the label I printed said first class and I paid first class. The buyer had to go to the post office pay the difference. I was surprised they didn't just send it first class since that's what the label and payment said. Instead they went by the bubble envelope and buyer had to pay the difference. But if that's the worst I've had to deal with so far, that's not too bad at all.
I slide my card (in the envelope) through the slot on my Fiskars paper trimmer. If it goes through cleanly I do not add extra postage. I also have a "preferred" post office. I prefer them because my pieces arrive at their destinations intact and with no postage due. My home zip code post office has very, very nice employees but they are much stricter with what I mail. My parents live a mile from us and we have the same mailman and he knows who we are and that we are related. Well, my mother mailed a card to DH and forgot to put postage on it. It was stamped to be returned to her for postage, but our mailman saw it and instead of dropping it in her mailbox he saw it was just going to us and so he delivered it to us. What a great guy! I love living where everyone knows everyone!
It's so interesting how much things vary with USPS. I've never had to pay extra postage for a card with embellishments as long as it was under the weight restriction. I also sometimes send cards in the clear A2 envelopes SU sells and as long as I put a label on it with the address clearly visible, I have no problem at all. However I have one friend who has tried twice to send clear envelopes too - however the post office won't accept the clear envelopes no matter how much postage she adds. I once accidentally shipped some stamps in a priority mail padded envelope but the label I printed said first class and I paid first class. The buyer had to go to the post office pay the difference. I was surprised they didn't just send it first class since that's what the label and payment said. Instead they went by the bubble envelope and buyer had to pay the difference. But if that's the worst I've had to deal with so far, that's not too bad at all.
I agree. It sure depends on the location, and the person on duty at the counter.
I do know that they are very strict about the Priority Mail boxes and envelopes. You cannot use them for anything unless you pay the Priority Mail rate. They are available free, and people sometimes get them for other uses than priority mail. So, I'm sure that's why they made you pay the Priority Mail rate.
There was a big discussion here a while back about a person getting many Priority Mail boxes, and using them to make storage racks in her stamp room. Some people thought that was perfectly okay, and others, me included, thought that was an abuse of a convenient free service provided by the PO.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
Last edited by buggainok; 04-25-2017 at 12:08 PM..
I slide my card (in the envelope) through the slot on my Fiskars paper trimmer. If it goes through cleanly I do not add extra postage.
Which slot exactly is this, on which Fiskars trimmer? And how do you know it's the appropriate width?
And I'm with you Bugga, I don't agree with taking the Priority boxes and using them for other purposes. Those Flat Rate boxes are a great deal, we don't want them to go away because of abuse. Besides, we of all people should be trying to keep the Postal Service in business. You can't email someone your hand-made card. (And yes, I know all about e-cards.)
It's like the paint chip thing. I don't know why people think they should be able to take masses of them to use for crafting.
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
Last edited by Rachelrose; 04-25-2017 at 02:20 PM..
That makes sense why they would charge the buyer, I just felt bad because it was my mistake :( I refunded her of course and gave her a credit. I learned my lesson! I agree about not abusing the free supplies USPS offers. I'm so happy they offer it. Buying boxes for stamps and paper are surprisingly not as cheap as I thought they would be! They are between like $2 to $3 a piece at Office Depot or Target by me. So the flat rate boxes are amazing for priority!
That sucks. I have to say in Canada we have even more to pay so I pick and choose who I mail cards to. They always have to be hand done, last week I paid an extra 60cents on top of the 92 or whatever it is. I mailed 2 cards and paid over 3.00. Good thing I love those kids!
What does the extra $0.21 go towards? Hand processing instead of machine?
I don't mind paying the extra postage especially if it means that the recipent doesn't have to pay upon receipt. I doubt that the post office will catch every extra postage letter for hand processing. Expecially when it meets the weight/size requirements. Maybe we need a stamp for "hand process only."
Yes, $0.21 extra is for hand canceling if the envelope won't go through the machine. It's also the stamp for adding an extra ounce to an envelope.
I had to pay extra at the post office counter one time. After that, I put my envies in my mail box at my home. My postal lady never charges extra and my friends do receive their cards. On every card with embellishments I enclose a card sized crimped piece of paper. Sigh, except for my daughter's wedding invitations which had a ribbon and bow. After all the work, I just was not willing to take the chance. I think I will continue to live dangerously for all the other cards, though.
My sister uses the slot on the SU trimmer to check her cards, and it is slightly smaller than the size allowed, so if it slides through she is good to go. I purchased a lightweight wooden tool on Etsy for checking mine, has all the allowable measurements/weights on it plus the letter size slot (in width and length) and a slot for the next size up (before parcel rates set in). I am also considering a digital scale that weighs in grams. My latest peeve with Canada Post was the birthday parcel sent to my grandson and DIL, I sent it priority post, and added extra insurance. The clerk told me it was policy that a signature was required because the parcel was valued over $100. I said great, my son is a police officer and asks for a signature to be required (lots of mail theft from the boxes in subdivisions with no door to door delivery). I tracked it and was told it was out for delivery, then redirected to their new address. What!!! they were not home when the package was delivered, it was left on their doorstep and obviously not signed for, thank goodness it was still there when they returned home that night. I tried to complain on the CP website but to no avail, finally Liked them on FB so I could leave a complaint ( and not the only one to do so!)
Last edited by lynkim; 04-25-2017 at 07:19 PM..
Reason: spelling
My sister uses the slot on the SU trimmer to check her cards, and it is slightly smaller than the size allowed, so if it slides through she is good to go. I purchased a lightweight wooden tool on Etsy for checking mine, has all the allowable measurements/weights on it plus the letter size slot (in width and length) and a slot for the next size up (before parcel rates set in). I am also considering a digital scale that weighs in grams. My latest peeve with Canada Post was the birthday parcel sent to my grandson and DIL, I sent it priority post, and added extra insurance. The clerk told me it was policy that a signature was required because the parcel was valued over $100. I said great, my son is a police officer and asks for a signature to be required (lots of mail theft from the boxes in subdivisions with no door to door delivery). I tracked it and was told it was out for delivery, then redirected to their new address. What!!! they were not home when the package was delivered, it was left on their doorstep and obviously not signed for, thank goodness it was still there when they returned home that night. I tried to complain on the CP website but to no avail, finally Liked them on FB so I could leave a complaint ( and not the only one to do so!)
Glad your family got the package okay! I got tickled that you had to "like" CP so you could let them know that you didn't like them.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
I know it's been mentioned that the slot in a Fiskars trimmer will work to measure the thickness of your cards for mailing.
If you're like me and don't have a Fiskars trimmer handy, I found a great little gadget to measure the thickness of your cards, to be sure they are not more than 1/4" thick.
It also measures the maximum width as well, which is 6-1/8".
Lynkim mentioned she got one for Canada post. I found one for US postage. It's on Etsy, and costs about $8, shipped. I just invested in one. Here's a link:
I know it's been mentioned that the slot in a Fiskars trimmer will work to measure the thickness of your cards for mailing.
If you're like me and don't have a Fiskars trimmer handy, I found a great little gadget to measure the thickness of your cards, to be sure they are not more than 1/4" thick.
It also measures the maximum width as well, which is 6-1/8".
Lynkim mentioned she got one for Canada post. I found one for US postage. It's on Etsy, and costs about $8, shipped. I just invested in one. Here's a link:
Thanks, Bugga - nabbed one. They have some unusual items for sale. (You know you're too obsessed with color when you spend 5 minutes deciding which color to select, and you almost send them a message asking which shade blue the blue one is, hoping it's more turquoise.)
I too have had several incidents with USPS. Once I mailed two cards, both the exact same card. One card was delivered and the other was returned to me several weeks later asking for additional postage since it was not bendable! Seriously...fun foam not bendable? And both cards were dropped in the mail box.
Just before Easter, I was again mailing a bunch of stuff and had to go to the PO. First, the clerk informed me that my envelopes were not a standard size. Really, an A2 card is not a standard size? Then due to the rhinestone, he said I needed the additional 21�. Funny how he put it through the slot and it dropped like a lead balloon, but still needed the extra postage. I dare say that most of our cards, slightly embellished with a few layers, go through that machine just fine. And there is never any extra postage on all the junk mail I get with 'fake' id and credit cards!! Happy to hear that it's just not my area of the country!!
I have not had any issues with my PO mailing cards with embellishments. I guess it really does depend on who is working the counter, maybe what kind of day they are having. I do have many issues with actual mail delivery. My neighbors have the same last name and one of their family members has a similar name to one of our names. The mail carrier constantly puts our mail in their box instead of putting our address in our box. I keep asking them to stop looking at the names and look at the address instead because otherwise we don't get our mail if it ends up in the neighbors box. It was ok for a while but now we have a new carrier...sigh... the cycle continues...years later.
It definitely depends on which mail clerk I get at our little post office. My cards always have lumps or bumps from a pearl, rhinestone or bow. One clerk I get looks at my envelopes, asks me questions like if I drew the chicken on the envelope (it was a Hey, Chick stamp), chats about where the card is going to, etc. NEVER has she charged me extra postage. The other clerk ALWAYS charges me extra, sometimes when the only faint bump is a dimensional. She's nice, but charges me every time. I always bring the cards inside to mail because I'm so afraid of someone getting a card with postage due.
I mail a lot of cards and always just have my husband drop them in the mail slot. They usually have a small gem or pearl or pop dot image on them but I add a piece of cardstock to each, weigh them on my postal scale and pass them through the Fiskars trimmer to make sure they don't need additional postage. I make cards for my sister and brother-in-law and their 4 kids constantly so she's the one I always ask if they have to pay additional postage - they never have in almost 20 years. BUT even though all the cards for a holiday like Easter are mailed together, they arrive on different days, sometimes 3-4 days apart!
That's really not fair. Just because something might slip through the machine doesn't mean the postal workers are being mean or unfair.
Anything that makes the card have an uneven thickness or makes it unbendable is supposed to be subject to extra postage. (If that rhinestone gets caught in the autofeeder, it's probably going to destroy the card.)
Take a chance if you like (I usually do myself) but just because a ton of customers get away with it doesn't mean the post office clerk is wrong to flag it. And, frankly, I don't know anyplace else you can send a card 3000 miles for a mere 70 cents.
I didn't say the postal workers are mean or unfair...some just get on a power trip and overdo the regulations.
All their rules are on the USPS website and I follow them and put on extra postage when needed.
When you add the extra 21 cents, you can write "Hand Cancel" under the stamps and it doesn't go through their machines, and doesn't wreck the card or the machine. You just have to decide if you want to make 'lumpy' cards and pay the extra postage. Sometimes I do!
I don't believe we are trying to get away with anything, by shorting postage.
Obviously with all the comments in this post, there are many postal workers who are lax and many who are overly strict.
I also have been to the PO with the ridiculously strict postal workers. I brought in a box of stamped cards to be mailed. I was going to put them in the "blue box outside" but she said she would put them in the inside box. "OK" say I. She picks up one card between two fingers like it was a dirty diaper, puckers up her face and says (to her co-worker) "Another hand made card! A whole BOX of them." She then tells me there is extra postage required. I ask sweetly "Why, are they too heavy or too thick?" I knew the weren't. And she says (not sweetly). "No, they are not too heavy or too thick. They require extra postage just because I say so." So I gathered them up, went outside to the "blue box" and mailed them myself. And I NEVER mail my cards inside the PO anymore.I order my stamps on line and they are mailed to me. Until recently mailed my packages at Staples - they no longer provide this service. I will at all costs avoid going into the PO. Even the registry employees are nicer. I had many other "experiences" at the PO and other PO's too, but this was the last straw. I had 3 postal workers weigh and measure my daughters wedding invites before I mailed them. 2 PO workers said they were fine to send with regular postage. One said "Of course they need extra postage. They are invitations aren't they?" And they won't take my credit card because it isn't signed. Says "Check ID " on the back. I am sure there are some nice PO workers out there, but it seems that the majority that we have run into are not nice. Lastly, I send hundreds of cards every year and NEVER has anyone had to pay extra postage or have I had a card returned for extra postage.
If I put bumpy stuff on a card, I make sure its only on one side and I put that side to the bottom of the envelope. So the top that goes through the machine is always flat.
If I put bumpy stuff on a card, I make sure its only on one side and I put that side to the bottom of the envelope. So the top that goes through the machine is always flat.
I do this, too, Kathy. I also position the card in the envelope so that if there is a little bump, it is on the other end from the stamped end, which I assume feeds through the machine first.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
if I make the mistake of making a card too thick, I don't mind paying the extra postage, usually if it's "blinged" up it's headed to one of my sisters, and they are definitely worth the extra postage! I have even used padded envelopes at times when I go a little crazy with embellishments or a thicker card like a z fold.
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I'm not trying to cheat anyone but I've had many cards with dimensionals only that go through the mail just fine, my card was WELL under the size limits. There are store bought cards that have more dimension than mine and I doubt they take extra postage.
My whole point was all she had to do was ask me what it was instead of scratching the envelope so hard OVER and OVER she BROKE through it. She ruined the envelope herself when all she had to do was ask what it was. And I would have begrudgingly paid the extra postage even though it clearly didn't need it. Her treatment of me and my card was just plain rude. That's not ok.
If I make a card that is slightly bumpy (I avoid really bumpy embellishments if I'm mailing a card), I include a thin piece of the foamy cellulose packing material that is inside some boxes. I always mail them myself, although now our mailbox doors don't open past a very small opening allowance. I can still go into my PO and drop them in the slot inside. I usually put one stamp on the envelope, unless it's larger than A2 or heavier than usual. I've never had anything returned for postage due, and to the best of my knowledge, none of my recipients have had to pay any additional postage either.
Of course, not all postal workers are mean and nasty. I have one who is pretty nice now, but the woman before her was a doozy. She once got nasty with me because I gave her a 20-dollar bill, and she didn't have change. I won't go into the details, but suffice it to say that I reported her to the Postmaster General. They must have received a lot of complaints, because within a month or two, she was gone. In fact, there was a hand-written sign posted in a nearby store that gave information for contacting the main PO regarding our local one.
Last edited by Scrapjanny; 04-28-2017 at 06:24 AM..
Yet another Postal complaint!
