Etsy's Reporting of USPS times are Not the same as the USPS site

[AtMemoryLane]

The dates and times that show up on Etsy's list of where your package might be is COMPLETELY different from the USPS dates and times.

The etsy time is incorrect.  The USPS time is accurate.  I have receipts of when I drop of my "stuff", they correspond with the times at the USPS site, but the Etsy site has completely different times.  By HOURS mind you.  Not a few minutes.

Not only is the first time wrong, but all the times while the item is passing thru the USPS system.

Do you understand the impact this will have with already anxious holiday shoppers. (I won't even talk about the impact this might have on star seller.)

PLEASE FIX THIS.

ETA:  This is not on just one package.  It is on all the recent packages.  FIX IT.

[timelapse]

@AtMemoryLane - It has always been off by a couple hours, which I attributed to the time difference from where I live. But now it is off by up to 6 hours!!! 

Highly unlikely they will do anything about it though......

ETA: I always make a "private note" on the order page of when USPS and Etsy each show the delivery. Have done it for several years, just in case of any issues. Never needed it, but I like to have that info saved.

[AtMemoryLane]

Yes, @timelapse, same here.

Funny, your shop name and this situation.  It made me smile.

[EricaandEleanor]

Same here with Royal mail in the UK. I am now using ‘other’ on my delivery profile and setting the delivery time frame myself. 

[JMOldeVintage]

This could be the result of Etsy trying to adjust for slow downs in various postal services?
Or, this was the fix for the inevitable slow downs? Just show things lagging & then the buyer is happy when it arrives "early"? lol

[timelapse]

@JMOldeVintage - if that is the reason, then they obviously forgot that USPS shows the real time on their tracking info shown on Etsy : )

Plus what they show as delivery time is always BEHIND the time shown by usps!

[AtMemoryLane]

I thought this section was suppose to be monitored by etsy admin?

Why haven't we heard from them in this thread?

Better yet:  Why hasn't this problem been corrected?

[JMOldeVintage · Accepted solution]

The forums are monitored and personal info. is 'erased', threads are closed when they go off the rails & recently they have been active about forwarding "Account Hacked" threads to the correct Etsy department.

But for the more common issues/glitches they do not respond here. It is even stated this is "Peer to Peer" help. As for fixing an issue, I remember a recent thread that mentioned the issue was first brought up in the forums at least a year ago. It had not been fixed & the discussion soon centered on not when but if Etsy would ever get to it. 
So I guess you can take comfort in knowing you are not alone when it comes to glitches & other problems? Though I guess we can all hope that one day there will be no more "oopsies". 

[AtMemoryLane]

I pressed the wrong button, @JMOldeVintage.  Sorry, I did not mean to consider your post as a solution.

You are wrong about this section.  This was suppose to be the ONE section that we were told, when the forum was taken out of etsy's hands, WOULD be monitored by etsy.  In fact, I posted a problem years ago in another section and an admin switched it over to this section so that a technician could see it.  And, yes, an admin did come in at the time.

You may not be aware of this fact since you are not a current seller here, as I cannot remember when the switch was made.

[secondarycreations]

@AtMemoryLane I don't know when "years ago" was, but things changed when Etsy outsourced the forums. 

[OneEyeCatStudio]

You can try @ing them by name.

I don't know if it works all the time, or if anyone can do it, but I have seen Zoie do it quite a few times and it seems to work.

[PiecesOfMePaperCraft]

I very rarely see Etsy chime in on technical issues. The only time I see them address something here is when there's a major sitewide issue. I don't think they consider a time difference in tracking to be a major issue. This could possibly be caused by different time zones (just a guess). 

[AtMemoryLane]

No, it has nothing to do with different time zones.

[PiecesOfMePaperCraft]

I just looked at the tracking on one of my recently delivered orders. All of tracking scans on Etsy are exactly 5 hours off from what's shown on USPS. It may not be a time zone thing but it looks like a 5 hour lag. 

[JMOldeVintage]

If the difference continues, I see shops adding a blurb to their automated "message to buyer" advising them to go directly to USPS' web site if they want truly accurate information on their package. 

I wonder if the 5 hour lag has anything to do with when Etsy receives updates from USPS &/or when they eventually "process" that data & post it? 
I always sign up at USPS' site to receive updates on my orders & rarely (if ever) visit Etsy to see where a package might be. I have not found their info to be consistently accurate. 

[AtMemoryLane]

@JMOldeVintage, updates on your orders from 2018?

[PiecesOfMePaperCraft]

@AtMemoryLane 

Why the snarkiness? Maybe she's talking about orders she's purchased. 

[FluffyToastDesigns]

I see what you're referring to now. I'm way off as well. One says I created a label at 1am. (not gonna happen lol)

Probably a temporary glitch. If a customer contacts you, just let them know the accurate tracking is shown via USPS site.

[MirageRiverCreations]

It doesn’t seem to be just Etsy. I’ve been ordering on AliExpress and their tracking is always WAY ahead of where the package actually is. It’s very nerve racking to be told your item is out for delivery literal days in advance of the package even arriving in your city. As a shopper, I’ve come to learn to trust the shippers’ direct websites’ tracking over any other website any day. Might be a good idea to add notes to the buyer that say “for the most accurate tracking information you can use your tracking number in [shipper’s website]” so the buyer knows they can check elsewhere for better stats.

[JMOldeVintage]

@AtMemoryLane - No, my purchases.

[hopeandjoystudios]

How does a 5-6 hour lag in tracking details make a difference? Genuinely asking not being snarky? Either it comes on Monday or it doesn't? The fact that the tracking on Etsy was off by 5 hours en route makes no difference to me as a buyer? I agree that you should add to your purchase message to please track your package via the USPS site. But the USPS site is not always accurate either.

[PiecesOfMePaperCraft]

If a seller ships flats through Etsy with the Pitney Bowes fake tracking number, it doesn't show up on USPS site at all. I ship a lot of flats and have resigned myself to the fact that I'm going to get a message from a buyer at least once a week regarding inaccurate tracking.

[ArtDollsbyJD]

I've not had the issue you are posting about.  Everything matches on my end.  Perhaps it is your location that causes the display error.  

The information on Etsy is from USPS.  As I said I have found it to be accurate.

I have found the information on USPS site to be inaccurate at times.

So this may be an issue not really solvable. 

[JMOldeVintage]

@ArtDollsbyJD  - Just last week even USPS' website had the red banner apologizing for their tracking being down. Nothing is ever guaranteed.
As a more rural resident I sign up for notices from USPS & have found them to be relatively accurate. At least I know if I should be opening the gate to my drive for boxes that won't fit in the mail box to make their way to my porch!

But I have a smattering of packages from a variety of websites including eBay & Amazon that to this date have never shown "delivered". Yet I watched our carrier scan at least one of them.

No matter who is "at fault" at least this problem is more easily handled. I feel for the shops with the notice on their listings that they "usually respond to messages within 1 month". Like that doesn't discourage buyers from the start! 

[AtMemoryLane]

I just put in a ticket to etsy admin.  I will let you know what they have to say.

It might be a good thing if other current sellers would also put in a request.