USPS Postage Adjustment

[SharingOurStash]

I recently mailed a couple of items using the Etsy USPS mailing labels.  One was a very light package weighing 3.2 ounces so I rounded it up to 4 ounces and purchased a 4 ounce label. I received a postage adjustment of $10.99. I looked into the details and the USPS informed me that it was shipped in a medium flat rate box, so they charged me the difference.  It absolutely was not in a flat rate box. I verified with the buyer and she said it arrived in a poly envelope.  Has this happened to anyone else?  I did send an email to the USPS about this, but don't know if anything will happen.  

I went through my payment account and found another adjustment about a month ago for an item that they claim was sent in a flat rate envelope (it was in a poly envelope). This adjustment was only $2.99 so, I probably wouldn't have worried about it, but now that there are multiples. 

Just checking to see if others have run into this problem lately. 

[CanningCrafts]

This happens frequently to sellers, just check past forum posts. Adjustments are sometimes incorrect. Your package was probably sitting on top of another as it went down a conveyor belt & was photographed. You can appeal adjustments & should win if you correctly mailed the item ( packages need to meet usps regulations & be thick or rigid too). 

Every adjustment I've gotten & appealed, I've won & gotten credited in a week. But I use PirateShip to buy labels which makes it super easy to appeal. It's not as easy with Etsy. Many sellers appeal & don't get a confirmation email if they win the dispute. But the credit will appear in your Etsy payment account, so just check there to see if it shows up.

[ArtDollsbyJD]

Did the package look like a letter/flat?  If so then USPS deemed that it was a letter/flat and only Priority Mail can have tracking numbers.  To avoid this make the package rigid, have a height difference or add a peanut or something so it is not flat acrosse the top of the envelope.

So make the item look like a package and less like a flat/letter or you will have this issue. 

[hopeandjoystudios]

They would not adjust it to a medium flat rate they would adjust it to regular Priority.  This seems to have been  a hitch hiker.

[moonbeamgifts]

I average at least one a month with this issue - USPS has automated these and apparently the robots can't tell when one package is sitting on top of another.   It's to the point where I have a paragraph written of what happened/what the product is/what it was packed in and just copy/paste.        I use PirateShip - partly for this very reason as it's so easy to dispute through them.    I don't think I've had one rejected yet.    I nearly had a heart attack when someone must have shipped a box of bricks so they tried to charge me $40ish dollars - for somewhere around 2 yards of ribbon. LOL

[AVAArtsSupplies]

We get these every so often. Just follow the steps to appeal it and normally they refund the amount. We were charged $25 to ship 25 beads. The envelope and everything weighed less than an ounce. The more you sell, the more often this will occur. Take it as a good sign.  

[BagmakerSupply]

@SharingOurStash: The way the system usually works is that all packages are "photographed" and as mentioned by @moonbeamgifts the system sometimes misinterprets which package the label is attached to. We also get these and have won every dispute - and we even had a few adjustments where USPS refunded us on their own for having too much postage on the package. Since you are using Etsy labels, did you read https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/360026258134-What-are-USPS-Shipping-Label-Adjustments?segmen... which includes information where to send the dispute.

[SharingOurStash]

Thank you for the information. I did file a claim with the USPS using the process in the Etsy article. I have yet to receive a reply. Do they normally reply or does the money just show up in your account?  So far, I haven't seen anything. 

[CanningCrafts]

@SharingOurStash  Whenever I disputed an adjustment directly with USPS, I never got notified of approval. I noticed my Etsy Shop Account had been credited though. Many sellers have stated that they also do not get approval emails either. So check your Etsy payment account periodically to see if a credit is applied.

I switched to doing labels on PirateShip which has a much easier dispute & approval system in place compared to when you buy the labels on Etsy It's much faster for approvals too.

[BeJeweledByDEBORAH]

File an appeal with USPS using any/all documentation you have to verify that you used a poly envelope. Mistakes do happen, and if you provide enough info, USPS will possibly reimburse you. For various reasons, this has happened to me on a couple of occasions, and I've always been reimbursed.

[ACertainFeel]

As you can see from others this does indeed happen and it has nothing to do with using Etsy labels. Can happen no matter where postage is bought. Unfortunately time consuming to correct but worth it.  

[OlsenTrademarks]

I have it happen frequently, too! And it's super easy to file using the phone number also. They just ask for the adjustment number ( I always get it in the email) and the tracking number) and what the contents were. It's faster than having to do the paper work and they're usually really nice on the phone. Just wanted to let you know that's another option!!

[LynnsLittleShop]

So can you give us the phone number you used, please?

[OlsenTrademarks]

Here is the info you requested, Lynn:

verifypostagehelp@usps.gov

Call: 1-844-819-5187

[AcmeRainbows]

yes, it has happened to me...i protested and they dropped it.

[After9Marbles]

I have had this happen and it was my box on another box. The work that went into getting a refund unfortunately took way to long. Good luck. I have just absorbed the costs on them as it rarely happens. If I see a large adjustment more than a few dollars I will go after my money.

[SharingOurStash]

Thank you all. I went through the procedure recommended by Etsy and after about a month got an email telling me it was resolved.  I never did receive a refund of the amount they charged me in error.  I have checked and rechecked my payment account - nothing.  If this happens again I will call rather than do the on-line dispute form. 

[eabdesigns]

Unfortunately, I have also experienced this several times.  Each time I appealed it through USPS with detailed information and never received a response or refund. I sent follow-up emails and still never received anything back.

[HodgePodgeia]

Hi - I am having this problem, too.  It has happened at least 5 times in recent months.  The one from a couple of weeks ago was the same issue as yours.  I sent a small envelope of 3 ounces via Ground Advantage.  I received an adjustment of $10.83, saying I had sent a Medium Flat Rate box.  I don't know what's going on, but this is crazy.  Have you contacted anyone about this?  I went to the Post Office and they are pretty much helpless to do anything.  I have tried to call or email but get nowhere.  At least now I know I'm not the only one with this problem.

[AgreeableAgony]

One of the many reasons we ditched etsy shipping was the almost complete impossibility to contest adjustments like this.

Pirateship has an interface for this and makes it super easy. 

[Duckwells]

I’ve never been reimbursed or even had my appeals acknowledged.  

[AgreeableAgony]

Pirateship is the only platform that has ever reimbursed us for adjustments. 

[BeaconwoodDettman]

Please dispute the adjustment, I had a situation where I shipped four paperbacks in a box via Media Mail - I got an adjustment saying the box wasn't eligible for Media Mail (unless they opened - maybe they did - I don't know how they would know), I disputed it, I got the adjustment back. 

I know that's not identical to your situation but as others have mentioned, the systems can make errors. 

If they deny your dispute, go up a level, if they deny that, go up another level, etc., etc. Don't give up!

[TheColorfulGeek]

THIS IS DEFINITELY HAPPENING!  It's been happening for a while, randomly, and I have been confused about it and finally dug a little deeper and it's saying I sent something out with flat rate priority when I know I didn't!  I think they are doing this to make more money off of us knowing that most of us wouldn't notice it.  I just put in a dispute but I am not sure how to prove I am right about this.

[hopeandjoystudios]

Sometimes smaller envelopes "hitch hike" and get scanned on top of larger boxes. It reads your barcode and the boxes size barcode. I had one on PirateShip. They had a link to the USPS I followed and described my box..a kraft tan 6x6x4 NOT a medium flat rate box. And that I think they scanned it in error on top of a larger box. Refund in a few days. PS just makes it easier to contest. Etsy labels you are on your own.