Writing FRAGILE on boxes through USPS no longer free?

[sterlingcomics]

"Myth" in that, I don't believe "fragile ," written on packages is a magnet for abuse.

 

You continue believing it. I'll continue down my current trajectory.

 

https://consumerist.com/2013/11/04/no-one-cares-if-you-write-fragile-and-other-tips-from-a-former-ups-worker/

http://www.cracked.com/personal-experiences-1242-5-reasons-packages-get-destroyed-learned-working-at-ups.html#ixzz2jiPcDBc8

 

"My supervisor took me to one of the trailers to show me how to load. He explained how you load left to right, pack them in tight, and go all the way up to the ceiling of the trailer. He took a rather light package that, sure enough, said "FRAGILE" on it and tossed it up to the top of the wall to finish off the stack. He missed. The box fell to the floor of the trailer. He picked it up and tossed it back up there. "That said 'fragile' on it," said I, scandalized. He looked at me like I was crazy and said "They all say 'fragile.'"

 

So you figure you might as well mark that mess anyway -- it can't hurt, right? Well, Popular Mechanics shipped sensors in both marked and unmarked packages, and the "fragile" boxes wound up taking more punishment. Why? Well, sorry to have to be the one to tell you this, but some people in this world are just terrible."

 

I also have personal experience as my guide, which correlates with the above.

 

Bottom line: packing technique > writing fragile on box ill equipped to handle the rigors of the shipping process and ill-tempered employees

 

[Kevin76]

Fragile is Latin for "Throw it"

[fastballspecial]

Pack your stuff right. Fragile is worthless just like don't bend.

 

[MediumLover]

"Myth" in that, I don't believe "fragile ," written on packages is a magnet for abuse.

 

You continue believing it. I'll continue down my current trajectory.

 

https://consumerist.com/2013/11/04/no-one-cares-if-you-write-fragile-and-other-tips-from-a-former-ups-worker/

http://www.cracked.com/personal-experiences-1242-5-reasons-packages-get-destroyed-learned-working-at-ups.html#ixzz2jiPcDBc8

 

"My supervisor took me to one of the trailers to show me how to load. He explained how you load left to right, pack them in tight, and go all the way up to the ceiling of the trailer. He took a rather light package that, sure enough, said "FRAGILE" on it and tossed it up to the top of the wall to finish off the stack. He missed. The box fell to the floor of the trailer. He picked it up and tossed it back up there. "That said 'fragile' on it," said I, scandalized. He looked at me like I was crazy and said "They all say 'fragile.'"

 

So you figure you might as well mark that mess anyway -- it can't hurt, right? Well, Popular Mechanics shipped sensors in both marked and unmarked packages, and the "fragile" boxes wound up taking more punishment. Why? Well, sorry to have to be the one to tell you this, but some people in this world are just terrible."

 

I also have personal experience as my guide, which correlates with the above.

 

Bottom line: packing technique > writing fragile on box ill equipped to handle the rigors of the shipping process and ill-tempered employees

 

 

I agree with most of what is stated.Definitely" packing technique > writing fragile on box "

 

Some employees handle parcels roughly, regardless of what's written on them.

[MediumLover]

 

 

Btw, here is a quote from the Popular Mechanics's story.

 

"we had neither the time nor the budget to make the hundreds of trips necessary for statistical significance"

 

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/reviews/a6284/which-shipping-company-is-kindest-to-your-packages/

[Rip]

If you put fragile or don't bend I can say your package has a lot less chance of being stuffed into my mailbox.

 

I do the same on my packages as well. It doesn't cost anything and I always do it.

I can't speak for others, and I'm not saying its fool proof, but it helps with my mailman.

 

[01TheDude]

I agree -- PLEASE DO NOT Bend is essential if you are trying to inform the carrier that bending will cause damage. But be nice about it and be sure to say PLEASE. Of course-- the way I pack my books/records (stiff cardboard sandwich), you would have to try hard to bend it before you got close to doing so. Even frustrated employees won't waste time trying to bend something that is not easily bent.

 

 

I put "Please handle with care - fragile" notes on some packages as well when the item is hard to secure because of inner workings that cannot be cushioned. Never heard of any charge for this-- sounds like BS.

 

Also-i- tend not to write this on the packages either. I print off sheets of the signs and cut and tape to the packages. Even made a special one for albums to alert carriers the package contains vinyl. Results have shown this to be 100% effective so far.

[thehumantorch]

 

My first job for Canada Post was Mail Handler. Takes on a much different slant if it's Male Handler but that's a different thread. One of my jobs was working under the large parcel sorting machine. Moving out carts that were getting full. Picking up parcels that missed a cart.

 

The sorting machine was about 30 feet high and a block long. Parcels would circle around at the top on a conveyor belt and large paddles would swing and hit the parcels to carts below. About a 20 ft drop onto a wood surface. If a fragile parcel dropped into a cart followed by a heavy parcel - perhaps corner first - it was game over. It was absolute carnage. Many years later the corporation spent big bucks to put in single mattresses in each cart to soften the blow but I'm sure it wasn't enough.

 

When you get a parcel with penetration damage --------V--------- (got one two weeks ago) or a crushed end its most likely from a heavy parcel falling from a height onto your parcel.

 

For raw books my favorite mailing method is a narrow package of cardboard in an envelope with "Please Do Not Bend" written on it. Very small packages are sorted and moved separately from large packages.

So you're saying the word "fragile" on the package wouldn't prevent this damage? Being a postal worker, can you tell us all of the advantages marking a package as fragile would give us?

 

Parcels marked fragile are supposed to be culled out and sorted and moved by hand. That's never gonna be 100% effective as some guys don't care and sometimes the fragile sticker or marking is missed if the parcel is on it's side or the sorter is in a hurry or careless. Best practice is to write Fragile on every side of the parcel in big letters.

[thehumantorch]

I've noted that smaller, thinner parcels don't seem to get the damage larger ones do.

Through USPS that mail stream is categorized as "Flats"

Not more than 15 inches long, or more than 12 inches high, or more than 3/4 inch thick.

Although the package is supposed to be flexible, I think most rigid comic packages this size still go through Flats

 

I think all flat Media Mail still goes with the rest of the monster Media Mail packages

 

Yes, we call them flats also.

 

Metal cages are used to transport parcels. We get cages of small parcels or flats and cages of larger parcels. From there they're sorted to the letter carriers or delivery people.

[thehumantorch]

"Myth" in that, I don't believe "fragile ," written on packages is a magnet for abuse.

 

You continue believing it. I'll continue down my current trajectory.

 

https://consumerist.com/2013/11/04/no-one-cares-if-you-write-fragile-and-other-tips-from-a-former-ups-worker/

http://www.cracked.com/personal-experiences-1242-5-reasons-packages-get-destroyed-learned-working-at-ups.html#ixzz2jiPcDBc8

 

"My supervisor took me to one of the trailers to show me how to load. He explained how you load left to right, pack them in tight, and go all the way up to the ceiling of the trailer. He took a rather light package that, sure enough, said "FRAGILE" on it and tossed it up to the top of the wall to finish off the stack. He missed. The box fell to the floor of the trailer. He picked it up and tossed it back up there. "That said 'fragile' on it," said I, scandalized. He looked at me like I was crazy and said "They all say 'fragile.'"

 

So you figure you might as well mark that mess anyway -- it can't hurt, right? Well, Popular Mechanics shipped sensors in both marked and unmarked packages, and the "fragile" boxes wound up taking more punishment. Why? Well, sorry to have to be the one to tell you this, but some people in this world are just terrible."

 

I also have personal experience as my guide, which correlates with the above.

 

Bottom line: packing technique > writing fragile on box ill equipped to handle the rigors of the shipping process and ill-tempered employees

 

 

It depends on the employee and there are some terrible employees. You are right, the most important thing it to pack it for a trip to Uranus.

[thehumantorch]

I agree -- PLEASE DO NOT Bend is essential if you are trying to inform the carrier that bending will cause damage. But be nice about it and be sure to say PLEASE. Of course-- the way I pack my books/records (stiff cardboard sandwich), you would have to try hard to bend it before you got close to doing so. Even frustrated employees won't waste time trying to bend something that is not easily bent.

 

 

I put "Please handle with care - fragile" notes on some packages as well when the item is hard to secure because of inner workings that cannot be cushioned. Never heard of any charge for this-- sounds like BS.

 

Also-i- tend not to write this on the packages either. I print off sheets of the signs and cut and tape to the packages. Even made a special one for albums to alert carriers the package contains vinyl. Results have shown this to be 100% effective so far.

 

Delivery guys are in a hurry. They're gonna deliver a package in the most time effective way they can. It's easier to card out a stiff sandwich than it is to bend it and deliver it.

 

You can also request 'card for pickup'. I'd imagine it's an extra charge. When I scan the bar code my scanner prompts me to card it out and not attempt delivery. It's ideal if you're worried about a parcel being left in an apartment lobby or on a porch.

[Brother J]

I put "Please handle with care - fragile" notes on some packages as well when the item is hard to secure because of inner workings that cannot be cushioned. Never heard of any charge for this-- sounds like BS.

 

The charge is not BS, it has happened to me and it has happened to the original poster of this thread. It doesn't happen all the time. Indeed, unless things have changed, it doesn't happen most of the time as I had used Fragile stickers for quite a while before I ran into this charge. It's on this page next to registered mail:

 

 

https://www.usps.com/ship/insurance-extra-services.htm

 

Like many things with the USPS, it seems that different offices handle things different ways.

 

[VintageComics]

So have people found that not writing anything at all is better? I've wondered about this myself.

I just try to pack it well in the first place.

 

This.

 

I use extra thick cardboard slats and then a super stiff envelope (not the usual light cardboard ones) for cheaper books. You'd need to put your knee under it to bend it.

 

For slabs, I use cardboard slats (same as CGC) on either side and then double box.

 

All the shipping companies (USPS, Fed Ex, UPS) provide you with free boxes. I'm shocked that people don't use them. Just go in and get a stack and double box everything. Using a company's own boxes helps them as well as their linternal ogistics are engineered e to handle specific sizes. It works best for everyone.

 

The only thing that should damage a properly packaged book is when a tow motor drives over it and in that case, nothing will prevent damage 100%.

 

If you need to write 'fragile' or 'do not bend' on it it's probably not packaged well enough.

 

 

[AnkurJ]

I have had art sent to me with do not bend or fold written, and its bent right in half. If its not properly packaged, expect anything to happen.

[sterlingcomics]

I guess I don't have this problem, since I use boxes and lots of secure padding and thus there is 0% chance of someone bending / contorting them. I'd rather eat a bit of money to make sure it gets there in one piece that takes into account the scary place called the real world.

[mrwoogieman]

Getting closer....almost time...

[MR SigS]

IMHO, Fragile is a magnet for postal service abuse. Ask them what happens when you spend $10 for the word "FRAGILE" and it looks like it was delivered like this:

 

There's decades of actual evidence in these hallowed halls that it will actually encourage abuse. "encourage" they say? That doesn't sound like a guarantee.

 

 

Myth

 

 

Balogna

 

 

They (USPS) tried. Can't say they didn't. But luckily they didn't break anything.

 

 

 

 

 

[VintageComics]

The majority of the the time I don't even think anyone is trying to damage a box.

 

When you move millions of packages every day you can't possibly care for every single one of them. Packages move through conveyors, a zillion hands, through a zillion different vehicles, etc. There is no 'preferential treatment' for a package unless you're hiring a shipping company to specifically handle your package.

 

It's simple. The onus is on the sender to make sure their package withstands normal shipping duty.

 

And not all cardboard is the same. Using a box with thin walls, or a worn out piece of cardboard that has no support will almost always ensure trouble.

 

If you're shipping comics regularly go to your local cardboard place, spent about a $2 a book and stock up on some good quality supplies. I have my local place cut slats for me out of thick corrugated cardboard. It costs a bit more but it's way cheaper than having to refund someone for a damaged book.

 

 

 

 

[sterlingcomics]

The majority of the the time I don't even think anyone is trying to damage a box.

 

I agree. I know I made it sound like evil workers are doing damage, but in reality it's probably 70/30. A package simply has to be packed well to deal with either problem, which is pretty much my net message.

 

WOOGIE!

[VintageComics]

The majority of the the time I don't even think anyone is trying to damage a box.

 

I agree. I know I made it sound like evil workers are doing damage, but in reality it's probably 70/30. A package simply has to be packed well to deal with either problem, which is pretty much my net message.

 

WOOGIE!

 

I was trying to figure out who you were. So this is Woogie's new handle?