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Flat Rate Shipping has a Weight Limit?? WTF!!!

I am so pissed off!!!!

I spent hours packaging a Large Flat Rate Priority Mail Box using quit a bit of expensive duct tape, and clear tape only to be truned away at the post office because it weighs more than 70 lbs. They told me the scales only weigh up to 70 lbs. Nowhere does this say this.....I got home and called the Federal USPS customer service number, and they told me that there is a 70 lb. weight limit on ALL packages.....she told me this is clearly written in the "Domestic Mail Manual" available at no charge at ALL post offices, but is not written anywhere else. I asked her what if I printed a shipping label using PayPal and bypassed the scales and dropped it off at the post office, she said it eventually would be weighed, and then returned to me and I would be charged a COD penalty of excess shipping weight of $1.00 per lb., and I would lose the money I spent on the PayPal label.........has anyone else been through this before.....I am so pissed off. My solution is to just split it up into 2 different packages, each weighing 35 lbs., but I am still angry, and I guess I need to find a new psot office since I am definitely not ever going to get reliable service again after I just cursed out everyone at that place, told them to all go to h, and to f off......oh well....In all my 10+ years of shipping stuff I have never encountered this....I guess I learn new stuff every day..

The paypal shipping labels can be refunded if they are not used, you got to request a refund.

I can understand your frustration, but there has ALWAYS been a 70 pound weight limit, and it's no secret. It applies to everything at the PO, not just flat rate. Part of qualifying to work at the post office is being able to lift a 70 pound box.

The discussion threads here about shipping pennies talk about what kind of reinforcing you can do and still fall under 70 pounds. There's still some room left in the box with a normal $100 CTU, the issue is weight, not space. At one point there was a thread discussing who mailed the heaviest box without being rejected, I think HCBTT had the record at 69 pounds 15.9 ounces . I have even heard some of the USPS commercials say, "If it fits, it ships, up to 70 pounds."

Maybe in 10 years you've never shipped anything that heavy, but the weight limit has always been there. Sorry you had to find out this way though

Yep... what he said

I thought everyone knew it was 70lbs. If there was no limit we would be using large flat rate boxes and shipping $125-$150 per box. I once had them return a box to my house that I droped off at the post office. It had a note attached saying it was overweight. I have my own scale and knew it was fine. I took it back. They weighed it on 4 separate scales. 69lbs 9ozs. They marked the weight on the box and sent it on its way.

Cussing them out was not a wise decision. Now you either have to find a new post office or apologize to the post office.

Ive even had some incoming boxes slip through the cracks being over 70 pounds!

Any one of the following links has the limit listed


https://www.usps.com/ship/priority-mail-flat.htm

https://www.prioritymail.com/flatrates.asp

http://pe.usps.com/text/DMM100/flat-rate-reference.htm

thanks for all the great information guys! I came home and threw it on the scale and it was 69.5 lbs.....I had not bought a PayPal label yet, but I was going to do that, but now I am going to repackage it and use a bit less tape, but I am going to try and fit it all in one box still....it is around 10,000 canadian cents (pre 1965). It should only weigh about 60 lbs. but then I threw in some extras, and I guess the weight of the box and tape, I may have very well used 5 lbs. of duct tape. I am a masterpacker, but I have OCD, so I always use too much tape, but I bet money a grenade wouldn't open one of my boxes, or a dumptruck running over it, or even a drop from a 40 story building. Ask any of the folks on my feedback list they will tell you how crazy my boxes are when they show up. My worst nightmare is having to refund someone money I wont have after a week when they receive a box torn open and the contents missing. Even with insurance it is a pain, I have had to deal with insurance claims nefore, and it is a nightmare, makes me want to shoot myself.

frugi wrote:I may have very well used 5 lbs. of duct tape. I am a masterpacker, but I have OCD, so I always use too much tape, but I bet money a grenade wouldn't open one of my boxes, or a dumptruck running over it, or even a drop from a 40 story building. Ask any of the folks on my feedback list they will tell you how crazy my boxes are when they show up. My worst nightmare is having to refund someone money I wont have after a week when they receive a box torn open and the contents missing. Even with insurance it is a pain, I have had to deal with insurance claims nefore, and it is a nightmare, makes me want to shoot myself.

Now I want to buy something from you just to see how long it take me to open the box

not long if you use a box cutter, but then once inside the box, you will find another box with 1/2 inch of duct tape, and re-inforced corners and sides, one you get through that box, than you would have to cut through the 1/2 inch of duct tape wrapped around the canvas coin bags. than open the canvas coin bags exposing the completely duct taped packages of coins.

I use a completely taped ziploc bags, inside of canvas cloth mint bags, the mint bags get completely enclosed in duct tap, than put inside a Med. flat rate box, than that gets completely duct taped, every inch, in every direction, than that gets put inside of a Lg. Flat rate box, I reinforce the corners, the sides, the inside of the top, and the bottom with pieces of used cardboard, I use empty plastic shopping bags to fill in any empty areas, and then close the Lg. Flat rate box, than re-inforce the outside with 2 kinds of military grade duct tape, than seal the entire box in clearing packing tape. it is called OCD, and bad OCD, I actually have to check my front door an average of 7 times before I can leave the house. Sometimes I get half way around the block, and I have to turn around and come home just to re-check the back door, the patio door, the gate to the yard, then make sure I set the alarm in the house, then re-check the front door, all over again. It is really bad.!!!

slickeast wrote: I Cussing them out was not a wise decision. Now you either have to find a new post office or apologize to the post office.

Yes, but it feels sooo good.

slickeast wrote:

Cussing them out was not a wise decision. Now you either have to find a new post office or apologize to the post office.

I am sure that they deserved it for something.

Seroiusly, I hope you can make it right by them. Is their scale certified by the local weights and measures deptartment or are they exempt?

This is news to me as well!

Nate gives me more credit than I deserve.. the record was only 69 lbs, 15.6 ounces. I shipped my first $100 face box on a dare from TMaring several years ago that it couldn't be done. Heck, I even once shipped an entire mint sewn bag of 1968-S in one of those flat rate envelopes back in the old days when you could use tape and the rate was under $3. The plastic coin shipment bags work really well for shipping bulk cents.. and 2 fir nicely in a medium FRB.

There has always been a 70 pound wieght limit. Not sure why but I have thosestupid commercials stuck in my head...

"under 70 pounds if it fits it ships"

Personally I would actually be surprised if you could even fit over 70 pounds into a flat rate box...maybe a large one. I used to buy and sell copper bullion so solid bars and I think the most I ever got in a single flat rate was just under 70 and can't imagine fitting much more. I also can't imagine those boxes wouldn't split open.

Technically your not supposed to use anything besides the pre stick stuff on flat rate packages to seal them your not supposed to use tape or additional materials. That's not really enforced as even with flat rate envelopes I'll normally throw a strip of mailing tape over the top since I don't trust the prestick but technically in their terms and conditions no additional sealing mehthods.

if you catch it within 48 hours I believe you can cancel the shipping it can sometimes take up to 17 days to get your refund though. Past 48 hours you may be able to get it refunded if you contact paypal however they are sticklers about it. They did it for me once but I also do a huge amount of business with them, have lower fee structures, etc so they made a one time exception.

getdong wrote:Personally I would actually be surprised if you could even fit over 70 pounds into a flat rate box...maybe a large one.

You can.

getdong wrote:Technically your not supposed to use anything besides the pre stick stuff on flat rate packages to seal them your not supposed to use tape or additional materials.

Not true. You are allowed to tape, and the postal manual notes that. But you can't use the tape to force the box to close or cause it to change shape. And the tape (except for registered packages, which must be specially taped) can't obscure the flat rate notation on the box.

Frugi, what do you mean you didn't know about the weight limit...you have been a member a long time on this forum...it is discussed nearly every time a newbie wants to ship a big box of pennies....anyway...should make it right with those window clerks....Are you embarrassed about your reaction now?

yep, really embarassed, but they are also still jerks, and are always acting as though they sit on a throne, they enjoy nothing more than to belittle the average joe on the other side of the counter. My explosion was pent up rage that built up over a couple of years worth of being patient, and keeping my trap shut while watching them tear down everyone from old ladies to women with young children to people who have a hard time with English.....I just use a different post office now. My original post office I hade been using for 10 years, the postal employee who worked there for 30 years died, and the Gov't closed that branch last year in 2011, so I had to look for a new one, that is when I found this last one, I never liked them, and they were all very rude. The one I use now are saints, I love them, and I let them know every time I grace them with my presence. I am a firm believer in you get back in like kind exactly what you dish out.

frugi wrote:not long if you use a box cutter, but then once inside the box, you will find another box with 1/2 inch of duct tape, and re-inforced corners and sides, one you get through that box, than you would have to cut through the 1/2 inch of duct tape wrapped around the canvas coin bags. than open the canvas coin bags exposing the completely duct taped packages of coins.

I use a completely taped ziploc bags, inside of canvas cloth mint bags, the mint bags get completely enclosed in duct tap, than put inside a Med. flat rate box, than that gets completely duct taped, every inch, in every direction, than that gets put inside of a Lg. Flat rate box, I reinforce the corners, the sides, the inside of the top, and the bottom with pieces of used cardboard, I use empty plastic shopping bags to fill in any empty areas, and then close the Lg. Flat rate box, than re-inforce the outside with 2 kinds of military grade duct tape, than seal the entire box in clearing packing tape. it is called OCD, and bad OCD, I actually have to check my front door an average of 7 times before I can leave the house. Sometimes I get half way around the block, and I have to turn around and come home just to re-check the back door, the patio door, the gate to the yard, then make sure I set the alarm in the house, then re-check the front door, all over again. It is really bad.!!!

A bit over the top IMO....but good to know if I ever buy anything from you!