09/06/2026
Over the last 20 years, the USPS has posted a loss in all but one year. (Exc. 22 which an accounting "gain" showed a profit, but the loss was still in the billions) In 06 they made $900 million. In the other 18 years, they've accumulated a combined loss of $116 BILLION dollars. A difference of $115.1 BILLION (excluding the 22 losses) that we all end up paying for.
ONE OF MANY REASONS WHY:
Our company spends a low-ball estimate of $100k/ year with the post office. For 25+ years, we’ve sung USPS praises for reliability and affordability.
However, in the last two years, their pricing has gone up significantly to the point where they are similar to that of UPS & FedEx, only the reliability has spiraled downward. Last year was bad, but this year has been horrendous!
One of the primary facets of our business is restoring and selling classic car a/c & heating parts. These parts are not in reproduction and very difficult to find, and require specialized skills to rebuild, recondition, refinish, etc. Many of these parts are high dollar parts that just cannot be replaced. Priority Mail packages that have gotten to the customer 30-45 days late, long after we've either found a way to replace them at significant cost to us, or just had to refund the customer and eat the cost.
We’ve also had parts just disappear into the ether. They bounce around from a half to a full dozen hubs, tracking indicating "In Transit to Next Facility" or "In Transit to Next Facility, Arriving On Time" or "In Transit to Next Facility, Arriving Late" before I stop getting updates.
Each time we go through the search for mail (a VERY tedious and time-consuming process), get nothing and finally file a claim (another very tedious and time-consuming process) only to be denied. And how to we find out why? Not in the denial email. Not when we log into our account online. By a LETTER that is sent snail mail received approximately TEN DAYS from the email notification of denial.
Despite the fact that the documentation we provided at the time of the claim clearly shows the product, what it sold for, what it cost to ship, the tracking #, the tracking details indicating it has not been delivered, the customer information and so much additional information that it is irrefutable, we’re told it is insufficient.
We file an appeal, once again, very tedious and time-consuming process, stating this only to be denied once again.
Trying to call and speak with a person is impossible and even more tedious and time-consuming than all of the above. When we do finally get in touch with a person, we’re either disconnected or referred to "the correct number to call," only to be told to call the first number as the "correct number to call." (Ironically, each time we call, they tell us how much they value our business and opinion; "at the end of the call, please stay on the line to leave feedback" that no-one will listen to or respond to.)
Going to our local USPS mail hub has proven to be a waste of time as well... If we happen to find someone that speaks English, they are clueless, and just refer us to the website.
Government bureaucracy at it's finest.
The #1 rule in business is you should NEVER EVER let a valued customer look elsewhere because you'll almost always lose that customer. Clearly USPS is comfortable losing billions of dollars a year.
We've begun the process to make a change that starts immediately with 50% of the shipments going through a company actually proves, not just says, they care. By the end of the year, USPS will be lucky if they get more than $100 from our company.
What are the odds that the USPS posts in excess of a billion dollars in loss for 2026?
