Canada Post clerk did not affix sufficient postage, what happens now?

[craftycatsattic]

Hi folks. I am back home from Canada Post and very upset. I went to my local distribution center's counter today because the cut-off is a little later and my items would leave faster. As I walked out the door, bill in hand, the postage struck me as being off. I turned around and they had locked the door behind me, refusing to allow me to speak to them. Some very nice distribution center employees walking out the door let me in and gave me a chance to speak to the clerk who served me. His boss quickly intervened and told me it was too late, everything was gone to the central distribution center. She also tried to blame it all on ME.

So now I am on damage control. I have emailed all my affected buyers explaining the situation and have promised to refund them what the post office did not charge and I let them know if the items were returned that I would resolve in a manner they saw fit. I have also emailed Canada Post with all the details.

I know that no one (including Canada Post) can tell me what will happen now, but I am curious if this has happened to anyone else and what was the outcome. Did the items ship through as normal? Were they returned and if so how long did it take for them to get back into your hands? Did Canada Post insist you pay the postage a second time or did the buyer have to pay extra at their post office in order to receive the items?

I should add that I am talking about 5 lettermail items. I was charged the standard size up to 50 grams rate for oversize 50-100 gram envelopes ($1.18 vs $1.96) and was charged the 50-100 gram oversize envelope price for what should have been 100-200 grams oversize envelopes ($1.96 vs. $3.40). None of the envelopes had labels. The postal clerk put stamps on them all.

Thank you!

[dipmicro]

I should add that I am talking about 5 lettermail items. I was charged the standard size up to 50 grams rate for oversize 50-100 gram envelopes ($1.18 vs $1.96) and was charged the 50-100 gram oversize envelope price for what should have been 100-200 grams oversize envelopes ($1.96 vs. $3.40)

Oversized lettermail goes like this:

0 ~ 100g $1.18
100 ~ 200 $1.96
200 ~ 500 $2.75

so you are fine.

[craftycatsattic]

> Oversized lettermail goes like this:
>
> 0 ~ 100g $1.18
> 100 ~ 200 $1.96
> 200 ~ 500 $2.75
>
> so you are fine.

Hmmm. I thought you were totally confused but then saw that my January 2009 brochure has the wrong rates for Canada and just noticed now. Do you know if they changed the rates mid-year or did they just mess up to brochure?

I am not fine though. Everything was US bound. They even charged me tax when I was exempt (I know there's a recent thread about that but it never affected me until today).

[dipmicro]

Crafty, I thought this was about Canada Oversized Lettermail, so I was probably off.

I think CanadaPost is allowed only one increase per year and that was in January/February:

http://www.canadapost.ca/cpo/mc/aboutus/news/pr/2009/2009_feb_lettermail_rates.jsf

So your brochure may have old rates.

[craftycatsattic]

Yes I realized that once I saw they were Canada Rates. I think the brochure is a misprint because it's dated 2009 and has all the correct rates to the US and International.

Canada Post got back to me today and said I would receive the mail back pretty quickly if they caught the missing postage, otherwise they just might wind up in the hands of the buyers as normal.

They also said they would fix everything for me if I had to pay again to resend, so now I'm playing the waiting game.

[pierrelebel]

"Did Canada Post insist you pay the postage a second time or did the buyer have to pay extra at their post office in order to receive the items? "

In the few instances where postage was insufficient, items were returned so that the additional postage can be affixed to the envelope to make up the correct rate. No penalty or extra cost were involved

The problem is time. In two instances, letters were returned to me four weeks after being sent.

Canada Post added 400 employees last year to their "revenue protection" program - spot checking outgoing mail to make sure folks pay the correct postage. Still, millions of pieces of underfranked mail go undetected.

[ameroindustries]

I hate canada post

[shappy27]

I don't much as hate Canada Post then I do the outlets at like Shoppers Drug Mart. So many time prices are so different from store to store it's not funny.
Best line I heard so far was when I was asking for 4 packs of $1.18 stamps " oh sorry sir but they have never comes in packs of 6 and I will have to unroll them for you " yet hanging on the wall are the packs.
At the best of times, calling them airheads doesn't do them justice.

[craftycatsattic]

[quote mid="500856766"]I don't much as hate Canada Post then I do the outlets at like Shoppers Drug Mart."

Our Quebec version of Shoppers Drug Mart is Pharmaprix and that is where I do most of my shipping. The outlet is a franchise and not filled with overprotected federal employees so they go out of their way to offer great customer service. The place I went to that screwed up was the distribution center. If anyone should know what they are doing it should be them...but they are a bunch of fuddy duds with bad attitudes.

I guess it all depends on where you go.

So far no envelopes have been returned to me and nobody has left feedback for the items...but it has only been a week.