eBay Workshop with Canada Post: Thursday, August 25, 1:00-2:00 PM ET

[carly@ebay.com]

Please join us on Thursday, August 25, from 1-2 PM ET for a workshop with Canada Post. Kim from Canada Post will be here to answer all of your questions about Canada Post letterpost service and what the regulations are for using this type of service.

If you are not able to attend, you can leave your questions here in advance of the workshop and they will be answered during the workshop, and you can come back in and check the answers.

Hope you can join us!

Carly

[misterbeaver]

whenever i have to mail alot of stuff and it becomes cost efficient to cross the border, this is what i do to avoid the yes/no question for if ur leaving stuff in the USA.

Basically I bring 2 boxes, one with letters and parcels i plan to mail in the USA, and 1 smaller box with dummy lettermail, which if opened looks legit (to family and friends and some customers, with no dates).

When the border people ask me if im leaving goods in the US, I just say no, just going to visit a friend, or tourist, or shop, whatever reason you want to think up. If they ask to check out the vehicle I say sure, and they stumble upon the packages and they say what im doing with it, i just reply with "just some stuff i gotta mail on later when i get back" and then he nods and then he/she will write a note in the paperwork or computer which will say i should basically be returning with mailed items. So I cross, mail my first box and return to the border with my dummy box, so if they pll up any paper work or computer records, they see my letters which have yet to be mailed and they let me go on my way.

I figure there happy to get my money from USPS so no point paying duties 😛

[grandmotherwind]

I would like Canada Post (which is really our federal government) can justify putting potentially thousands of honest hard working Canadians out of work with this policy which will at least DOUBLE my shipping costs? Did this even figure into your policy change? i feel that this is appalling and Canadians need to speak out.

[tobyshitzu]

Further to the above report that csrs were saying books and magazines were still letter:

---------------------------------
I can understand your concerns about the different postal rates you mention. I assure you that you were informed correctly in regards to letter-post to the United States accepting paper matters only.


The Regulations to the Canada Post Corporation Act specify that a letter-post item may not contain any “goods” like a small gift, book, CD or similar item. Unfortunately, some retail outlets misinterpreted the Regulations and were accepting some letter-post items in error.

It was to clarify this point that we recently updated our web site to indicate that US and International letter-post has content regulations that we must observe, while domestic lettermail is based on the size of the item. Unfortunately, your grandmother’s cassettes fall into this category, and the Small Packet rate must be used for mailing them outside Canada. Within Canada, however, they may be sent as lettermail.

Canada does not have the high population density or mail volume of either the United States or Great Britain, and these elements greatly affect the variety of rates and services we offer. Monetary exchange rates taken into consideration, our postal rates compare very favourably with other countries. We strive to provide our customers with the quality service they expect and deserve from Canada Post, while operating in a fiscally responsible manner. We are proud of the fact that we have not received taxpayer support since 1989.

Thank you for writing and allowing me this opportunity to respond.

Yours sincerely,

Moya Greene
President and Chief Executive Officer
Canada Post

[tobyshitzu]

SOonow, from the top dog herself, its "no goods" rather then "only paper"...which isn't the same thing

[pierrelebel]

The President and CEO of Canada Post writes:

"The Regulations to the Canada Post Corporation Act specify that a letter-post item may not contain any “goods”..."

If that statement is correct and really represents Canada Post rules and regulations, my question to Kim, the Canada Post representative is:

Why is your Philatelic Centre allowed to break your own rules? Everything Canada Post Philatelic Centre mails outside the country is franked at the lettermail rate if under 500g and charged to your international customers accrodingly.

Obviously the words of your President and CEO "some retail outlets misinterpreted the Regulations and were accepting some letter-post items in error" certainly do not apply in this context.

[tobyshitzu]

Now THAT is a question to take to the ombudsman, CP unfairly comepting by contravening postal regulation. We should wait for our expert Kim to clarify I suppose.

[pierrelebel]

"our expert Kim "

Very high expectations! 😉

[thomasj7342]

:^O

[sunshine9280]

Canada does not have the high population density or mail volume of either the United States or Great Britain, and these elements greatly affect the variety of rates and services we offer. Delivery confirmation is a service that the user would pay for generating revenue for Canada Post. Have you ever asked what services the users would like and would be willing to pay for?

Monetary exchange rates taken into consideration, our postal rates compare very favourably with other countries. We strive to provide our customers with the quality service they expect and deserve from Canada Post, while operating in a fiscally responsible manner. We are proud of the fact that we have not received taxpayer support since 1989. compare very favourably - I think you'd find that Canadian's would not agree with this statement. are proud of the fact that we have not received taxpayer support since 1989 You may be proud of that but a well run company shouldn't have to look to the taxpayer for support anyways especially with the inflated prices being charged. You may well now have to look for that support given you are going to be driving away a great deal of business. I am only one small business and you've already lost approx. $7500/yr in postage and that was based on the price of mailing before your enforcement....

[tobyshitzu]

Thank you for your message to Canada Post.

Tickelopes can be mailed to addresses in Canada, the U.S.A. and internationally. The price for mailing within Canada is $1.00 (Oversize Lettermail rate), to the U.S. is $1.70 (Other Letter-post rate) and $3.40 (other Letter-post rate) to international destinations.

Additional information about Tickelopes can be obtained at http://www.tickelopes.com/main.html

Regards,

Brigitte Crête

Customer Service

[tobyshitzu]

Don't these ticklopes contravene other rules, "must be retangular in shape", nothing attacthed???

[tobyshitzu]

OMG!! a loophole. CP has just told me ticklopes are fine to go letterpsot and directed me to their website. What does the website say -

"Approved by the U.S. Postal Service and Canada Post, Tickelopes surely beat the ordinary fashion of receiving and sending mail. With a variety of 17 foam colors and a selection of 4 different sizes, Tickelopes send not only a colorful greeting but also a smile to brighten the day. When sending a little something extra, the 6" Tickelopes can hold 4X6 photographs and compact discs comfortably fit in the 5" Tickelopes."

[patinage4ever]

Toby, re letter quoted in post #182. Is this a paper letter? (or at least a letter with characteristics of paper) Also what is date of writing?

Moya (or her office staff) is still blaming "some retail outlets".

When I wrote to her in response to my letter of July 27 I enclosed a copy of Canada Post's rate sheet T455161 from Jan 2005 which clearly allows items other than documents to be sent via US & International Letter-Post. RPO's are certainly not responsible for this issue.

[tobyshitzu]

Its an email someone received today

[pierrelebel]

Let's not kid ourselves. The President and CEO is not personally answering our letters or email inquiries.

It is done by some customer support staff who, quite obviously, have no idea what the problem is, let alone a solution.

Will Kim come up with real, honest, candid and comprehensive answers?

Time will tell.

[sunshine9280]

Your loophole may be a little expensive. These are $1.99 each - plus postage. I pay less than 20 cents for a bubble envelope.

[tobyshitzu]

Yes, but your bubble envelope has to go small packet ($5.60 air), canadapost has just told me a tickleope can still go letterpost and directed me to a site with information that says a cd goes in them. That would work out slightly cheaper, and customer gets the cool envelope. But the point is CP is saying their own non paper products are fine letterpost, while everything else isn't.

[tobyshitzu]

Hello,

Thank you for responding.

Ticklelopes are foamy shaped envelopes containing paper material, a card. As such, they can be sent using lettermail rates.

To view an image of the Ticklelopes, please click on the following link:

http://www.tickelopes.com/main.html

Regards,

Brigitte Crête

[c2c]

I have a number of questions:
1. why do we have the highest national rates of almost any country in the world especially starting rates?
2. why is their only one country, the U.S., where a small parcel can only be one Kilo?
3. Why is the small parcel weight break 500g-1K-2K, when almost all other countries are either 50 grams or 2 ounces?
4. Why are you set to raise prices another 7-9% again this year after pounding them up over the last number of years at this rate and with your "minimum density" charge in many cases raising them 500%.
5. why can I send a parcel from the US to Japan airmail for $35 when you wanted $186 ?
6. why is minimum density only used by Canada Post and no other post office?
7. why is "US expedited" three or more times higher than U.S. rates and yet the USPS does all the work as Canada Post dumps them at the border as quickly as they can?
I look forward to your answers

[ridgeesales]

comixfriend... You really should state facts you know not assumed....
"Canada Post has such a strong union that its impossible to compete with USPS. Employees get paid 40 hour weeks and only work 15 (my friend works in CP.. he's laughing about it all the time).All Canada Post full time Canada Post employees work an 8 hour day, outside workers such as mail delivery person or truck drivers work under a measured system, they are measured for 8 hours work, of course some can get this done sooner but really 15 hours a week would seem impossible! ( They get minimum 5 weeks paid vacation a year and 8 weeks if they have been there for 5 years."New employees according to their contract get 3 weeks holidays a year and move to 4 weeks after 7 or 8 years, 5 weeks after 14 etc".
It is not right to fault the blue collar worker who is trying hard to make ends meet just like all other middle class working stiffs in Canada, lets face it we are all overworked and under paid, taxed to death, to support a social system that enables people to do nothing and still get taken care of, at least the postal employee in whatever position they may hold is doing a job. Some are excellent others (a very small amount) shouldn't be there.

The facts are Canada is a very large country with a very small population base to draw from, to even try and compare the two postal system and the costs to operate can never be done, the USA has a population in one city that Canada has in the whole country. The volume of mail the US must handle a day probably compares to the volume Canada Post handles in a year. Yet Canada in square miles is larger and takes as much if not more cost to service.
So who pays, us the users.
Having said all this I still don't feel that Canada Post is right in forcing us to use small package instead of letter mail on light weight items under 250 grams that would fit through their little measuring tool.
Just lets not blame the employees who try hard day in and day out to keep the mail moving, for decisions made by those way over the average workers heads.