USPS International Shipping Rant!

Rare Iron · #1 (**permalink**) 12-20-2009, 09:27 PM

I've got a guy in Australia wanting me to ship him some Ford 15x6.5" steel wheels. I ship everything international via the USPS, but they have gotten WAAAAY out of control on their rates. For me to ship these wheels to him (25 lbs. ea.) is $148.90 PER wheel, plus add a few bucks for some misc. charges they add on. This is RIDICULOUS! 5 wheels shipping = $750.00!

Just for the heck of it, I looked at what past wheel shipments cost me to foreign countries. In March 2007, it cost $110.00 for me to ship 4 GM 14x6" wheels to Germany. Those same 4 wheels today would cost $300.00 to send to Germany. What is going on with the USPS?

Does anybody know of a more reasonable way to get items like this overseas? Forget FedEx or UPS international - I've given up on them for anything out of the country. Take their quotes & add about 40% to them. Both wheels & mufflers are getting crazy expensive to ship anywhere but inside the US. Lately I've been getting orders out of NZ & Australia for my Cobrapack mufflers, but they are a hard sell because of the prohibitive shipping costs! HELP!

End of rant.

Gunner · #2 (**permalink**) 12-20-2009, 10:36 PM

Fuel costs, which have stabilized after last year but remain higher - less subsidized - and the relative strength of the dollar. Remember that when you ship overseas, a portion of that postage or freight is paid forward to the delivery country's postal service. It's a tremendously complicated negotiated structure but the weakness of the dollar over the last year or two has tilted the balance of costs a great deal.

As a business shipping bulky, awkward and heavy items, it's on you to investigate the various carriers that service each destination and find the most reasonable option to each. Using just one for convenience is going to mean you have good rates to some places and awful rates elsewhere. I'd suggest (from my experiences) that buyers in Oz and elsewhere are generally accepting of long delivery times to save money. Almost all USPS international stuff goes by air - look at surface shipping and tell your buyers to crack a cold one while they wait.

Rare Iron · #3 (**permalink**) 12-21-2009, 04:22 PM

USPS does not offer snail-mail or surface delivery anymore - EVEN TO CANADA! No more Parcel Post. The one thing I do like about the post office in shipping export, is they get the delivery done & don't puss-out (like FedEx has done to me several times - the package ends-up back to me a couple days later) plus the USPS does not come back at you with extra hidden charges. Once you deal with other shippers that require having your credit card on file, they get a little greedy & seem to do their own comeback business on your card!

I took an order for a pair of 22" long Cobrapacks today, & shipping to Ontario (anywhere from 2-5 hours from me) was $70.00. That's a lot for 33 pounds. 2-1/2 years ago, those same mufflers would have cost around $28.00 to ship.

tfalk · #4 (**permalink**) 12-22-2009, 07:39 AM

Try shipping USPS to South Africa...

First package priority mail went off into never-never land, never to be seen again. Second package I sent express mail, gauranteed to be there in 3 days. 30 days later, they decided to try to deliver it. Person no longer worked there so they sent it back. Great...

Shell Valley · #5 (**permalink**) 12-22-2009, 10:14 AM

We've been doing quite a bit of international business lately and have been using DHL. Very good rates and so far the service has been great! You might want to check them out.

Dana

Gunner · #6 (**permalink**) 12-22-2009, 02:32 PM

DHL was handling international shipments when FedEx was what you called your former spouse who was in Leavenworth.

Every shipper has its strengths and weaknesses. I use USPS for about 95% of my deliveries but won't send anything larger than a Flat Rate box through them. FedEx Ground is my usual parcel service. FedEx Express (a redundancy, now) and DHL when I need fast, high-end, complicated shipping.

It's really pretty pointless to complain that USPS rates have gone up in the last few years. So has everything else, including all other shippers' rates. I mean, gosh, aren't Cokes 20 cents any more? :P

Rare Iron · #7 (**permalink**) 12-22-2009, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gunner

DHL was handling international shipments when FedEx was what you called your former spouse who was in Leavenworth.

Every shipper has its strengths and weaknesses. I use USPS for about 95% of my deliveries but won't send anything larger than a Flat Rate box through them. FedEx Ground is my usual parcel service. FedEx Express (a redundancy, now) and DHL when I need fast, high-end, complicated shipping.

It's really pretty pointless to complain that USPS rates have gone up in the last few years. So has everything else, including all other shippers' rates. I mean, gosh, aren't Cokes 20 cents any more? :P

Come-on, $750.00 to ship 5 wheels to AU? I could fly down there for that price & carry them in baggage, AND get 3 squares. I might even chum for Great Whites while I'm down there & have a few beers!

thudmaster · #8 (**permalink**) 12-22-2009, 11:09 PM

I think he just wants to rant...........don't blame him........

Gunner · #9 (**permalink**) 12-22-2009, 11:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rare Iron

Come-on, $750.00 to ship 5 wheels to AU? I could fly down there for that price & carry them in baggage, AND get 3 squares.

Um, let's just say I doubt it.

If you can't be bothered to shop for competitive shipping rates, I suggest you get out of international sales.

Zedn · #10 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 04:54 AM

Rare Iron,

I live in Sydney Australia. I am currently shopping around for wheels and i am planning to purchase American Racing Torq thrust II 17x8 for the front and 17x11 for the rear. All quotes i have received so far for shipping have been between $350 - $400US (for all 4).

My boss has just offered to buy them for me as a bonus, so i will be paying a few hundred extra and getting them here (company can buy before tax and save me 40%), but i got quotes from Vintage wheels, newstalgia, and an ebay shop all between 350, 395, and 350. The ebay shop says fedex in the email so try them. Also i purchased 4 tyres from the tirerack and the shipping was $225.

Hang in there and get a few more quotes. You are correct, they are asking too much.

Where in Australia does the person live? If they are in a remote area that could be driving up the cost. Keep in mind that Australia is not very densely populated so if they are in the sticks (i think you call it out on the ranch) it will cost more.

Liam.

saki302 · #11 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 06:39 AM

I got tickets to Japan for $800.. I'm allowed 2 70lb bags because I'm a premier member.. It would almost cost the same to hand carry 5 wheels to Austrailia, and you get a free vacation out of it

With the airlines hurting for business, I don't see why they couldn't do an airport-to-airport freight business, say half the price of USPS, using their excess baggage space.

-Dave

*13* · #12 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 07:21 AM

Shipping rates spiked at some point during this year. I sent a set of lightweight bicycle wheels domestically a couple months back. I shopped the rates & it came up to a min of $65 no matter who I went with. The box weighed no more than 8lbs. It had never been nearly this high in the past.

My suggestion would be to find someone with an account & have them ship. Some companies get huge discounts on rates.

Gunner · #13 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by *13*

Shipping rates spiked at some point during this year. I sent a set of lightweight bicycle wheels domestically a couple months back. I shopped the rates & it came up to a min of $65 no matter who I went with. The box weighed no more than 8lbs. It had never been nearly this high in the past.

I would guess that, besides weight, you were running into "minimum weight by size" charges - if you ship a 3-foot cube that weighs five pounds, you will be charged for a higher equivalent weight to compensate for the physical size of the package.

*13* · #14 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gunner

I would guess that, besides weight, you were running into "minimum weight by size" charges - if you ship a 3-foot cube that weighs five pounds, you will be charged for a higher equivalent weight to compensate for the physical size of the package.

That's crazy talk. The parts weren't even worth the cost of shipping.

Gunner · #15 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by *13*

That's crazy talk. The parts weren't even worth the cost of shipping.

Look, if you want to ship an empty 10x10x10 foot box somewhere, the carrier doesn't care what the value is - but they aren't likely to transport it for you at a rate based on the ten pounds the cardboard weighs.

The default for most shippers these days is air transport, since most buyers won't settle for anything less speedy. It used to be that you started with surface shipping and paid through the nose if you needed something faster. Now people pay a premium price even when a more leisurely delivery method at a third the cost or less would serve fine.

Always be sure to ask about alternatives to the basic offerings. I mean, I just learned this week that FedEx handles car transport!

Rare Iron · #16 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by saki302

I got tickets to Japan for $800.. I'm allowed 2 70lb bags because I'm a premier member.. It would almost cost the same to hand carry 5 wheels to Austrailia, and you get a free vacation out of it

With the airlines hurting for business, I don't see why they couldn't do an airport-to-airport freight business, say half the price of USPS, using their excess baggage space.

-Dave

No - hey forget it. Like the guys are saying above - I'm just "ranting." (I'm checking with some air freight companies out of DTW).

Gunner · #17 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rare Iron

Like the guys are saying above - I'm just "ranting."

Hey, don't get any idea that I blame you - it's a PITA. I'm fortunate in that I can ship most stuff Priority Mail flat rate... it can sting when I have to get outside that range.

But especially for international shipping, checking all the options can pay off. For Oz, surface shipping is slow and inconvenient but often much cheaper. The downunda crowd is also used to having to wait forever and pay extra for things. (I was involved with an Aussie company for several years in the 1980s and got all too familiar with the plight of hobbyists there.)

For the kind of items you ship, consider finding a bulk reshipper rather than shipping directly.

*13* · #18 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 01:33 PM

For kicks & giggles I just ran the same shipment through our ups quoting syst at work. It would cost a guy $13 bucks to ship a pkg through an account as opposed to the street price of $65 for the exact same box

Gunner · #19 (**permalink**) 12-23-2009, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by *13*

For kicks & giggles I just ran the same shipment through our ups quoting syst at work. It would cost a guy $13 bucks to ship a pkg through an account as opposed to the street price of $65 for the exact same box

UPS, I'd bet. One way to save a LOT of money is to avoid the third-party "shipping stores." Between their inflated rates and numerous extra charges, you'll see rate differences like the one you quote.

This isn't new. Maybe fifteen years ago I bought a very light item that arrived in a very small box from about 100 miles away, with the commercial shipper rate of about $2.50 marked on it. I didn't like the item, repackaged it exactly as it arrived, and took it to a UPS store... to be told it would be $14.00 for the return. (I got my company to send it as part of their shipments and kicked $5.00 into the party kitty.)

FWIW, FedEx "stores" do NOT mark up their rates, at least not that massively. I avoid UPS whenever I can, in part because of this piratical retail practice.