Current Mail / Postage situation due to Covid-19

[tiny_tove]

Last month I issued a new batch of shirts after months I didn't send anything.
I posted mostly in priority.

Italy got the bags in 5/7 days, instead of 1/2. Sardinia and Sicily got them in 15 days, that is insane.

Europe got the shirt mostly within 10 days, which is slightly above average (5/6 days)

With the states a complete disaster. Lucky ones got them within two weeks (instead of one) and other up to 1 month.

Considering how much postage cost these days it's a scandal.

[FreakAnimalFinland]

https://www.posti.fi/fi/asiakastuki/lahettaminen/maakohtaiset-tiedot

Rather annoying to have for example Australia and NZ closed since march... Not much that can be done, but luckily most of mail works out just fine.

[CannibalRitual]

https://www.posti.fi/fi/asiakastuki/lahettaminen/maakohtaiset-tiedot

Rather annoying to have for example Australia and NZ closed since march... Not much that can be done, but luckily most of mail works out just fine.

For some reason Germany is able to ship to Australia. They are shipping to Asia via airmail, and from there it continues by sea.
I didn't send any stuff to Australia recently, but received a package from there in reasonable time.

[FreakAnimalFinland]

Not Covid related, but I think related. Safe to say shipping to UK may get little complex in couple weeks. Not sure how strictly is enforced all the new regulations, but I would assume that if you are "merchant" and required to have UK VAT ID to get shipments to customers, it may be bye bye UK customers. Simply might be too much hassle to make it possible to take orders from UK.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-vat-treatment-of-overseas-goods-sold-to-customers-from-1-january-2021/changes-to-vat-treatment-of-overseas-goods-sold-to-customers-from-1-january-2021

Some american friends were amazed when I told some weeks ago, that one can no longer send letters to US (or other non EU countries) without custom registering shipment online. No cost, just little extra work. Even just one tape in envelope, and if CN22 code is not registered in online database, letter can be returned. This applies also private persons. Not just "companies".

So "postage situation", who knows... This electronic handling may speed up and automatize a lot of things, but also it may make things complicated. Finnish post introduced new weight limits abroad. They boasted that prices increase only moderatly, but in reality, the 500g envelopes changed into 250g envelopes. So half less stuff inside for higher price than it used to be. Thanks!
Freak Animal will keep my shipping rates the same as usual for now on. Things have been taken care of to level one can, and prepare, but I guess the 5 euro international shipping for 1-4 CDs/1-5 tapes is a deal that will end in upcoming years.

So I guess 2021 might be the year I suggest to start hoarding noise, so you got the soundtrack for the apocalypse stacked in shelves!

[CannibalRitual]

Just sell stuff on discogs and they are handling all the VAT shit. I heard they got new improved shipping policies too ;)

[host body]

I just FINALLY received a CD I ordered from Finland back in March. The postal stamp shows it shipped as of March 30th and I never thought the guy was trying to screw me. I'm guessing it was stuck in the very bottom of some large sorting pile and the postal workers just NOW got caught up six months later. Crazy, so if anyone is still waiting on something there is still hope!

I had some tapes travel for up to 7 months, sent in march and received them in october. Lemme tell you, the worst time possible to release a tape and make trades overseas!

[Euro Trash Bazooka]

The few things I've sent to Finland in the past months have taken unusually long to get there, like 3 to 5 weeks, whereas it took like 5 days before.

I don't even want to think about the package I sent to the US 2 months ago filled with LPs and tapes...

[ConcreteMascara]

From my experience in the US:

I believe it's been several years now, at least 2, since every international package must be processed at the counter for USPS. Everything gets the "big" customs for now and if your teller is a slow typist it can take for-fucking-ever. Base international price is basically $14 for anything that's not a letter, anywhere. If I'm wrong someone one please correct me and save me some fucking money.

As for shipping times, most things I've sent to Finland have taken months and detoured through Japan.

Stuff I've sent to Japan arrives in a week, to the UK is almost as quick, and to Canada takes a couple of weeks.

As for arrivals, Japan now isn't too bad, usually 2 weeks. Germany takes a month at least, sometimes even more for a single 12". My last package from France took a week. Canada is a couple of weeks.

Looking at my orders since the pandemic started I've basically just bought stuff from shippers in the US to ignore all of this headache.

[NerveGas]

From my experience in the US:

I believe it's been several years now, at least 2, since every international package must be processed at the counter for USPS. Everything gets the "big" customs for now and if your teller is a slow typist it can take for-fucking-ever. Base international price is basically $14 for anything that's not a letter, anywhere. If I'm wrong someone one please correct me and save me some fucking money.

As for shipping times, most things I've sent to Finland have taken months and detoured through Japan.

Stuff I've sent to Japan arrives in a week, to the UK is almost as quick, and to Canada takes a couple of weeks.

As for arrivals, Japan now isn't too bad, usually 2 weeks. Germany takes a month at least, sometimes even more for a single 12". My last package from France took a week. Canada is a couple of weeks.

Looking at my orders since the pandemic started I've basically just bought stuff from shippers in the US to ignore all of this headache.

Nothing worse than mailing a stack of international packages, waiting in line, and having a postal worker who types 10 words a minute handle your customs info. There has to be a better way, but USPS is increasingly becoming a joke. With the holiday backlog currently, I wouldn't even bother ordering anything from outside the US. Even then I barely want to order anything inside the US either. Just hoping everything I've mailed overseas lately doesn't take months. I don't mind waiting for packages because I'm an adult and understand the current situation, but it's not uncommon for people to expect Amazon-esque speed and  service from one man/little profit operations.

[deviated_septum]

It also seems like the quality of the postal service in the US over the past year has become increasingly disparate based on where you live and exasperated by covid. In Chicago, domestic packages took ages to arrive and would often get sent back and forth through distribution centers in the area for a week or two before even arriving at the local post office. Since moving to Seattle in August, I've had no major issues with package delays.

As for sending abroad, it's a joke that it costs $14 to even send a tape now that they don't qualify for letter post as "documents." Doing a bunch of international trading over the last year has been rewarding when you can't go anywhere, but a bit disheartening watching packages arrive sent for only a couple of bucks from elsewhere when it cost $14+ to send my portion.

[ConcreteMascara]

It also seems like the quality of the postal service in the US over the past year has become increasingly disparate based on where you live and exasperated by covid. In Chicago, domestic packages took ages to arrive and would often get sent back and forth through distribution centers in the area for a week or two before even arriving at the local post office. Since moving to Seattle in August, I've had no major issues with package delays.

As for sending abroad, it's a joke that it costs $14 to even send a tape now that they don't qualify for letter post as "documents." Doing a bunch of international trading over the last year has been rewarding when you can't go anywhere, but a bit disheartening watching packages arrive sent for only a couple of bucks from elsewhere when it cost $14+ to send my portion.

Happily the USPS service where I live doesn't seem to be affected as far as local delivery. But speed of service seems to vary by region/city/etc.

And yeah, I typically lose money on every international order, or break even if I'm lucky, because I can't in good conscience charge full shipping prices.

[Into_The_Void]

Italy got the bags in 5/7 days, instead of 1/2. Sardinia and Sicily got them in 15 days, that is insane.

Sardinia is barely Italy, and postage services are barely postal services there ahahah (I´m sardinian - just joking, but not too much actually, and unfortunately).

Here in Germany post services seem to be still working more or less properly (although german post delivery sometimes sucks a lot), and I hope it keeps on going like that. Considering that is probably the less expensive postal service in Europe, I can´t complain that much so far.

[CannibalRitual]

I was planning to ship out few things to UK prior to the new Brexit shit in January but unfortunately Deutsche Post doesn't ship to UK anymore due to the Corona situation. It's such a mess.....

[Into_The_Void]

I was planning to ship out few things to UK prior to the new Brexit shit in January but unfortunately Deutsche Post doesn't ship to UK anymore due to the Corona situation. It's such a mess.....

don´t ship and don´t deliver any post from UK, according to the Royal Mail website. I´m also waiting a shipment from there and I´m terribly pissed off from the whole situation. But that´s it...

[CannibalRitual]

Guess who sent a shitload of food to the UK, but you can't send a wicked noise tape. Talk about priorities here....