My Post Office is closing – advice please

[siddieswans]

I realise I have been spoiled during my 20 years on eBay. A Post Office in walking distance (I am older and no longer  drive); but with a parking lot for when my husband needed to drive me (wet weather, large parcels); very helpful and friendly staff.

But now we have been advised of permanent closure on 31st May. I need to change my ways. There are no other POs in walking distance and of those within reasonable driving distance, only one has reliable nearby parking in a shopping centre. The logical thing to do seems to be to cut my posting down to once a week (I have 15 day handling but have always posted twice a week); prepare parcels at home with AP labels, and take them to the PO to be scanned onto my My Post card along my pre-paid satchels and tracked letters.

The EASIEST thing to do would be to empty them every day into the red Post box conveniently located about 100 metres away. But I am concerned that without an initial scan, they may never have another one,  and that I may be liable in an INR dispute. Are these fears justified? Also my manually copying those ridiculously long tracking numbers from AP tracked letters into eBay tracking without making a mistake seems doubtful to say the least.

Also when you print out an AP domestic postage label, do you include all / some the fields marked “optional” like email address, phone number, description, and that eBay “identifier” which seems to me to complicate the address.

I am an old dog who will have to learn new tricks.

PS Don’t mention having to get a new Post Office Box address. 500 previous customers scrambling to replace them locally.

[sugar249]

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@gutterpunkz05 wrote:

From memory, isn't that ebay identifier, supposed to supply additional tracking info to ebay,  Just my recollection as to why it was brought in.

As far as the red post boxes go, I rarely use them and  have had items not show any tracking until delivered.

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That may be the theory,  but Australia Post are the only ones who track the parcels in their system, and they don't read or track the Ebay numbers.   So not sure how Ebay can track them at their end,  maybe magical invisible parcel detections on the Freeway.  LOL   (Laugh Out Loud)

[sugar249]

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@gutterpunkz05 wrote:

The ebay identifier does not complicate the address and ebay advise not to remove it.

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And yes it does complicate the address, have you seen how some of the labels appear if you leave it on,  sometimes it is almost joined with the house/unit numbers,  thats why I delete them.  

[gutterpunkz05]

Likewise I only use AP for labels, with ebay integrated, all automatic so the ebay identifier  does not create any issues.

Who knows what deals ebay has with AP.  As stated I believe the ebay identifier was related to additional tracking, and was to be included even if the address was hand written.

[padi*0409]

We have a similar problem here, I'm in a town with around 5,000 people living in it.

When I first arrived about 8 years ago we had 4 banks, we now have just one that's only open 3 days a week and closes for lunch...............

The one ATM that we have in town regularly runs out of cash as well.

We've been told that that branch is closing later in the year (along with every other branch of theirs - Bank West - and ComBank is taking over - they closed their branch here about 2 years ago - so we are likely to be without any banking facilities here in the next year or so.................

[gutterpunkz05]

Like the search for the nile.....splash...found it

Do not remove or interfere with this code, to ensure the validity of tracking information associated with the delivery. If you are using an external label printing portal, be sure to add the code to address line one of the label.

[siddieswans]

Thanks again for your responses .

Using pre-paid tracked envelopes for letters. What I used to do was lodge them at my PO and then copy and paste from the tracking number in My Post (or from the email receipt from Australia Post.) If I don’t go to the PO but just put them in the red PO Box, I have to manually enter the tracking number for eBay????? (Same for satchels but their tracking numbers are not quite so onerous.)

I have a My Post Business account but have obviously never used it to its full potential. So I put the app on my phone, and if I buy Australia Post supplies over the counter (satchels, boxes) – they scan the My Business app, and it adds towards my post discount band. (The main exception to this seems to be Domestic Tracked Letters, which I use a lot.) But not if I buy them direct on-line from AP web site. Good to know thanks.

“Do not remove or interfere with this code, to ensure the validity of tracking information associated with the delivery. If you are using an external label printing portal, be sure to add the code to address line one of the label.” I have always printed labels independently for all my parcels, tracked envelopes, satchels, boxes – have always removed the code, and had no trouble with tracking.

I presume there is no way of customising the input from eBay to AP labels to ignore those optional fields you don’t want copied across  - I certainly don’t want a label on my parcel that says “Antique gold brooch.”

And thanks Sugar for alerting me that I had forgotten to take down my Christmas store closure message – duh! Told you I was old!!!!

[countessalmirena]

Does it help to know that I’ve only just taken down our Christmas tree, and I’ve yet to chainsaw it into green-bin-sized bits?

That initial scan is possibly the most important one, at least in terms of proving the item was actually posted. Those red boxes are so tempting… but until a robot pops its head out of the box and automatically scans the parcel/satchel/letter, they don’t offer any sort of proof that the item went any further than the seller’s intentions.

[sugar249]

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@countessalmirena wrote:

That initial scan is possibly the most important one, at least in terms of proving the item was actually posted. 

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And within your specified handling time!!

[*sons_n_daughters*]

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@countessalmirena wrote:

Does it help to know that I’ve only just taken down our Christmas tree, and I’ve yet to chainsaw it into green-bin-sized bits?

That initial scan is possibly the most important one, at least in terms of proving the item was actually posted. Those red boxes are so tempting… but until a robot pops its head out of the box and automatically scans the parcel/satchel/letter, they don’t offer any sort of proof that the item went any further than the seller’s intentions.

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I can't believe that red boxes don't have in-built scanners yet. It wouldn't be that hard to hook it into the system. It would make life so much easier for so many people. It would also cut down the work of the staff in the PO as they aren't just scanning a parcel that's already been paid for.

[siddieswans]

Thanks again to all who took the time to contribute.

We have snaffled a PO Box in a nearby suburb. I will post there, at least initially, preparing as much as possible at home first. Reasonably close parking looks possible, and it is moderately accessable by public transport, should my need ever arrive. One of the counter staff is an old friend  for used to work at our branch, and we have met the Manager. 

I will leave the Red Box for emergencies only. Now to get started on changing  XXXX  mailing addresses.