Mail from Escapees Forwarding Service - Slow?

[cwr]

We use the Escapees Mail Service for our personal mail. The past few months, it seems like it takes our mail an exceptionally long time to reach its destination. Our mail is usually forwarded via First Class (large envelope). By comparison, we utilize America's Mailbox in South Dakota for our business mail. Lately, no matter where we are, we always get the mail from South Dakota more quickly than our mail from Texas.

I will list a few recent examples:

Livingston, Texas to northern Florida -- 14 days from Escapees (first class)
Box Elder, South Dakota to same location in northern Florida - 3 days from America's Mailbox (first class)

Livingston, Texas to Lewisville, Texas  -- 7 days from Escapee's (first class)
Box Elder South Dakota to same location in Lewisville, Texas -- 4 days from America's Mailbox (first class)

Livingston, Texas to northern Virginia - 8+ days (still waiting!) for Escapees mail to arrive (first class)
Box Elder, South Dakota to same location in northern Virginia - 3 days from America's Mailbox (first class)

I am not writing to complain about the Escapees Mail Service itself; I suspect if there is a problem anywhere, it is most likely with the USPS facilities in the Livingston, TX area, but I was simply curious if others have noticed that it takes a LONG time for their mail from Livingston to show up. Almost any first class mail I get from anywhere but Livingston takes anywhere from 1-4 days to arrive, but lately its almost a guaranteed 7-14 days if its coming from Livingston.

[beyerjf]

When I get my mail forwarded I ask them to use Fed Ex ground. It has been a long time since the USPS was competitive in any way with the other services available. 

[Orvil Hazelton]

We have been customers of the Escapee Mail Service now for 12 years and have never received this level of poor service.  We normally winter at  Jojoba Hills SKP Park in Aguanga, Calif. If we request mail on Tuesday, to be sent on Wednesday, we receive it by Friday.  When traveling, and we request mail sent to a general delivery post office, we generally give it an extra day, just to be sure.  I'd certainly ask  a SKP mail representative to look into this for you.  

[2gypsies]

We always had ours sent Priority and got it in 3 days.... five days to Alaska!

[Barbaraok]

We get all of our mail forwarded via Priority Mail.  2-3 days, can track it and know that if it gets stuck, where it is stuck.  Only slow down this year was when the hurricane shut down Houston.    First class Mail is slow and normal take 5 days or so to go across the country.  But then again, we only get mail every 3 weeks so it comes in a box so priority mail makes sense for us.

[Orvil Hazelton]

-     I neglected in my prior post to mention that we elect to recieve mail every other week through USPS 2nd day service. Regardless of where we choose to travel in these United States , our mail faithfully awaits our arrival. The cost of Usps mail verses Fed Ex and Ups is just better for our needs. Once again addressing the original poster, we are most pleased with SKP Mail Service after 12 years of full-timing.

[Kirk W]

9 hours ago, cwr said:

Almost any first class mail I get from anywhere but Livingston takes anywhere from 1-4 days to arrive, but lately its almost a guaranteed 7-14 days if its coming from Livingston.

It would not be the Livingston post office as the mail service has it's own zip-code and travels directly between the Houston sorting center and the mail room. Standard practice is that the truck stops at the Livingston PO and unloads a few mail carts and then travels on out to the Escapee mailroom dock where it unloads the mail for them and then the truck (or at least the trailer) remains there until about 3 pm when outgoing mail has been loaded. It then goes back to the Livingston PO and picks up their mail and returns to the Houston sorting center. It may well be related to the Houston sorting center. We use the mail service in summer when traveling and so will be testing it out again very soon. To this date, I have not noticed it being slow but our home=base is only 150 miles from Livingston. We have in the past experienced problems with the Dallas sorting center which handles mail from Lindale, our local PO so it would not surprise me if this is also a problem in Houston. 

In fairness, the USPS has a very difficult situation as it is asked to operate as a profitable or at least break-even business while Congress medals in things and will not allow them to close the small, unneeded offices. 

[cwr]

Thanks for all the input. Seems like most have mail sent via Priority Mail or FedEx. I suppose this is what I should consider doing, as the stress of wondering if my mail will show up before we leave an area is becoming too burdensome.

[SWharton]

We have our mail sent regular USPS. Livingston to Phoenix, sent on Friday and normally there on Monday or Tuesday.

[GR "Scott" Cundiff]

We generally get mail within a few days.  However, over the winter I tracked my mail as it arrived, first in the town where we were, then off it went to central Texas, then to another town I never heard of near there, and then, after about a week, it arrived back at the local post office and out to delivery to me.  When I looked at the address label, it was just fine.

It just so happened that that package was larger enough that Escapees had used priority mail, so I could track the package on it's tour of Texas.  Because of that, I decided to start requesting priority mail all the time.

[TXiceman]

The USPS is getting to the point of useless.  We are in Tomball, TX, NW of Houston.  WE had one mailing from Livingston that was 9 days until we got it.  The mail problem is all over the place and won't get any better,

We decided to use Fed-X Ground and it cost a bit more, but mail sent on Tuesday is in our hands on Wednesday.

Ken

[Barbaraok]

Isn’t Priority Mail cheaper than FedEx Ground.  2-3 days with tracking.

 

[Jack Mayer]

Priority mail. 2-3 days, consistently for 19 years.

 

[dewilso]

I’ve had a couple of instances where priority mail addressed to me at SKP address indicates has shown on the USPS tracking as received. Checking the mail room, the don’t have it and I’ve chased it down to the Livingston P.O.. When picking up my last "lost mail" at the P.O. and questioning them as to the WHY I was told that the mail to 77399 is scanned as received when it arrives at 77351, 77399 is just a branch. I don’t know who or what to believe but I do know that trying to receive mail as a resident is a real PITA. We’ve never had troubles receiving our mail when traveling...except at Skagway.

[TXiceman]

On 4/28/2018 at 5:06 PM, Jack Mayer said:

Priority mail. 2-3 days, consistently for 19 years.

 

Jack you are charmed.  Last time we used USPS from Livingston to Tomball was 9 days and it was Priority One. Time before was 5 days.  In both cases, I can ride my bicycle to Livingston and back faster than the USPS.  In both cases, the tracking showed it was "delivered" , but it took several more days to actually be delivered.

Thus we now use Fed-X ground and it is next day from Livingston.

Ken

[sandsys]

Where we live now FedEx and UPS have a last mile program or some such thing. That means they turn it over the post office for delivery. When they do that it delays everything. It gets quickly to the next suburb over then spend a couple days traveling that last little bit.

Linda Sand

[Jack Mayer]

11 hours ago, TXiceman said:

Jack you are charmed.  Last time we used USPS from Livingston to Tomball was 9 days and it was Priority One. Time before was 5 days.  In both cases, I can ride my bicycle to Livingston and back faster than the USPS.  In both cases, the tracking showed it was "delivered" , but it took several more days to actually be delivered.

Thus we now use Fed-X ground and it is next day from Livingston.

Ken

Actually, I may have posted some incomplete info. We order our mail for Friday shipment. We usually get it on Tuesday, but sometimes Wednesday. So they have a "free" weekend to get it to us.

[whj469]

I have only had good experiences with the United States Postal Service. Considering what they do every day at what I consider low cost they should be applauded. FedEx in my area, SE Texas, turns over their packages to the USPS for final delivery to homes.

[Barbaraok]

13 hours ago, TXiceman said:

Jack you are charmed.  Last time we used USPS from Livingston to Tomball was 9 days and it was Priority One. Time before was 5 days.  In both cases, I can ride my bicycle to Livingston and back faster than the USPS.  In both cases, the tracking showed it was "delivered" , but it took several more days to actually be delivered.

Thus we now use Fed-X ground and it is next day from Livingston.

Ken

We have the same record as Jack, years and years with no problems.  Has it occurred to you that the problem is the Tomball PO?  The package doesn't get marked delivered unless it is scanned at the receiving PO.  

[TXiceman]

We know there are two problems with the mail here.  Tomball is big problem and has been on the local news with the problems and gone through several postmasters and the other problem is the North Houston distribution center.

Our solution was to pay a bit more and get it Fed-X Ground and there is no last mile with the USPS.

On another note, with USPS to Atlanta, GA area from Tomball took over a week first class.

Ken 

[ms60ocb]

I agree that USPS First Class is third rate. Even Priority mail varies and every time a day gets cut off routinely, the routing changes and adds two day means 3 goes to 4-5 days. I haven't used First Class for years but dumped the First Class because the 10 business days could be be 15 calendar days from Livingston.

Even with Priority mail it has taken two days to get from Houston to San Antonio when normal Livingston to Kerrville is 2 days.

I just say no to First Class and I'm still waiting for my Nov 2016 Absentee Ballot to get from Zip 77351 to 77399.

Clay

[GR "Scott" Cundiff]

I admit that it does get to me a bit to spend extra $$ for priority and all I get is medicare statements and a birthday card from my insurance agent.

[Barbaraok]

Medicare statements should be 'paperless' and available online.  No need to have to get them via snail mail.   

[SWharton]

x2

[hemsteadc]

What kinds of mail are you guys still getting?