||| FROM REBECCA MCDONOUGH |||
A few months ago we stopped receiving Amazon deliveries to our home on Buck Mountain, and all our orders were coming to the Eastsound PO. Once I realized this was not a fluke, but a trend, I contacted Amazon directly. I wrote to Jeff Bezos. Yes, I know he’s no longer running things, but it seemed like a reasonable course of action. Here’s the email:
Subject: If you had to stand in line at the USPS to pick up your Amazon packages, would you still order from Amazon?
Dear Mr Bezos –
That’s precisely the situation we’re experiencing.
We live full time on Orcas Island in Washington. We, like most of the residents here, do not have mail delivery to our home.
Up until this past year, all our Amazon packages came to our house via Aeronautical Services, a delivery company for UPS. But this year something changed, and all our Amazon packages – be they one pound or 50 pounds – now are diverted to our small, understaffed US Post Office in Eastsound.
Not only does this require we drive into Eastsound, but it often requires we stand in line at the Post Office. Almost every single day.
Additionally many residents are elderly, and can’t easily jockey a large awkward package from the PO to their cars, and then to their homes.
Ordering from Amazon used to be a delightful convenience. Now it’s more trouble than it’s worth. Other vendors might charge a little more, but if the packages come to my home, they’ll get the orders.
Something to think about.
Thank you for opening this email, and for any attention you can give to this situation.
Kindest regards,
Rebecca McDonough
Much to my surprise, I got a call later that day from Amazon Executive Customer Service. The short version: in order once again to receive Amazon shipments to our home, we had to ask Amazon to “deprioritize USPS” for deliveries. The woman I spoke with did that for me on the phone, telling me it would take about 10 days for it to take effect, and we still might receive packages at the USPS if that’s the method used by a specific Amazon seller. Fair enough. I asked, and was told, there was no way to do this globally for our zip code or city, but that each individual Amazon account holder had to contact their Customer Service Department and request this deprioritization. After waiting 10 days, I placed an order, and at least one part of it has indeed come to my home.
While I can’t attest to this as it’s hearsay, I’ve been told that as the influx of Amazon packages the Eastsound Post Office receives well exceeds their storage space, they’ve had to request extra drivebys from our already-stretched local Sheriff’s deputies to help deter thieves. If that’s true, it’s only going to get much worse as the holiday season approaches.
All of this provides a great example of the Law of Unintended Consequences, don’t you agree?
Unfortunately it’s up to each Amazon customer to their Customer Service Department at 1 (888) 280-4331 to implement this change and once again have home delivery of packages. But the good news is it’s within our power to do it, and not just complain about it. I’m hopeful you’ll put the word out so others will know.
The writer may not be aware that Amazon and USPS recently signed a contract to handle “last mile” delivery for the majority of parcels, which reduced Amazon’s shipping expenditure and allows them to continue offering the “free” shipping that consumers have come to expect. This contract came into effect on November 1, 2023.
This has reduced the volume of Amazon parcels handled by UPS and FedEx substantially. Marc Franklin of Aeronautical Services was quoted as saying: “On November 1st it was like somebody just drew a line in the sand and all of a sudden our packages didn’t show up anymore.” He estimates that his business processes 6,000 fewer packages per week.
USPS, meanwhile, posted a $6.5 billion loss for its most recent fiscal year ending September 30. With the struggling USPS in desperate need of new revenue sources, this contract was a win-win for Amazon and the USPS, and arguably, for Amazon sellers and customers who may have otherwise had to pay higher shipping costs.
The real problem, for the writer of the letter, is that Buck Mountain doesn’t have postal mailboxes. This was decided long ago and Mr. Bezos was not involved. It’s not unreasonable to expect that if an item is shipped by USPS, and the recipient does not have a postal mailbox, the goods will have to be picked up at the closest USPS location.
Obviously the shipping cost is higher when the goods are loaded into an Aeronautical Services van and driven to the top of Buck Mountain. Shipping costs have risen due to inflation and higher fuel prices, so it is no longer economical for Amazon to absorb that cost. UPS also charges an extra fee for shipping packages to our remote location. There is an additional fee for shipping to a residence. USPS has more of a flat pricing model with no such fees.
The economy is changing and we are entering a period of increased scarcity and competition. A time may come when it is not possible to live in a custom home atop a mountain with captivating westward views while also getting Amazon parcels dropped off at your doorstep on a daily basis. Island life has always involved tradeoffs. I would argue that choosing island life and then being caught off guard by economic disruption constitutes “a great example” of the Law of Unintended Consequences. The pandemic showed that nobody should become too comfortable with the luxuries to which they were previously accustomed.
If standing in line at the post office “almost every single day” is such an inconvenience, I would suggest consolidating your purchases to one weekly order or simply ordering less stuff. The planet will thank you, and so will the rest of us who are standing in line at the post office without complaint. There is the additional option of not doing business with Amazon at all. Other businesses may give you the option of choosing UPS as the delivery carrier.
Couldn’t have said it better ^
I think Mr. Bowman summed that up perfectly.
We have found Mr. Bowman’s second-to-last sentence works perfectly for us – we don’t purchase anything from Amazon. If in any way possible and available, we buy from island businesses…problem solved.
In response to Mr. Bowman, I couldn’t agree more, and am well aware of Amazon’s rationale. That said, I offer the following:
1. I buy what I can on Orcas.
2. What I can’t get on the island, I order online. This employs Aeronautical and USPS people here. I am grateful to them all, and I marvel at both as they rise to handle this new and abrupt challenge.
3. Fuel is a tax deductible expense for Aeronautical. It is not for me. They deliver to all of us up here on Buck. My package run to the PO is solely for my household.
4. While I typically request items be sent in one shipment, in reality they often do not come this way.
5. Unlike many, I do not make off-island shopping trips. The first two years of living here I didn’t even leave the island. There were two events precipitating that trip: the purchase of a car, and getting a root canal. Even when going off-island, it’s typically for a medical reason. I do not go to Costco, Trader Joe’s, Home Depot, etc. What works for me might not work for others, and I don’t expect it to.
6. I speak to my own experiences. I do not speak for Orcas. But it is my understanding that most of the island does not have home delivery of US Mail. Additionally, even in those areas with mail delivery, packages do not fit into mailboxes, and many now routinely receive the dreaded “pink slip” notification indicating they must go to the PO to retrieve a shipment.
My goal in writing the letter was to inform Amazon of what is happening here, and to find a solution to my particular delivery situation. I did both. I submitted the result to the media simply to get the word out to others so they can do the same if they so choose. As is said, we vote with our dollars. Amazon has built a very successful business based on convenience to the customer. When it becomes inconvenient enough, buying habits will change. My Law of Unintended Consequences comment was in reference to that fact. Orcas is not the only rural community affected by these changes: it’s happening all over the country. For many, Amazon’s “final mile” might be the final straw.
While, in essence, I agree with the above sentiments, there is also the energy/pollution issue of having hundreds of cars driving from their homes to their post office to get mail and packages versus a couple of vans delivering those packages to front porches. Perhaps a better response would be universal rural delivery, including packages, by the USPS? That would help reduce both the number of vehicle miles driven and traffic/parking congestion near post offices.
Thank you, Rebecca McDonough, for finding a resolution to the vexing issue of package delivery.
Most Buck Mountain residents, as well as many others, do not receive mail at their home and must rent a box at the Post Office to receive communications on paper including election ballots, checks from various sources, community newsletters, medications, etc.; they must go to the Post Office to pick up their mail. This is not a choice. The USPS does not deliver to those individuals, they must pay to receive mail and then pick it up.
However, this rollout of USPS contracting Amazon to deliver packages is a good idea for increasing profits for the USPS but the infrastructure doesn’t exist for this kind of agreement. Not only is this true for Eastsound but just about everywhere. Most postal structures have a small footprint and were never intended for “abundant” package services when online ordering didn’t exist. And the offices were never staffed to handle such an overload.
UPS, FedEx and other services were built to take advantage of that particular gap. And thanks to Aeronautical Services on Orcas and others like them, they had the foresight to keep things moving for deliveries to the front door in a timely manner. But now these companies are losing revenue and in a small community such as ours, that usually has an impact on employment.
The issue isn’t about standing in line at the Post Office to pick up a package, but it is a broader economic problem affecting our community. Mail service is a fundamental part of the many ways we communicate as well as delivery services that provide the means to receive key items.
Our Post Office must be overwhelmed with this new delivery arrangement, especially during the holidays. This is not an easy task to manage.
Perhaps Aeronautical Services had no inkling of the Amazon/USPS agreement before they purchased land and built a new facility on residential Seaview St.
Perhaps ASI and USPS could trade spaces . . .
The postal package crises is not being completely ignored. In case you missed this reporting:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/12/05/amazon-postal-service-delay-minnesota/
Congressional staff visit town where Amazon packages caused mail delays
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/11/28/amazon-missed-mail-rural-towns/
Bemidji is not the only place where postal workers say they have been overwhelmed by packages from Amazon, the ubiquitous e-commerce giant. Carriers and local officials say mail service has been disrupted in rural communities from Portland, Maine, to Washington state’s San Juan Islands.
Well done and thank you, I will follow through.
I spent 45 minutes last evening attempting to communicate with Amazon about deprioritizing USPS for my deliveries. As you can doubtless imagine, this topic – or anything vaguely related – is not easy to find. Customer Service as a choice does exist, but I found myself steered immediately into layers of unrelated check boxes. Finally, after indicating that “this had not solved my problem” numerous times, I was introduced to a friendly bot named Abdullah (sp), who kept telling me how honored he was to have the opportunity to be of service to me. . . It is easy to poke fun at Amazon’s customer service (albeit this was not their Executive Customer Service).
It is altogether another thing to admit that I live 4 minutes from town, on a small island that has until recently enjoyed multiple post offices with their own zip codes. I have also to admit that I have come to count on the easy access to supplies of my favorite coffee and almonds at the click of a mouse, and Amazon Gift Cards for the 7grandkids without the stress of wondering what they would really like for Christmas – let alone standing in line at the Post Office to mail the packages to them. All well and good for me.
But then there’s us. We’re confronted by a situation that affects us individually far more than, say, the Air B&B thing. Not only has it disturbed our mail routine, but conversations with post office employees and Aeronautical Services drivers alike – make it clear that it’s a financial as well as logistical train-wreck; and at Christmas – which was already a push physically! In a way it “rips the bandage off” a situation where we, as happy well-served consumers, have been sleeping comfortably. I think I’ll go back and re-read Michael Johnson’s initial comment. Then I’ll cancel my Amazon Prime membership and find other ways to supply myself with coffee and almonds.
PS: re: the Michael Johnson comment. I was referring to his excellent piece on the powers who sit at the top of the money “food chain.” Perhaps the editors will provide us a link.
PPS: Here is the correct link to the comment by Michael Johnson which I cited. He is actually referring to Larson’s op-ed on NATO continuing to stand with Ukraine. For me there is a connection.
https://theorcasonian.com/larsen-op-ed-nato-must-continue-to-stand-with-ukraine/#comment-361224
This has effected mail service on San Juan Island tremendously. 2 of our rural carriers recently quit I know 1 of them ( who has been our carrier for 25 years) finally got fed up with being a package delivery person. Last year we would regularly see her delivering after 7 PM. They are salaries employees and paid no overtime for their work into the night. I think the new contract this November was the last straw for her and she decided to retire. This resulted in sporadic mail service for a couple of weeks( not her fault). I think Bezos can afford to absorb the additional shipping costs. How many Billions do you really need.