If the US Postal Service wants to increase revenue, or at least remain a relevant service for items other than applications for pre-approved credit cards that no sane bank would actually issue to me, they may want to consider the merits of not making the new postal rates completely incomprehensible.
The old rates were easy: 39 cents for the first ounce, and slap on a 24 cent stamp for each additional ounce up to 16 ounces, and if you can stick a full pound of paper into an envelope, more power to you. I spent half an hour this morning trying to figure out the new rates for multi-ounce #10 business sized envelopes. Near as I can figure, it is 41 cents for the first ounce, 17 additional cents for the second, third, and third-and-a-half ounces, then after 3.5 ounces, one must switch to the "retail flat" table, that starts at 80 cents for the first ounce and 17 cents for each additional, so that a 3 ounce letter is $1.14, four ounces is $1.31. I'm still not entirely clear on how much a 3.75 ounce package costs.
If the post office spent as much time sorting the actual mail as they do sorting out rate regulations, I might not get my neighbor's Visa bill every other month.
3 comments:
Non-standard stuff I take to the Post Office, let them tell me the cost, and pay it.
Not quite as bad as that here, though.
Nimrod GB
My craw too! On top of the goofy pricing system, they got these "forever" stamps. I ask for a book of stamps and am asked if I want the "forever" stamps. What's the deal? I'm going to use them all in the next month, I don't need choices, just stamps for Pete's sake! If they are worth postage forever, couldn't I just slap them on anything and mail it, theoretically they will be worth that some day, right? Go figure! Ann O.
We buy those which you call "forever" stamps, too, and it's worth it, for when the price of posting goes up.
Nimrod GB
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