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Had a Medai Mail shipment opened for inspection.

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Last Tuesday sent a box containg a CGC comic via MM to a forumite clear cross the country. It arrived yesterday and inside the resealed package was a note saying it had been opened for inspection and the contents did indeed qualify for media mail postage.

I know this has been controversial in past threads, but here is an actual example of a box containing comics being inspected and given the all clear.

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That's awesome. Wish you could take a picture of it so I could have it next time I get any hassle over it.

 

 

I have asked the buyer to join the thread. He's currently offline but I'm hopeful. I'd like to see the notice myself.

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What if they cracked the slab to see if there were ads inside?

 

Oh man, that would suck.

 

My local post office here in Ohio would do just that to inspect a package of mine if I send anything else via Media Mail that they don't feel it straight forward qualified. I had a very lengthy talk with them after my last run in when a female clerk told me it would be okay to ship out some comics via media mail. Then the individual_without_enough_empathy guy in charge of the location personally inspected them and hit me with fees for priority mail on top of what I already paid. He also damaged a few comics in the process.

 

I went at it with him and had to leave before things got way out of hand after I explained I showed the items to your employee and she gave me the okay. While I was walking out he said he would personally watch out for any other packages he sees with my name on it and inspect them to make sure they are 100% per their policies.

 

I now drive about 8 miles out of my way to go to a different post office where the employees are great and take care of me everytime.

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Well it seems every USPS employee has a different interpretation of the rule, I had a package sent to me that had 3 TPBs in it and it was hit with extra charges because they say it did not qualify.

 

postage2.jpg

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I have now send out well over two hundred media mail packages. From Arizons, Nevada and NY. Only two have been opened. One was declared ineligible because I had thrown in a deck of cards as a freebie( I kiid you not). This is the second one.

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I believe so, since they are books (like trade paperbacks, collected editions and graphic novels too) and just the nature of how they look, are presented and appear, I'm sure it's a gray enough area where it would qualify with less scrutiny than magazines and comic books do.

 

Do omnibus qualify for MM since the ads are removed?
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I agree 100% on this, as far as being both INSURED and ASSURED that merchandise is handled properly and is delivered in the best condition possible without incident.

 

If on eBay, then put the price of Priority Shipping BOXED in the price and that's simply a fully disclosed cost of doing business for both the seller to have others potentially prejudiced against and the buyers to become aware of as part of their all-in total expense in the acquisition cost.

 

It's been my experience, in dealing with buyers who nickle and dime over shipping, they're generally the biggest pains not worth dealing with.

 

Also, it's been my experience, with sellers who charge high prices for shipping, as long as it's not in the name of gaudy profiterring, but in the cost of materials and actual carrier fees, and the merchandise is delivered with iron clad care, then it's well worthwhile and I feel the fees are justified and I am satisfied as a buyer.

 

Nothing is worst than shoddy packaging where items don't even have to come damaged, but the lack of care shows the potential for damage to have possibly occurred, and on top of that, icing on the cake is when there's a S&H overchage with lackluster packaging. I would hate a CGC case cracked, or the comic inside to shift around, or in ungraded books, to have any bending or damages that were avoidable if packaged properly.

 

Sometimes, if I see the S&H fee is seemingly too low for adequate packaging, I'd inquire about the packaging and delivery method and offer to PAY MORE if they're able to ship by my standards. So, I'd like something boxed more so than in a thin envelope with corrigated cardboard that bends easily.

 

As a seller, if someone asks to have their item shipped "cheapest way possible" that's usually or sometimes a red flag for potential trouble in that, if you're dealing with high end condition sensitive collectibles like comics, it's counter intuitive to ship any other way but sturdy and secure, which often times costs more due to size and weight. With that, I never would want to compromise that integrity to delivery quality product as advertised.

 

Media mail sometimes takes longer to deliver, therefore exposes the product to damages. I do believe for books, even collectible books which qualify for media mail, it is a better way to ship because you can still package the book in bubble wrap and boxed with added padding and protection to avoid damages and save on shipping fees as well as get a delivery confirmation too.

 

Based on my research about half of USPS employees are ok with comics shipping media mail and half are not. Just the thought of them opening the package is enough for me not to use it.
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Well it seems every USPS employee has a different interpretation of the rule, I had a package sent to me that had 3 TPBs in it and it was hit with extra charges because they say it did not qualify.

 

postage2.jpg

I am the forumite in question here. I quoted this post because my package contained the exact same slip from PO, EXCEPT it was marked acceptable. I asked the seller to send the book media mail because it was a cheap slab (under $15) - why pay $10 to ship a $13 slab? Doesn't make sense to me. Most omnibus, tpbs, or lots of more than a handful of books are almost always shipped to me media mail. Most slabs are sent priority mail to me (but most aren't this cheap either). I have probably received hundreds of shipments via media mail over the years, this is the FIRST that was opened/inspected by PO. I had heard the "ad" thing disqualified comics on these boards, but I had never had one actually checked before this. Sounds like the 50/50 assessment is probably about right. I would definitely pay for priority mail over media mail on a pricier slab.

 

I have had an employee at FedEx question the value of a $2k slab I sent once. He wanted to make sure it couldn't get any moisture inside and ruin the book. If they were going to insure it for $2k (which yes, I know is also a controversial topic on these boards) - he wanted to make sure there was no possibility of water damage. He signed off on the insurance - although we all know if there was an actual claim, they most likely would have only covered $1k.

 

And just for the record I ship the VAST majority of my books via priority mail. Not because of an "ads" issue but because their boxes are so convenient (and free). A 1092/1095 combo is my preferred method of shipping slabs.

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It is an interesting thread and I like the real life examples about USPS and Media Mail. But as long as the PO publishes their current restriction criteria, I would not set up an example of comic books passing MM inspection as any kind of assurance or recommendation.

 

 

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Media mail should be done away with. I'm sorry but it's a losing policy that just furthers the post offices' looming bankruptcy. Plus it's confusing and arbitrarily enforced.

 

However, if someone demanded that I ship them a comic media mail I would.

 

 

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Last Tuesday sent a box containg a CGC comic via MM to a forumite clear cross the country. It arrived yesterday and inside the resealed package was a note saying it had been opened for inspection and the contents did indeed qualify for media mail postage.

I know this has been controversial in past threads, but here is an actual example of a box containing comics being inspected and given the all clear.

 

CGC slabs comic books are not MM. Why would you send slabs MM anyway?

 

 

Do omnibus qualify for MM since the ads are removed?

 

Yes

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