USPS Ground Advantage not a valid shipping service to certain states today?
I have two orders to TX and one to PA, and they all say that Ground Advantage isn't available and has UPS 2nd day or USPS Priority selected. Shipments to ID and NV are just fine. I can generate a label using my USPS click n ship account directly, so hey Amazon - is this a known issue today?
17 replies
KJ_Amazon
Thank you for raising this issue. Is it still affecting your accounts, or are you seeing USPS options show as OTDR-protected when that service was used to calculate the delivery promise?
I just checked some sample orders and saw USPS options as OTDR-protected, but of course, I am still gathering information to share.
If it is still affecting you, it would be helpful if you can share an Order ID, or a Case ID with details. I am working with our partner team on this issue and it would be helpful to have active order details.
KJ_Amazon
Seller_Ha6JyVvDK6Ybs
Shipping money grab! Some times it seems customers figured out a way to do this by using all CAPS something which triggers Amazon to over charge you on shipping as Amazon does get a percentage of all shipping costs of what we pay and on top of what Amazon is really paying as they do double dip.
Seller_24FzucbyGtgZS
This is a common FU by Amaxon as they assume that the delivery date it outside if the nonsense range they quote.
Go to see all shipping options and you should be able to scroll down to Ground Advantage (although Amazon will tell you ifts not late delivery or odr protected). Select it anyway and print your label.
If it is not showing up in the drop down use another shipping service outside of Amazon (we use ShipStation). Buy your label and copy over the tracking number to the sale using the confirm shipment radio button (and when you do, before you paste the tracking number in it should automatically be set to Ground Advantage if that is your preferred shipping choice).
One more thing, Amazon charges us a "shipping tax" which negates any savings Amazon alleges they give us.
Seller_FcJ62CpbWSlbK
Sometimes, the issue is within Amazon, but other times it has to do with the street/town address than the state. Some areas aren't serviced by usps. The way to check it is to go to another source like stamps.com. I had 2 today that gave me only fed ex at twice the price. One stayed at FedEx, but I got a better rate. The other did go ground advantage for much cheaper. Going outside of Amazon for shipping is never my first choice, but when the shipping is so much cheaper, it makes it worth it.
KJ_Amazon
I have been monitoring threads since late last week with sellers reporting USPS shipping options not appearing as expected as OTDR/Claims-protected. I have been sharing and discussing these threads and cases with our partner team.
As we move towards the peak shipping period, estimated shipment transit times are extended to account for heavier volume. This recently occurred for USPS services including Ground Advantage. If you manage your own handling/transit times, keep in mind that transit times were adjusted to account for packages taking longer to deliver this time of year, and check that your settings account for this.
As for sellers using Shipping Settings Automation, I have shared these "mismatch" reports with our partner team. Please let me know if you are seeing these issues for orders that were placed yesterday and today.
KJ_Amazon
Seller_lGARPNvsQ2yLz
2 orders today Amazon blocked shipping on USPS ground AND on USPS Flat rate envelope. The 2nd flat rate priority was estimated FL to MD 7 days! This was 2 days longer than ground and definitely incorrect. There seems to be a bug in the estimates, almost like ground and priority mail are switched. Order 111-3765292-3912204
