Help! "Lost" USPS Packages

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So I've run in to some extremely frustrating luck and was hoping a CAG with some experience could offer some advice. I recently made a purchase on eBay and received the e-mail from the seller saying that the package shipped. So a few days later I checked the DC number and it was marked as being delivered February 28th at 12:00 PM. Thing is, I never got it. Odd, I thought, but I gave it a few more days. Still nothing. I had also ordered DoW 2 from GoGamer. I checked the DC number a few days ago, and wouldn't you know it: delivered February 28th at 12:00PM yet it's nowhere to be found. So today I was curious what the status was of another order of Blu-Rays from JR.com was. I checked my order status and there was no DC number, but that package was marked as being shipped February 25th. It was mailed Priority which would probably get it here by 2/28-3/1 yet it hasn't arrived.

I've done a lot of transactions online and have easily sent and received over 1,000 packages and have never once had a shipment get lost and now 3 in the same day? I figure that it is probably one of two things: 1) my mail was flat out stolen, or 2) It was delivered to someone else who, after opening it and discovering the contents, decided to keep it for themselves. I live in an apartment complex and I know many of you do or have in the past so you probably know the setup: oversized, locked mail boxes separate from the normal mail boxes are used specifically for packages. My guess is that the packages were put in the box but the mail carrier gave the key to the wrong resident.

I visited the post office yesterday and was basically given the run around. The clerk, in his terrible English, said that the packages were delivered 2-28. No shit. He told me to call a number in the morning to talk to my mail carrier. I called the number multiple times, but received no answer. I don't know what to do at this point. Tomorrow I'm going to go back to the post office and speak with the postmaster and probably file a complaint. I was also going to try and catch my carrier and question her about it. The only other thing I know to try is to go door-to-door hoping whoever received the packages is an honest person and will return them.

Anybody have any suggestions or experience with this kind of situation? This has been extremely frustrating for me especially considering that I spent over $100 on the stuff. Any help would be awesome.
 
Probably getting in touch with the person that made the delivery that day is the best step. What he/she tells you will give you an indication of what your next course of action will be.
 
i was in the same situation as you a few months ago...the post office refused to help me, all they did was file something that would basically not let them leave packages at my building, i now have to go to the post office to pick them up...now, i just have stuff delivered to my work
 
The thing is.. the USPS does not guarantee their delivery unless you get insurance. It's unlikely that the mail man will admit to having delivered to the wrong address but if he does remember something, maybe you can use it to track down the package. If I were you, I'd ask around your neighbors and maybe they'll turn up. Sometimes we get mail from a house that's one block south of our house but it has the same house number and it's in the same position (on the corner) so it's easy to see how they can mess up.

The thing that's probably going to end up being problematic is that you waited so long. You really shouldn't have waited more than 24 hours.

And this doesn't really help you but you might wanna consider putting your street name and house number on your mail box.
 
Most likely it got stolen.
Is your mailbox locked since it's in an apartment?
Did you get any other mail on the day the packages were supposedly delivered?
 
Your problem is not the post office or the mail service.

The problem is someone in your apartment building is stealing your shit. It is that simple. Find out who it is and try to have them arrested.

TBW
 
Agreed, theft seems to be your problem.

In my apartment the mailman will put packages in front of person's door (without even knocking first to see if you're home). So if you're gone all day at work everyone else that lives there can see you got packages, and if they're scumbags, can take your mail. After a few instances of not receiving packages I now have all my mail sent to my parents' house.
 
[quote name='Vinny'] It's unlikely that the mail man will admit to having delivered to the wrong address[/quote]

I had the same thing happen to me last year. I traded clearance games with another CAG and when I checked the tracking #, it said that the package had been delivered. I always have everything shipped to work because I know that there will always be someone there to receive it. I checked work and there was no package to be found. I called the post office and they gave me the run around. I'm pretty sure the mailman delivered to the wrong address but he claimed that he had delivered to the right address. Now every time I see the mailman, he avoids me or won't look me in the eye.

OP- Basically, there is nothing that you can do. There is no way to prove if it was the mail carrier's fault or if you stuff was stolen by your neighbors. You can be sure that the USPS doesn't care.
 
If you recieve a lot of packages through USPS, I would suggest getting a PO Box. This way, your packages will never leave the post office unless you take it out yourself.

If you recieve a mixture of USPS/UPS or FedEx, I would go with a renting a box from a UPS Store or similar store. This gives you a deliverable street address for UPS type shipments that normally won't ship USPS.

If you live in an apartment complex, you should be able to request that your packages be left at the main office. The complex I live at checks ID for all package pick ups.
 
Yeah, that's the problem with Delivery Confirmation. People act like it's unassailable proof of delivery when all it really means is that the item was delivered somewhere in that zip code. About the only thing it's actually good for is frightening off scammers who don't realize that a DC# doesn't mean much. That said, my girlfriend's business involves her mailing a lot of packages and since we've started using PayPal shipping (with DC 100% of the time) the number of "lost" packages has dropped dramatically. It's just too bad the post office won't allow itself to be saddled with accountability unless you pay for it.
 
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