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Tue Apr 9 2024 17:08:45

Sellers Must Deal with Another USPS Rate Hike in July

By: Ina Steiner

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Online sellers must brace themselves for another shipping rate hike in 3 months. The USPS published its rate request for new "Market Dominant" rates on April 9 to take effect in July, when the price of a stamp is set to rise by 5 cents from 68 cents to 73 cents - an increase of 7.4%, and Media Mail rates will increase by an average of 9.867%.

Today's announcement only covers Market Dominant rates, which do not include several services popular with small online sellers such as Priority Mail and USPS Ground Advantage.

Typically the USPS follows up its request for Market Dominant rate changes a bit later by publishing notice of a rate hike for "Competitive" services, though the two rates always go into effect on the same day. This latest change is set to take effect on July 14, 2024.

The USPS now increases rates twice a year, each January and July (and sometimes again in October during the holiday shopping season). In January 2024, Market Dominant rates for Media Mail/Library mail increased by approximately 4 percent; Market Dominant PO Boxes increased by 2 percent; and Insurance increased by 1.6%.

The proposed adjustments for July 2024, which are approved by the governors of the Postal Service, would raise mailing services product prices approximately 7.8 percent. You can find the USPS changes on the PRC.gov website (R2024-2 USPS Price Case Notice) - note some specific callouts below:

Media Mail and Library Mail will rise by 9.867%. The USPS stated in its filing with the Postal Regulatory Commission, "To improve Media Mail/Library Mail’s cost coverage, the Postal Services is applying an above-average rate increase of 9.867 percent, more than two percentage points above the class average. This rate increase should improve Media/Library cost coverage."

Certified Mail and Return Receipts will rise by 10-12%. The USPS stated, "The Postal Service plans on introducing a range of different price adjustments to Special Services products, with an average increase of 7.755 percent. Several products and price categories, such as Certified Mail, Money Orders, and Return Receipts, will receive price increases of about 10 to 12 percent."

Insurance will decrease by 10%. "In contrast, Insurance will receive a price reduction of 10 percent in response to volume declines, consumer sensitivity, and competitor insurance pricing."

PO Boxes rates will see no change. "Post Office Boxes will also receive no price adjustment to further enhance the value of the product, and the Postal Service is continuing to closely monitor product performance and analyze future design enhancements."

See the filing for full details.



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by: RL15 This user has validated their user name.

Tue Apr 9 18:29:27 2024

raise rates, USPS will still the same crummy service


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This user has validated their user name. by: COVID-19

Tue Apr 9 18:30:14 2024

These genuises keep losing our packages but has the nerve to keep raising postage. What a sick, upside down world just like the rest of America.

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by: terry55 This user has validated their user name.

Tue Apr 9 19:18:23 2024

It's a shame, my 80 yr old mother loves to send out holiday cards but she gonna stop. Sending out up to 50 cards is just too much now, heck I got my St pat day card a day after Easter and my Easter card yesterday

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by: Stone Cutter This user has validated their user name.

Tue Apr 9 22:47:57 2024

I’m thrilled. I insure jewelry at $350 and insurance will decrease by 10%.

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by: Donkey This user has validated their user name.

Wed Apr 10 09:40:32 2024

Glad to see the insurance rate going down some.  It is still way to expensive.

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This user has validated their user name. by: Rexford

Wed Apr 10 09:56:53 2024

USPS is a hot mess in my area.  They are delaying or losing more packages than I have seen over the last 25 years.

DEJOY MUST GO!!!

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by: UB This user has validated their user name.

Wed Apr 10 17:46:57 2024

"lost" packages??? You mean delayed as you cant have many never showing up. We have shipped over 40k packages over the years and never had a package lost. Most of  the " lost " packages people talk about actually get delivered  but many have issues with the tracking label which cant get scanned at delivery.   We had some delayed of course but never not show up eventually. Inflation is still rising so not sure what everyone thinks when shipping cost for USPS goes up. UPS and Fed Ex will have their rates go up again as well. BTW Fed Ex is worse for delivery from our experience.  

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by: None Such This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 00:14:58 2024

PMG KillJoy keeps working to put the USPS in a position for eventual privatization or sale.  I wish the politicians would restore the "service" back into USPS and return the post office to what it was back in the pre-1970s days, a public service.  The idea that you can run public services - the post office, water, sewers, ambulances, etc, - as businesses is just a gimmick by greedy Wall Street enabled by greedy politicians, against the interest of common working folks just trying to get by.   Wake up people.  

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by: None Such This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 00:25:55 2024

I would predict that Media Mail will be effectively (if not legally) eliminated in another year or two as a separate class of mail by making the prices for it consistent with Ground (Dis)Advantage.   At least that's where the price hikes seek to be headed.  Ground Adv is already cheaper for most CDs and DVDs for most addresses that aren't way across the country, not that CDs and DVDs are big sellers anymore.  

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by: Actual Seller This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 02:08:56 2024

Give it up for the outstanding employees in Memphis TN for losing a good 15 packages this year. WTF is going on? Who are they hiring?

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by: clu3 This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 06:29:35 2024

Service is terrible.  USPS spends an outsize amount of time WRONGLY putting undeliverable yellow stickers on mail - just peel them off and put it back in the mail it will EVENTUALLY get there.  Mail is lost, delivered late.  Employees are pissy.  The Post Office is a mess and they want more money to do a poor job.

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by: Chicago48 This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 07:16:58 2024

Dejoy must be stopped.

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by: NYSteve This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 11:33:23 2024

@stone cutter- good for you, i mailed 2 packages of jewelry last fall- the only time i ever did, and 100% of them were lost

@UB- right, close to 100% is actually delivered, though maybe not to the address on the label (no kidding- i got a stack of mis-delivered mail one day last month, i brought to the postmaster and she verified they would be considered on time delivery)

@nonesuch- i mailed a 2 oz envelope with my taxes, cost $4.02, about the same as  my ebay 4-15 oz packages cost

@nonesuch- re:privatization: how come everyone in the country can see that but the politicians

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by: CBW This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 11:59:00 2024

Don't sweat the price hikes. Everyone has to pay them. We'll just have to bundle cheap items or smart buyers will buy more to combine shipping.

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by: mindelec This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 16:19:30 2024

@none such

does seem to be going that way. doesn't really hurt me on ebay with calculated shipping, but amazon has steadfastedly refused to raise the shipping for books from $3.99

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by: UB This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 16:49:02 2024

@NYSTEVE USPS has GPS tracking so pretty easy to see where packages were delivered to if a customer says they didnt get them. 99.9% of time the customer is lying. What I find funny is the number of people blaming DEJOY when the Board of Governors must approve 99.9% of the things that are getting done.

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by: Dalpal This user has validated their user name.

Thu Apr 11 22:59:28 2024

Good to know the rates just keep going up, up, up, and service down, so we can all subsidize the Chinese for their postal shipments that undercut US sellers.  Funny how the politicians & USPS "powers that be" never address that issue.

The reason they're reducing insurance cost is because they so rarely pay out any claims now, so they can entice more people to buy something they can't use.  I have 1-2 claims a year, and this year was the first I ever got turned down, despite obvious evidence (broken glass).  

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by: UB This user has validated their user name.

Fri Apr 12 06:34:41 2024

@DALPAL  President Trump addressed the Chinese shipments. There is barely any Chinese Epackets mailed anymore. The bullshit now is Temu and Shein skirting the Trump tariffs by sending items into the USA to warehouses in the buyers names then adding a US label on to get it to the buyer. Most of those are being shipped via UPS Surepost here and delivered by USPS.



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