USPS Ruined my eggs! PICS USPS gets an F- grade from me!

[BunnyMomma]

I ordered some Chocolate Bantam Orpington eggs from a fellow BYC'er. They did such a wonderful job packaging the eggs and I special requested for them to double cushion everything. They went the extra mile and even double boxed my eggs for me. I had them to write "Fragile" and "Happy Birthday" on the package so that the postal workers might be more careful with the package. Ha! Ha! That didn't help at all. They were shipped from Kansas to North Carolina on Wednesday. They took 5 days to arrive. When they did arrive, the outer box was smashed as well as the inside box. Both boxes had big holes in them. 2 of the eggs were leaking, so I broke them into a bowl to see what had happened to them. All had busted air cells, many of the eggs were completely scrambled inside the shell.
When I candled the eggs, about half of them were scrambled and the rest of them had busted air cells and were in terrible shape. Shipped eggs can be very discouraging. However it is the ones that make it here that keep me going.
I have had a bad couple of months for shipped eggs. I had one box of eggs that I ordered from eBay, and the whole box had been frozen solid. Then, my postal carrier, was bringing some eggs to my house (I usually pick them up at the PO) and she was in a bad car accident which destroyed the next box of eggs. I was thankful that my postal carrier was not injured. Then this! You can see the busted air cell clearly in the photo of the egg with the yolk still intact.
Still, I refuse to give up!

Really?

Do you think they dropped the box? Oops! It looks like they took a sledge hammer to it!
This is the box that was INSIDE the main box!

 

[chippysmom327]

That makes me mad just looking at it. Maybe next time.

 

[bugglesmommy]

I feel your pain. They worked extra hard to ruin your box.

 

[Eggcessive]

I received 2 boxes of eggs in great shape last week from 2 different BYCers and neither one was marked fragile or that they contained eggs. I have read where some say not to label with anything special, so that they don't purposely drop them.

 

[trailchick]

I had a package take two weeks not long ago.
Ordered a dozen BLRW and the BYC'er
sent 18! I was so mad & so was she. They were so
frozen & scrambled.

I ordered a doz.sumatra eggs from Stonykill last week
- I asked him not to mark the box & they arrived in better shape,
and he packages Very well-like yours was- double boxed & bubble wrapped..
My husband also received a package that day - there was nothing in it!
There were supposed to be a box of bullets, and the local
PO had stamped all over the box that it was damaged.
So he has had to file a claim...

Shipping eggs is always a risk, but we do it
in order to get birds we couldnt other wise have!!!
I hope you have better luck next time.
A lot us us feel your pain!!!

 

[BunnyMomma]

I have experimented with having the person shipping the eggs to label them different ways each time to see if it makes a difference. I have had them put nothing at all, "Fragile" "Live Embryos" "Hatching Eggs" "Handle With Care" "Happy Birthday" etc. So far I have had 4 great boxes of shipped eggs, all from different parts of the country. And I have had 4 terrible boxes of eggs. So I have concluded that no matter what you put on the outside of the box, it does not make a difference. It is a 50/50 gamble.

I think I will start having no words printed on the box and I will start having the package insured and pay for overnight delivery. I am going to try that next. I thought my DH was going to bust a gasket when he picked up these at the PO. I also ship eggs to people sometimes and I package them very carefully for the trip. I feel that the Postal Service is getting worse every year. I wish there was another way to ship eggs.

I called them this morning and I let them know that I was really unhappy with the damage that was done to my package. Whether or not the contents is hatching eggs or other items did not matter to me. I feel that they intentionally destroyed goods that I paid a good price for. I pay them to deliver the mail to me in reasonable condition. I am so PO'd. I can't even think of a way to put it into words without sinning!

 

[BunnyMomma]

Well, I called the customer service line of the USPS (1-800-275-8777) and spoke with a representative about my complaint. I relayed to him that I expect my packages to arrive in good condition, whether or not they are insured. I explained to him that many other small farm owners and backyard chicken owners are having a terrible time with the same problem. I explained further, that I paid for them to deliver my packages in reasonably good condition and that this was intentional, damage to goods that I had ordered and paid a dear price for. I also explained to him that other people are having similar problems and that something needs to be done to fix this problem.

He has opened an investigation into where and why the damage occurred and said that they will provide a solution.
He also stated that if you are having a similar problem to call the customer service number (above) not your local PO, and file a complaint to open an investigation concerning the damage. He also said it did not matter what you write on the outside of the box, it should make no difference in how your goods are treated.

So Call them if you are having a problem, the more calls they get, the more they will pay attention. Be sure to have your tracking # ready to open a complaint.

Also, he said to insure the packages and then you can file an insurance claim on damaged goods. Hatching eggs can be insured. I did not know this. I will be insuring all of my shipped and received eggs from now on.
I hope this helps.

 

[gingerly1983]

I received 2 boxes of eggs in great shape last week from 2 different BYCers and neither one was marked fragile or that they contained eggs. I have read where some say not to label with anything special, so that they don't purposely drop them.

I agree with this. I recently received 2 boxes of eggs from BYC'ers and they didn't write anything on the outside. My eggs were in perfect condition!

 

[Sparkyfam]

I don't know if this is an option for you, but you might try putting insurance on it? One box I got had the post office marked fragile sticker on it, and the other had insurance on it. At least that way (especially if your box looks like that) the post office should reimburse your shipping cost and the cost of the eggs. It may not make the individual post person take care, but could help..

 

[vickifiveoh]

I ordered some Chocolate Bantam Orpington eggs from a fellow BYC'er. They did such a wonderful job packaging the eggs and I special requested for them to double cushion everything. They went the extra mile and even double boxed my eggs for me. I had them to write "Fragile" and "Happy Birthday" on the package so that the postal workers might be more careful with the package. Ha! Ha! That didn't help at all. They were shipped from Kansas to North Carolina on Wednesday. They took 5 days to arrive. When they did arrive, the outer box was smashed as well as the inside box. Both boxes had big holes in them. 2 of the eggs were leaking, so I broke them into a bowl to see what had happened to them. All had busted air cells, many of the eggs were completely scrambled inside the shell. When I candled the eggs, about half of them were scrambled and the rest of them had busted air cells and were in terrible shape. Shipped eggs can be very discouraging. However it is the ones that make it here that keep me going. I have had a bad couple of months for shipped eggs. I had one box of eggs that I ordered from eBay, and the whole box had been frozen solid. Then, my postal carrier, was bringing some eggs to my house (I usually pick them up at the PO) and she was in a bad car accident which destroyed the next box of eggs. I was thankful that my postal carrier was not injured. Then this! You can see the busted air cell clearly in the photo of the egg with the yolk still intact. Still, I refuse to give up! Really? Do you think they dropped the box? Oops! It looks like they took a sledge hammer to it! This is the box that was INSIDE the main box!

OMGoodness....that is horrible!!! I am so sorry!!!!