The U.S. Postal service guarantees delivery on Express Mail packages, but what does that guarantee really mean? Danny sent an Express Mail package that he claims was well within the rules: he ordered the postage through PayPal, but handed it to a clerk at the post office before the deadline. The problem is that since he bought the postage online, his local post office is resisting giving the refund.

He writes:

The USPS offers a money back guarantee on their Express Mail service. Express Mail postage can be purchased in person at the post office or printed online through various websites. If Express Mail is not delivered on the date promised you are entitled to a refund of your postage cost.

I recently purchased Express Mail postage online through PayPal, took my package to the post office before the cut-off time, had a clerk scan it (the rules say to qualify for the money back guarantee you must hand it to a clerk to scan instead of just dropping it off in a collection box), and got a receipt. The package arrived a day late. I went back for a refund and was told they had to be done online since I purchased the postage online. There is no option to do this online so I called the customer service number and was told that Express Mail refunds must be done at the post office. A quick Google search confirms that refunds are done at the post office. The customer service person on the phone said all I needed was to bring a copy of my receipt and fill out a form.

I returned to the post office and spoke to the supervisor (she [was] out to lunch on my previous visit). She did not know how to handle this situation so she called a supervisor at another post office. The other supervisor said to go ahead and process my refund, but she then called another supervisor who said they didn’t think local post offices could process refund for online postage. I was told by the supervisor at my post office that she was uncomfortable giving me a refund. She promised to call me back but has not yet done so. This was last week. I have filed a complaint with the customer service phone line, but I have still not heard anything back. I have even contacted my congressman (not being overdramatic here, you’re really supposed to contact your congressman for post office issues), but his office says that these cases usually take about 30 days to resolve. The 30 day period to request a refund for Express Mail is two days away.

Is there anything else I can do? I plan to email the postmaster general and the local postmaster, but I do not think I will get a reply before the 30 day deadline. Is there any way to document that I requested my refund within the 30 days? There is a form that I was given to request a refund but the supervisor at the post office refuses to accept it.

Contact those people, saving copies of your correspondence.

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