The United States Postal Service (USPS) has released a bulletin clarifying some past agreements with other mail services didn’t “reflect operational and financial realities,” adding its Parcel Select delivery service is still available for use.
- This comes after the United Parcel Service (UPS) announced it was increasing rates and delivery area surcharges for several of its delivery services, including its SurePost service, as of January 13.
- SurePost is typically used as a cheaper shipping alternative for non-urgent, lower value shipments. For these types of shipments, UPS either handles them itself or hands it off to USPS.
When USPS is used for SurePost delivery, packages are dropped off at local Postal Service facilities, but this option has become increasingly expensive over the years. USPS will no longer offer contracted rate discounts for delivery unit entry and plans to hike rates by 10.3% for Parcel Select shipments entered at those facilities.
- As a result, UPS will begin handling more of these deliveries on its own, according to a Q3 report.
UPS specifically blamed USPS’s price hikes for the cause behind its own price increases, saying it’s “done diligence to minimize the impact on our customers.”
Promo Perspective
Promo firms rely on SurePost and other shipping services to deliver packages safely and securely. Price increases could negatively impact these companies, or force them to look elsewhere for support.
John Janson
Vice President of Global Logistics, SanMar
“For a customer that uses a ton of either one of those products, their costs have just jumped or they’ll have to look at other alternatives,” says John Janson, vice president of global logistics at SanMar – PPAI 100’s No. 1 supplier, which accounted for nearly $4 billion in revenue in 2023.
Janson, who was informed over the holidays, says UPS was caught off guard by the changes. “UPS having to deliver at the last mile means more drivers and a higher cost of delivery, which will be passed onto the consumer,” he says.
