WASHINGTON — Many residents in the DMV are experiencing the same problem: delayed holiday deliveries.
Nicole Jacobson, of Alexandria, sent out multiple deliveries this year, including egg noodles cooked the same way her great grandmother taught her when she was younger.
“It was just a big holiday dish for us,” she said. “A tradition.”
Jacobson said family members living elsewhere in the country had even prepared broth to go with the dish.
But, so far, she says her family members have yet to receive the noodles and their accompanying gifts.
“I have several [packages where] the status hasn't even been updated since the 15th,” she said. “They made it to Capitol Heights, Maryland, which is about 10 miles from where I am. I assume they're not still in Capitol Heights, Maryland, but I don't know where they are.”
Jacobson said she mailed her packages through the United States Postal Service, with Priority Mail service, Dec.14. She admitted she didn’t think her packages would make their way to their destinations within three days. However, Jacobson said she did believe they would arrive by Christmas.
The entire situation has left her with a question.
“At what point does this become unacceptable?” she said.
On Dec. 14, the USPS released a statement to the public encouraging Americans to mail their packages early due to a “historic record of mail and package volume” this holiday season and challenges brought forth by the coronavirus pandemic.
At the time, the USPS also recommended Americans mailing their packages with Priority Mail service do so by Dec. 19 to get them to their intended destinations by Christmas.
Jacobson mailed her packages five days before the USPS’ recommended deadline.
The United States Postal Service provides data to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York that details its delivery performance rate on a weekly basis.
The agency’s most recent data showed only 66% of the lightweight first class mail it delivered the week of Dec. 5 arrived on time in Northern Virginia. That number was closer to 64% for deliveries in D.C. and the Maryland suburbs.
USPS data shows the agency’s performance rate for delivering first class mail on time has fallen by more than 20% from where it was in the beginning of the year.
Earlier this summer, a federal judge blocked moves by U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy that were criticized as practices that would intentionally slow the delivery of mail nationwide.
WUSA9 reached out to the USPS for comment as to what is causing delivery delays in the area. A USPS spokesperson reiterated in a statement that a “historic record of holiday volume” is partly to blame.
“This negative impact is compounded by the temporary employee shortage due to the COVID-19 surge, as well as ongoing capacity challenges with airlifts and trucking for moving this historic volume of mail. The Postal Service’s 644,000 employees continue to work diligently to address issues and remain focused on delivering the Holidays and beyond for the nation. Amid the historic volume, the Postal Service continues to flex its network, including making sure the right equipment is available to sort, process and deliver a historic volume of mail and packages this holiday season. Our entire Operations team, from collections, to processing to delivery, worked throughout this past weekend and continues to work around the clock to address the historic volume. We are accepting all volume that is presented to us which is adding to our challenges.”
On its website, USPS recommends Americans contact its customer assistance division if their packages are late by the agency’s defined standards.
USPS’ customer response twitter account, @USPSHelp, has recently been flooded with numerous unanswered tweets detailing complaints over service.
Jacobson said she fully understands there are bigger crises facing the world this holiday season. However, she adds she just wishes USPS would have initially given her warning that her package may be delayed when she put them in the agency's hands.
“I think they should have said, ‘We can't guarantee this. At this point, you might want to go to UPS or something,'" she said. “I will say every package that's been sent by UPS has arrived.”
Online retailer Amazon told WUSA9 it has not experienced any major delays delivering packages this holiday season.
UPS:
UPS has not cut off delivery service for any of our customers. UPS is working closely with our customers to pick up and deliver all packages that we have agreed to heading into, and during, the peak season. In other words, we are picking up and delivering planned package volume. We have not stopped pick-ups or deliveries for any customer. UPS is executing according to carefully coordinated, collaborative plans established with our customers. When our customers ask to tender volume to us that is beyond what we have agreed upon and they have forecast, we are working with them to pick-up and deliver unplanned packages as quickly as we can align it with available capacity that opens up in our network.
FedEx:
Delivery drivers, warehouse employees, and support staff across the globe are tirelessly and safely working to meet the surge in demand this holiday season on top of volume increases created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite these unprecedented challenges, our networks are flexing as designed to provide the best possible service to our customers. As always, customers with questions about their shipments are encouraged to visit fedex.com or contact customer service for more information. For tips on shipping during this holiday season, visit the FedEx Holiday Help Hub: https://www.fedex.com/en-us/holiday.html.
DHL:
Since DHL Express specializes in international delivery, the pickup cutoff was late last week for international delivery of shipments by Christmas. We have been well-prepared to support customers during the holiday season, and continued our investments in U.S. facilities as well as expanded our intercontinental air capacity and added staff to handle the extra volumes.