On March 5, in this space, The Valley Reporter acknowledged everyone’s frustration with USPS delivery delays. We shared the contact information we had for Steve Doherty, postal service regional communications person.
Doherty, to his credit, emailed that day to report that he had retired. The next day, his successor, Judy K. Ferriera, emailed - to her credit as well.
“I read The Valley Reporter editorial this morning. If anybody had called the telephone number listed for Steve, they would have been directed to my email address,” Ferriera wrote. She’s listed as a strategic communications specialist for MA-PI/ME-MH-VT Districts. She explained how to find her contact email and then added:
“Customers can reach a postal representative by calling 1-800-ASK-USPS (800-275-8777) or online at www.usps.com. This is a valuable resource for customers as calls/queries received might identify a trend. I read the words in the editorial and understand the sentiment behind them. If I have information to share that you or your subscribers might find helpful, I’ll reach out. At this moment in time, I do not.”
Fair enough. Call the number, let a “trend” develop. I called and worked my robotic way through expressing concerns about mail delivery. I was asked if I’d agreed to texting instead. I declined and asked for an agent. I was asked for delivery address and zip code, inputting that information vocally and via phone keypad a few times before getting this message:
“It is normal for an address to not have any mail slated for delivery on any given day, or to have mail delivery times fluctuate daily. However, if you have not received any mail at all within a two-day period, or if you are not receiving mail regularly for two or more weeks in a row, I can help with the next steps to get the issue resolved. Let's get started.”
That led to another robotic back and forth about the issue which took a while and ultimately yielded this message:
“Sorry, I'm having trouble with the information provided. To serve better, our agents will have to verify that information in order to submit a service request on your behalf. Please stay on the line while I check the availability of our agents. At the end of your call with a customer service representative, please remain on the line to complete a brief survey to help us improve our customer experience. Your opinion matters. Your estimated wait time is 32 minutes. Thank you for calling.”
