Waiting on coins from four different dealers

[ValiantKnight]

Waiting on a couple that will make my top-10 list. An upgrade to a coin I bought earlier this year, the other a huge coin (literally) that was a white whale for a couple years.

[David Atherton]

5 hours ago, Roman Collector said:

I have been tracking my lots from Biga and they were posted in a timely fashion, but they sat at the USPS facility in the Netherlands for weeks before arriving in Los Angeles last week.

International mail is hit and miss because of the holidays(?) ... I have had some packages zip through while others crawl along or just sit. Seven are currently on their way to me ... and I have no idea when I'll see them!

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I guess the lack of a 'your coin will be delivered today' tells me that FedEx doesn't deliver on Saturday (at least, not for my Savoca packages). That's annoying.  I delayed the delivery last week by placing a vacation hold.

I'm off this week so if I see the driver I can ask about that.  I can also ask if my delivery instructions are on the paper.

That'll be kind of sad that my current order, even with purposeful delay, will arrive before my previous order made two weeks before that.  The ones from London have been getting longer in transit.

I'm just hoping the senders of the forever package didn't screw up and send that one to my SS giftee. The order was two weeks after the SS order (which they sent to me, not him) and I sent a contemporary email saying it goes to me.

[Roman Collector]

[ValiantKnight]

37 minutes ago, Roman Collector said:

For real lol. I usually find myself first checking the tracking only after like a week or so after it ships just to see if it’s moving along okay. Less checking means less stress over not having it in hand yet.

[Furryfrog02]

1 hour ago, Roman Collector said:

 

 

Oh man....this hit me hard....I won two coins from a seller in Hungary about a month ago. I normally don't buy from Europe but I have purchased from this seller in the past and they are very good and the coins showed up in a couple of weeks.  
They were very good this time too and got the coins on their way within a day or so of winning...I have yet to receive them. The last time I bought from him, I could see the coin as it went from Hungary to the US and then through the system to me.  Now, the only thing i can see is that they left the Hungarian post and are on their way to their international destination. Maybe tracking will pick up when they hit the US but who knows. 

I just need to let them go and hope they show up in the next month or so. Fingers crossed!

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I sure hope it shows up for you.

I'll have to check the original email - I don't know if there's any tracking onmine.  Assuming it took a week to mail out (the mailing confirmation didn't come until a week after the order), 2 1/2 weeks is about normal at this point.

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

My purposely delayed Savoca order showed up, and the FedEx person actually put it in the right place!  I changed one word in the instructions.  So this confirms that they see the instructions.

It would be nice if FedEx would deliver on Saturday.  I'm not quite sure why these are never eligible for Saturday. Last time I checked, there were some Saturday availabilities.  Solution; dump one of the weekdays.

Assuming this trend continues, I will be more comfortable with FedEx.  DHL Express follows the instructions, 85% of the time.  The turnaround is certainly very fast for both.

[Prieure de Sion]

I should / could send some coins to USA next week after Christmas. But here in Germany we don't hear anything good about the winter weather from the US. However, German television only reports superficially. In our country, the news sounds as if the whole USA was affected by the winter storm - unfortunately, there are no real informative details on TV.

Maybe you can help me here.

I could also imagine that shipments to the USA in states where there are no problems - could nevertheless be subject to significant delays / losses - if there are no weather problems in the destination state - but in the state where UPS might have a distribution centre. The parcels from Germany do not arrive directly in the destination state - but must also be distributed in the USA.

Ok, long story short.

Can you tell me roughly how it looks? Should I wait until after the New Year and see what the weather is like then? 

Thank you.

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I'd contact your customer first if I were you but things are brutally cold now in the middle of the country. 

Being a weather wimp,  I've been nervously watching the weather.

HOWEVER, in my part of the midwest, it'll be 50+Fahrenheit by Thurs (allegedly) and allegedly above normal the week after.  I looked at the New York City forecast, out of curiosity, and it was fairly similar.

There are big snowstorms in the Chicago/Pennsylvania/Buffalo area, and around New England.  Airports there are also a mess. So are trains.  I saw reports of people being stuck in the Chicago train station.

accuweather might tell you more or even the built-in microsoft forecast. I often find the Microsoft or the one on my phone is more accurate than the local forecasts.

I'm hoping that my London Ancient Coins package doesn't decide to show up today or tomorrow. It's too cold to go outside. The UK strike must have also affected the customs (lucky me).

The fact that I'm waiting til Sunday to try and clear the snow (although the wind cleaned most of it off the driveway) should tell you a lot.  I get out there right away, within reason, to clear the driveway.

A local station said this was the first blizzard since 1978, but..another station said we qualified for a technical one in 2008.

I hope that this is of some help.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 23, 2022 by Nerosmyfavorite68

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

One wonders if there's been any changes to U.S. postal regulations recently?  Coins from overseas, which never had required signatures before, are mysteriously now needing a signature card.  This does coincide fairly closely with the changeover in mail carriers.  An overzealous mail person, perhaps?

For example, packages from London Ancient Coins had never required a signature before.  Due to the ill-timed strike, I'm still awaiting one from them.

Signature card or not, I must salute the French postal service.  It appears it wasn't just Numiscorner.  A coin package from another French dealer has shown up in little over a week after the order.

 

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I came across a postal envelope from London Ancient Coins, which answered my question.  The sticker states 'scanned and signature'.  I guess I was just lucky that the former postman didn't bother.

Tiny font on the numiscorner envelope also states signature required.

There's an easy enough solution.  Back in my record collecting days a former postman gave me a bunch of blank signature cards.  I can just put one out when an item is due to arrive.

The return of signatures can work to my advantage, especially if the parcel is expensive and I'd actually like a signature.

[Prieure de Sion]

Of course it's my own fault! No question about it! You should always look at the auction conditions beforehand, so that you don't end up with any nasty surprises. Nevertheless. It is common for the surcharges to be between 15-25% and there are always small upward deviations in shipping - but nothing dramatic. That's why I don't look at every auction condition in detail. Whether the surcharge is 20 or 25% or the package costs 15 or 25 euros is ok for me.

But what I just experienced at the checkout - that's no longer "a bit more expensive" - that's pure usury and an impertinence! As a trader, I know the prices for shipping - and I know what you pay.

 

It is about the auction house NBS Auctions from the Netherlands
https://www.biddr.com/auctions/nbsauctions/ 

 

 

Shipping is from the Netherlands to Germany. The Netherlands is a neighbouring country! Within the EU.

Here are the prices for comparison if I now send a shipment within the EU as a private person.

Letter = less than 1 euro
Registered letter = less than 8 euros
Parcel = less than 15 euros

And now the NBS prices:
Letter 8 euros (more than 7 euros earned)
Letter registered 18 Euro (more than 10 Euro earned)
Parcel 40 Euro (more than 35 Euro earned)

 

Letter and registered letter are both uninsured, so of course I'll take the parcel. When I ship from Germany to the USA, I do it insured up to 500 euros for 20 euros. For 40 euros, I can send 2 items overseas to the USA!

I know that for private people, DHL parcel shipping costs less than 15 euros insured up to 500 euros. But as a trader you have even better conditions.

NBS charges 40 euros for a normal parcel - almost four times (!!!) what you have to pay for it! They earn almost 30 euros on it! In my opinion, there is no justification for this and it is an outrage.

Please understand me correctly - I have nothing against it, if a parcel shipping the net 15 euros costs the auction house the dealer 20 euros or even 25 euros demands at the end for packaging & time. But 40 euros is an impertinence!

I was so stupid not to look before - but maybe a warning to the coming bidders.

 

[Cordoba]

8 hours ago, Prieure de Sion said:

Shipping is from the Netherlands to Germany. The Netherlands is a neighbouring country! Within the EU.

Here are the prices for comparison if I now send a shipment within the EU as a private person.

Letter = less than 1 euro
Registered letter = less than 8 euros
Parcel = less than 15 euros

And now the NBS prices:
Letter 8 euros (more than 7 euros earned)
Letter registered 18 Euro (more than 10 Euro earned)
Parcel 40 Euro (more than 35 Euro earned)

 

That's pretty weird, i'd have assumed it would be cheaper to ship to germany from netherlands. My invoice came and shipping to the US is the same rate you have

[Prieure de Sion]

5 minutes ago, Cordoba said:

That's pretty weird, i'd have assumed it would be cheaper to ship to germany from netherlands. My invoice came and shipping to the US is the same rate you have

I checked the website of the Dutch Post Office to see what it costs to send a parcel from the Netherlands to Germany (with insurance). It is 17 euros.

The problem with NBS is - they seem to make general shipping costs for the whole world. It doesn't matter if it's from the Netherlands to Germany, to France or to the USA. The auction house always charges 40 euros, no matter where. 

I still think it's too high - my personal opinion. As a dealer, I pay just under 20 euros for shipping to the USA with insurance. If I add my time and packaging material, I end up with 25 euros, maybe 30 euros. But at 40 euros (to the USA), you also earn money on shipping.

And at 40 euros from the Netherlands to Germany, you earn yourself "silly and stupid", as they say here.

I don't understand why the auction house doesn't distinguish between EU and worldwide shipping. Well, what the hell - you never stop learning.

[DonnaML]

Maybe this is the thread for this question. I bought a coin (a Roman denarius; nothing unusual) from a German dealer, shipped on January 29 via DHL parcel service. It arrived in the USA in early February, and this is the last tracking update from USPS:

"Latest Update
Your item has been processed through our facility in ISC NEW YORK NY(USPS) at 9:12 am on February 6, 2023."

Not one update since then. So it's stuck, probably in US Customs rather than the US Post Office. I emailed the dealer last week to ask if there's anything they can do to find out what's going on. I have received no response.

Is there any way these days of contacting Customs to find out what's causing the delay? From what I've read, if I contact the ISC New York, they'll say they don't have it. Thanks.

 

[ambr0zie]

My turn now to wait, oh joy.

A package from Bucephalus. A house I recently discovered and I like the experience with them. They also prepare the package quickly - nothing to complain.

But oh boy ... Belgian Post is definitely the slowest postal service I have been working with. It takes 2 weeks for the parcel to reach my country (not that far, not at all) and then Belgian Post has some contract with a special postal service in my country, that delivers the package directly to my house (normally, I need to pickup the parcels from the post office).

All good? nope. Tracking says my parcel arrived on Friday morning and "is being delivered by the postman". I called several numbers, was passed from office to office and when I found the "correct" number, it is always a busy line.

Second - my first purchase from London Ancient Coins. I don't like the experience at all. 
First, I have no idea how they calculate the invoice, but the conversion from GBP was very strange and I paid about 10 euros extra (excluding fees of course). Being a very small invoice, I wonder what happens if I have a "normal" invoice - 10 euros extra, for no reason, for every 100 euros? Not encouraging.

Second, I emailed them with a question regarding shipping. No reply, total ignore. Not impressed. 
Finally, after a week, it seems that my parcel was shipped. On Thursday they provided instructions to DHL. But they posted the parcel today. I was very surprised, and not in a good way, to see that they are using DHL Paket, which is a cheap service, but the transport cost was 29 GPB. I have received many packages with DHL Paket. The cost was always 15 euros, so half of the sum.

... Not impressed. 

[Prieure de Sion]

24 minutes ago, DonnaML said:

Maybe this is the thread for this question. I bought a coin (a Roman denarius; nothing unusual) from a German dealer, shipped on January 29 via DHL parcel service. It arrived in the USA in early February, and this is the last tracking update from USPS:

"Latest Update
Your item has been processed through our facility in ISC NEW YORK NY(USPS) at 9:12 am on February 6, 2023."

Not one update since then. So it's stuck, probably in US Customs rather than the US Post Office. I emailed the dealer last week to ask if there's anything they can do to find out what's going on. I have received no response.

Is there any way these days of contacting Customs to find out what's causing the delay? From what I've read, if I contact the ISC New York, they'll say they don't have it. Thanks.

 

Can you tell me / write me via PN who the dealer is?

The problem is that you as the recipient can do (almost) nothing. The investigation must always be carried out by the sender. And the sooner you do this, the better the chance that the matter will be cleared up as quickly as possible. If you do the investigation months later, the consignment can usually no longer be found.

The best thing would be for the sender to start an investigation. This can also be done very easily online. All they have to do is fill out an online form on the website of the German Post - it takes just one minute.

[DonnaML]

11 minutes ago, Prieure de Sion said:

Can you tell me / write me via PN who the dealer is?

The problem is that you as the recipient can do (almost) nothing. The investigation must always be carried out by the sender. And the sooner you do this, the better the chance that the matter will be cleared up as quickly as possible. If you do the investigation months later, the consignment can usually no longer be found.

Thnere best thing would be for the sender to start an investigation. This can also be done very easily online. All they have to do is fill out an online form on the website of the German Post - it takes just one minute.

No reason not to mention the name; it's Koelner Munzkabinett. Certainly a very reputable dealer, and I have never previously had an issue with one of their packages. But I'm not sure that the German Post has any special ability to find anything out once a package is in the hands of the U.S. postal and/or Customs authorities.

[David Atherton]

1 hour ago, DonnaML said:

No reason not to mention the name; it's Koelner Munzkabinett. Certainly a very reputable dealer, and I have never previously had an issue with one of their packages. But I'm not sure that the German Post has any special ability to find anything out once a package is in the hands of the U.S. postal and/or Customs authorities.

Donna, I've had several coins go through ISC NY since then. Your package is definitely stuck somewhere. 

I found these numbers online: 

ISC USPS (New York): 718-553-7271 ; 718-553-9175 ; 718-553-9171 ; 718-553-7392

877-277-5511 ; 718-222-1811

Or you can call US Customs: 718-553-1456 ; 718-553-1446 ; 718-553-1459 (This is for After 4:00pm ONLY).

Hopefully that is of some help!

[DonnaML]

On 2/27/2023 at 3:26 PM, DonnaML said:

Maybe this is the thread for this question. I bought a coin (a Roman denarius; nothing unusual) from a German dealer, shipped on January 29 via DHL parcel service. It arrived in the USA in early February, and this is the last tracking update from USPS:

"Latest Update
Your item has been processed through our facility in ISC NEW YORK NY(USPS) at 9:12 am on February 6, 2023."

Not one update since then. So it's stuck, probably in US Customs rather than the US Post Office. I emailed the dealer last week to ask if there's anything they can do to find out what's going on. I have received no response.

Is there any way these days of contacting Customs to find out what's causing the delay? From what I've read, if I contact the ISC New York, they'll say they don't have it. Thanks.

 

There no longer seems to be a way for the intended recipient of international mail to file a "lost mail" inquiry with U.S. Customs, so I ended up deciding to let the dealer, Koelner Munzkabinett, try to handle the situation. (It turned out that Koelner had, in fact, responded promptly to my inquiry but their response went into my spam folder.) The most recent update from U.S. Customs to Koelner stated that Customs can't commence a search for the package until 45 business days after it has been recorded as entering Customs from ISC. Because it entered Customs on February 6, that means that no search can be commenced until April 14! In light of the delay, Koelner has offered me a refund. However, given that I've already waited this long -- and that I really would like to have the coin, a very nice Lucilla denarius that I made the mistake of posting here right after I bought it, undoubtedly jinxing myself as a result -- I told Koelner that I might as well wait a few more weeks to see what happens (unless a miracle happens and I actually receive the package before April 14).

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I decided to try another UK dealer as a trial balloon, to see if the package also takes forever.  When I get to the paypal payment section, there's a message from the dealer - Royal Mail is dealing with a 'Russian' cyber-attack and is not doing overseas packages at the moment. 

Sigh, Royal Mail has joined Deutsche Post for the title of the worst.

I guess I'll just choose DHL Express for orders from LAC.  I have no idea how long this particular disaster has been going on.  My order was from March 4th.

[ValiantKnight]

1 hour ago, Nerosmyfavorite68 said:

I decided to try another UK dealer as a trial balloon, to see if the package also takes forever.  When I get to the paypal payment section, there's a message from the dealer - Royal Mail is dealing with a 'Russian' cyber-attack and is not doing overseas packages at the moment. 

Sigh, Royal Mail has joined Deutsche Post for the title of the worst.

I guess I'll just choose DHL Express for orders from LAC.  I have no idea how long this particular disaster has been going on.  My order was from March 4th.

In January, I ordered something sent via Royal Mail that took nearly two months to arrive, although reading other peoples’ comments I think it might be speeding up a bit, but IDK for sure.

Agree on the DHL. I recently bought my most expensive coin to date from LAC, and thought that since I already spent a ton of money might as well splurge some more for the DHL shipping. Took 5 days but that included the weekend; past DHL orders have taken like 3 days.

Edited March 29, 2023 by ValiantKnight

[Roman Collector]

I bought a coin from LAC auction on 12 March and it just arrived in Los Angeles today. On its way to customs now.

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

Yes, given the current dysfunction of the Royal Mail, I'm just going to eat the extra $20 and go DHL.  2-2 1/2 weeks was fine, but 4 isn't. 

We also don't know how current the ransomware announcement is.  It could have been there a while.

A positive; I came across a really delightful coin in my Tom Vossen order.