PO Box Problems!

[BoneSnapDeez]

I buy many games and other things on Amazon and there seems to be lots of annoying restrictions on shipping to PO Boxes. It seems odd, as I was under the impression they used USPS for shipping. This problem doesn't just occur with marketplace sellers, sometimes its from Amazon themselves. My "solution" for the time being has been to ship things to my parents' house, which is a pain in the ass as I only see them every 6 weeks or so.

I've heard that I can "trick" the site by filling out as my address with the physical street address in line 1 and the PO Box in line 2. For the record, I sometimes receive mail addressed only to my physical address, yet it still ends up in the PO Box just fine.

Any thoughts?

[gtmtnbiker]

It seems odd, as I was under the impression they used USPS for shipping.

In most cases, Amazon uses UPS.

[Luke]

In most cases, Amazon uses UPS.

True. I'd say up to 80% actually.

[BoneSnapDeez]

Seriously, UPS? Everything I've ever ordered through them came right through the post office, either to a post office box or delivered by a mailman right to a house...

[Hobie-wan]

Depends on the size really. I've gotten games and memory cards sent UPS, but bigger stuff has been UPS.

[BoneSnapDeez]

Interesting. Maybe it's a regional thing (I live in rural Maine) because I've only seen them deliver USPS and I've made 50 or so purchases. Too bad I can't request UPS somehow, as that would solve my problem.

[gtmtnbiker]

I have seen some cases where the item is shipped by FedEx but then for the last leg, it's by USPS. Don't know if it was Amazon or some other vendor.

[weaponepsilon]

Fun Fact: FedEx, UPS, DHL, and all other couriers pay USPS to deliver THEIR packages. You may very well be receiving a parcel from the mailman that has the UPS logo on it. Most services won't deliver to a PO box because they do not have access and the small mail unit. It really is too bad that Amazon uses a service like UPS when they should be really use the Post Office.

[BoringSupreez]

If a seller won't ship to a PO box, there is an easy solution: give them your street address. The USPS will deliver it to your PO Box instead, since there's no mailbox at your house. No need to put the PO Box in address line 2, and it's never failed me. I do it all the time, since I don't have home delivery (I live within shouting distance of the post office.)

[Hobie-wan]

If a seller won't ship to a PO box, there is an easy solution: give them your street address. The USPS will deliver it to your PO Box instead, since there's no mailbox at your house. No need to put the PO Box in address line 2, and it's never failed me. I do it all the time, since I don't have home delivery (I live within shouting distance of the post office.)

I think you're confusing a rural route box number which is still outside your house versus a PO Box that's actually at the post office or at a business that has boxes and will ship your packages in a strip mall. The official address for the house I lived in when I was little was "Route 3 Box 63", but it was just a normal mailbox by the street and our address was 63 on our street. This is different from a wall of lockboxes which is what I had assumed the OP is referring to based on the problem.