Thai Postal Services

[aussiebrian]

I have been buying many items over the last 2 years on ebay, as well as a friend in Australia sent me a package without a tracking number which never arrived. Everything I have had sent here with a tracking number has arrived, but I have only received 10% of parcels sent to me with no tracking number. What is going on with the Thai postal services? Have other people here encountered the same problems?

This is a warning to anyone having parcels sent to Thailand to make sure you get a tracking number, otherwise you may end up being disappointed and frustrated when you don't receive it.

I put a claim in with paypal over 2 different items I bought that didn't arrive, and I got a refund, thinking paypal had some sort of insurance or they paid but now I feel very sorry for the people that sold me the items as paypal just takes the money from their account and these people are now out of pocket due to someone in the Thai postal system stealing them.

[kennkate]

Maybe the goods have been sent Surface Mail.

I sent a small parcel from the Uk 2 years ago, I asked for Air mail at the local Post Office and paid what i thought was a reasonable charge for Air Mail £30. plus

It did arrive 3 months later, So I think it got there Surface mail. It was addressed by my Wife in Thai.

If you are going to get things sent to you in Thailand from outside It might be better to send the sender a address Label in Thai to attach to the parcel

I doubt this is foolproof but it should help. if we were sent a parcel with my UK address in Thai maybe that would be put on the back burner.

I/We have Never lost anything in the last 2 years. I do Know it happens just take steps to reduce the risk.

Good Luck

[barrella]

Sending things out I have had problems in the past but no problems inbound.

What I do is similar to what the previous member recommends.

I email the address in Thai (word format) to the sender and they print it out and stick it to the parcel or envelope being sent, slap bang in the middle.

Also in the top left hand side the address in English.

[aussiebrian]

Thanks Kennkate, they have been sent airmail. I am talking about about 51 parcels sent with tracking number all arrived. 9 no tracking number and only one has made it. One person in the UK even sent me some stickers for my motorcycle 4 times and finally one got through. I had thought he wasn't really sending it. The ones that haven't arrived were sent between 4 months ago to 2 years ago, so I think they are gone. I now insist on tracking numbers or I don't bother getting them sent.

As for sending them written them in Thai, it wouldn't account for the 51 parcels getting here with tracking numbers written in English.

[RKASA]

If the address does not say Thailand on it and depends on the zip code (many countries use the same numbers exm Phitsinulok 65000 and a town in France where I found my mail) it will often never get to thailand and lands in the EU, if not forwarded from the hole it lands in in the EU you never see it again. I had to train banks, CC company etc and make them use proper addressing in order to stop losing even bank statements.

[Artamus]

I always register anything I want to arrive (both ways) as too many letters and packages have dissapeared previously. I assume they are deliberately stolen rather than lost in the post. It's not for no reason that UK banks have Thailand on a blacklist and will not send replacement cards.

[Monokuro]

Any postcards I send ALWAYS get through, but EVERY SINGLE card in an envelope I've ever sent has never made it .... (now up to 6 xmas cards and 4 birthday cards)

[1weatherman]

In the last 6 months I have sent 3 cards to TGF from the U.S. The first two made it ok, but took 9 and 12 days.

I sent a Christmas card 3 weeks ago and she has not gotten it. It's not like she lives in the boonies either. I think

some Thai postman saw it was from a Farang in America and decided to look inside for some tea money. Heck

he might have even liked the card and used it himself. So guess maybe it's hit and miss on the postal thing.

I don't like that it takes forever and a day for the mail to get there. The internet is faster.

[Bagwan]

There was a quote from a Thai Police Colonel in the Post some time ago stating that he was of the opinion it was not an offence to steal from the mail. I don't recall the Post being sued!

[toptuan]

I've had the same exact experience over seven years. Anything of value, sent without a tracking number, doesn't make it.

Even the Thais consider the post office as rife with theft and corruption, so follow their advice and send/receive EVERYTHING of value with a trackable number.

Edited January 5, 2010 by toptuan

[jesimps]

I've had lots of post go missing during my 3 years here. These days it's just stuff coming in, because I send all my mail registered. If I know someone is going to send me something important, I tell them to send it 'recorded delivery'

Cards seem to be fair game for some reason and I hardly used to receive any. Now my family in UK send them unsealed and 'strangely' they all seem to get through.

[selftaopath]

Thanks Kennkate, they have been sent airmail. I am talking about about 51 parcels sent with tracking number all arrived. 9 no tracking number and only one has made it. One person in the UK even sent me some stickers for my motorcycle 4 times and finally one got through. I had thought he wasn't really sending it. The ones that haven't arrived were sent between 4 months ago to 2 years ago, so I think they are gone. I now insist on tracking numbers or I don't bother getting them sent.

As for sending them written them in Thai, it wouldn't account for the 51 parcels getting here with tracking numbers written in English.

I feel the Thai postal service is yet another example of corruption/thievery/ and lacks oversight/control/prosecution. I even have not received Holiday Cards sent from US. My thought was maybe someone was hoping to find money in with the card. Maybe it's ok to have books sent from US/UK as I don't observe many Thai people reading and certainly not reading books written in English.

Lack of Sanctions (LOS) is being understood as a very very very corrupt country.

Pity b/c the working Thai people really deserve better. Shame no one in authority cares.

K

[LaoPo]

From OP:

"I put a claim in with paypal over 2 different items I bought that didn't arrive, and I got a refund, thinking paypal had some sort of insurance or they paid but now I feel very sorry for the people that sold me the items as paypal just takes the money from their account and these people are now out of pocket due to someone in the Thai postal system stealing them."

In those cases that you feel that the sellers indeed sold and delivered to you, I think you could ask PayPal to refund the money to the sellers as it's not sellers' fault.

They are duped.

My wife is a seller (and wholesale) also and her company does 3 things:

1. always make a photo of EVERY package that leaves the shipping department, with weight details and close-up of name+address (I know, still not 100% that it's delivered, but it helps)

2. Copy of document from shipping agent; you can't produce such a document if you did NOT ship the item(s) since all details, address etc. of buyer are on this document, including date it leaves the country of origin.

3. Copy of PayPal document and same-same as #2

She had a few "disputes" from clients and whereby PayPal immediately freezes or deducts the amount in question.

At all occasions she sent proof with copies of the documents, including photo of package that the shipment was sent; and in ALL cases it eventually arrived, mostly due to slow postal services in any given country.

IF a package was stolen PayPal has enough evidence from my wife's company that the item(s) was/were sent and in that case it's the buyer's responsibility since the buyer has always the option (and clients are told so on the webpage) to buy tracking/insurance for a mere $ 2,50 extra; yet, most buyers don't do that.

If the value is too high the company will contact buyers first to tell them a tracking is needed.

LaoPo

[beano2274]

I remember waiting for a letter from England for months, I gave my Mum the address as per a True bill. After waiting so long I got my wife to call the Post Office, a nice gentleman spoke with her, and actually came to our condo and checked the address on his databases, he gave us the correct address (not the same as the True bill, which still continued to be delivered), I then gave this to my mum and hey presto, a new letter arrived.

Sometimes the problem is that although the addresses are the same on the local mail and international mail, the poor postie gets confused, and does not know where to deliver it. If mail is lost their is a Post Office Branch that holds mail for people to check if it is theirs. It should be the local Major Post office. It is kept for 3 months if I remember correctly.

[Springman]

Thanks Kennkate, they have been sent airmail. I am talking about about 51 parcels sent with tracking number all arrived. 9 no tracking number and only one has made it. One person in the UK even sent me some stickers for my motorcycle 4 times and finally one got through. I had thought he wasn't really sending it. The ones that haven't arrived were sent between 4 months ago to 2 years ago, so I think they are gone. I now insist on tracking numbers or I don't bother getting them sent.

As for sending them written them in Thai, it wouldn't account for the 51 parcels getting here with tracking numbers written in English.

Anything you send in the post to or from Thailand if you want it to arrive and you cant use a diplomatic bag make it recorded delivery. Light fingers are everywhere in the system it is a joke.

[trainman34014]

Any postcards I send ALWAYS get through, but EVERY SINGLE card in an envelope I've ever sent has never made it .... (now up to 6 xmas cards and 4 birthday cards)

Many cards go missing in the British postal system too because nearly all greetings cards are in coloured envelopes and the thieves in postal services everywhere suspect that there will be money or postal orders inside them. A trick I learned years ago is to put cards in ordinary white or even brown envelopes and then they will always arrive. I was taught this trick by a retired British postie!

[katabeachbum]

even EMS and tracking number shipments get lost. its not reliable