Severe Japan Post SAL/EMS/ePacket suspensions due to COVID-19 + Russia's invasion in Ukraine! -> (Updated March 8 2022)

[JR-Rail]

After contacting to confirm the status of my order placed on 10th Pril - I've had an email from Banzai Hobby today confirming they shipped my EF64-1000 on 14th April via air small packet, with an estimated time of 2-4 weeks...

They also said there is no tracking on this which I assumed at first.

I imagine there is a shortage of mail planes leaving Japan. 

This is my first order from Japan direct, not sure I picked the most appropriate time! 

[Welshbloke]

On 4/28/2020 at 8:59 PM, maihama eki said:

I wonder if HS is working on alternatives other than surface.  They have to be buried in packages, and the pile grows every day.  I have pre-order items arriving every month through October.  They haven't stopped taking orders from overseas.

Sooner or later I suspect they'll have to start offering refunds (to people who don't mind putting the money aside and ordering again when things calm down) or seeking any delivery service they can find which still works.

 

Their warehouse is presumably set up on the basis that a fair percentage of new stock arriving will be wrapped, addressed, and back out of the door within a day or two. As that isn't happening but deliveries are still coming in they must be running out of space.

[Lawrence]

Had an order sitting with HS and paid the premium to get it EMS, it took 5 days to get from Tokyo to the UK (apparently) and has been in the hands of UK customs for the last 36 hours, no word from them yet!

[cteno4]

Sadly EMS is now having to operate like Sal and just wait at the airport for space on a plane. Use to go right onto a plane. With so few planes flying it may be weeks to get on a plane. I’ve had one at Tokyo airport now for 9 days. Patience is needed in these times...

 

jeff

[roadstar_na6]

2 hours ago, Lawrence said:

36 hours

That‘s cute 😄 German customs hold onto stuff for 36 days sometimes 🙄

[bill937ca]

38 minutes ago, cteno4 said:

Sadly EMS is now having to operate like Sal and just wait at the airport for space on a plane. Use to go right onto a plane. With so few planes flying it may be weeks to get on a plane. I’ve had one at Tokyo airport now for 9 days. Patience is needed in these times...

 

jeff

 

I have two parcels waiting. The first is at 14 days. The next flight might not be until June.

[bill937ca]

I was looking at the  shipping comparison page on Zen Market today and the only non-courier method that is not listed as delayed or suspended is Surface with a shipping time of 2-3 months--but the other available methods may not be much better anyways. It might be a better option than being cut off all together.

 

https://zenmarket.jp/en/calc.aspx

 

You can find the dimensions on Hobby Search at the bottom of an item.

 

Hobby Search also offers surface shipping.

 

Surface Parcel
- Shipping Duration: Usually around 1 month to 3 months, maximum 6 months.
- Offers tracking and insurance of 10,000yen or more.
- Size and weight limitation can be checked from here

https://www.1999.co.jp/eng/infodetails

 

Another issue insurance for DHL shipments has to be requested from the shipper.  My shipment from AmiAmi was not insured.

Edited May 5, 2020 by bill937ca

[nah00]

On 4/30/2020 at 4:23 PM, cteno4 said:

they have been fine delivering here, but it’s a house with a clear front door and many times it’s the same chap so it’s routine and he doesn’t even jump at the barking dog Inside!

 

jeff

 

Same for me. Once I met the driver he asked 'what do you get from Japan all the time?' and I told him it was model trains and it was okay to leave them on the back porch that's where they always go. I've forgot to do the signature release a few times but I've come home and the package has been in the same corner they always get put in. Would be nice if HS went with DHL, I only have 2 in limbo but with packages piling up it would be worth them to look into it. 

[cteno4]

Ha as I was reading this the DHL driver just walked up to the front of the house! This one got held for 5 days at their hub here in the us, guessing due to waiting for space on the plane. I had thrown a small sankei into the amazon item I ordered and this time it was shipped separately from osaka not tokyo, so two boxes took off the same day and both were at the us hub in a day but then one came right away as scheduled and the other delayed 5 days. First time I’ve not had an amazon.jp order all come from one location. I’ve had one time with something relayed and shipped separately but all have been a tokyo origin.

 

i know our postman well and he’s been on our rout for like 15 years, he’s very use for all the train boxes from japan and the little 10 cent auction items from China! 
 

forgot to mention how brilliant our postman is, he carries dog biscuits! He likes dogs and all the dogs on his route wait for him all afternoon. Our dog whines and whines when he sees Gary coming! Some owner hate how popular Gary is! 
 

jeff

[Cat]

Ironically, DHL isn't shipping from Germany to the US right now.  Too bad they can't send it through their Tokyo hub to get here.

 

[roadstar_na6]

16 minutes ago, Cat said:

[...]

 

Well, they do ship packages and small letters but no parcels to the USA atm. Also they only ship stuff with their premium service which is quite pricy:

 

[Cat]

My attempted EBay purchase of a Faller kit wasn't going to go via the pricey option.  Seller was willing to hold or cancel, I chose cancel.

[cteno4]

I remember looking at DHL insurance and it was quite pricy to get much of anything. I’m sure the larger the account the cheaper the insurance is.

 

jeff

[roadstar_na6]

I remeber shipping stuff to friend's in the US and New Zealand and plastering the parcels with 17€ worth of stamps 😄 But even that option is aparently disabled at the moment as the German Post and DHL are very closely knit together in their operations

Edited May 5, 2020 by roadstar_na6

[ranger10178]

2 hours ago, cteno4 said:

i know our postman well and he’s been on our rout for like 15 years, he’s very use for all the train boxes from japan and the little 10 cent auction items from China! 
 

forgot to mention how brilliant our postman is, he carries dog biscuits! He likes dogs and all the dogs on his route wait for him all afternoon. Our dog whines and whines when he sees Gary coming! Some owner hate how popular Gary is! 
 

jeff

Aww that's soo sweet of him! We used to have a regular postie until a couple of years ago, now it's anyone (well there are a few regulars, but never the same every day) - presumably on overtime...

[cteno4]

Unfortunately the guy who does the usual guy’s day off and vacations hates dogs and is always besieged with them all the time looking for treats! I swear our dog would go off with him in his mail truck, he already tries to climb in and look for the box of biscuits!

 

the neighborhood's dogs will be in mourning when he gets moved or retires.

 

jeff

[chadbag]

5 hours ago, Cat said:

Ironically, DHL isn't shipping from Germany to the US right now.  Too bad they can't send it through their Tokyo hub to get here.

 

 

I think that is because the DHL service from Germany is usually actually a postal service (unless maybe you specify something when you ship).  As DHL and the Deutsche Post are one and the same parent organization.  I know my DHL from Japan and China etc come by DHL guy.  My "DHL" from Germany, are only tracked via the DHL website until they hit Frankfurt and hit a plane and they come through postal service here (and are tracked that way as well).  Don't know the details.

[Yavianice]

@Cat @chadbag

 

In Germany there is Deutsche Post - DHL which ships stuff using UPU. DHL Express is the equivalent of what you know as DHL in other countries, using the DHL network. 

 

Thus compared to Japan Post standards DHL Päckchen is the equivalent of ePacket, DHL Paket the equivalent of SAL, and DHL Express the equivalent of DHL.

[Sheffie]

Reminder:

“Insurance is a losing proposition.”

 

The quote is originally about playing Blackjack but the point applies generally. People offer to sell you insurance because they expect to make a profit in the long term. 

[Yavianice]

@roadstar_na6 I also receive some Japanese packages that are plastered in stamps in tiny denominations. I now amassed an impressive stamp collection. That's because, according to the UPU master excel sheet, the cost of any package route is expressed in money, and that money can be paid to the national carrier (often a partner of the UPU) in any way that the carrier deems fit . Packages are "heavy letter items", after all. 

 

This might change, however, not that stamps are becoming invalid, but more and more unused, especially with similar legislation such as the STOP act requiring pre-clearance and digitally filled customs forms for easier tracking of goods across borders, and to fast-track packages through customs, and to enforce rules considering banned items or those having specific quotas.

 

Or just because they might stop selling stamps altogether. Most stuff is printed anyway using a QR or barcode. But in the Netherlands for example you can ship letters and small packages worldwide without stamps, or a QR/Barcode whatsoever, not even requiring to print anything. You just write a 9 digit code on the letter as postage (and then having said letter or package disappear because foreign companies don't know what to do with them, or because you wrote it too unclear for the OCR to recognize). So enjoy growing your stamp collection while it lasts. 

Edited May 5, 2020 by Yavianice

[roadstar_na6]

16 minutes ago, Yavianice said:

[...]

Stamps are still a big thing here in Germany I think, especially older and smaller business still use them a lot as well as basically everyone (at least those I know) who just sends out letters.

I also have a huge collection of stamps as I got them gifted from my grandparents and others as I was actively collection them when I was younger but my interest moved on a little.

 

For the parcels I sent I filled out a customs declaration printed from their website as well but then just put lots of stamps on instead of paying anything online.

Edited May 5, 2020 by roadstar_na6

[cteno4]

Well an SAL package shipped March 19 showed up today! It must have been in line well enough ahead of the SAL shutdown that it got to wait for a space on a plane! record for longest SAL for me, but understandable under the circumstances.
 

Now we will see if the EMS waiting at Tokyo cna get on a plane after two weeks.

 

jeff

[Lawrence]

On 5/8/2020 at 6:55 AM, cteno4 said:

Well an SAL package shipped March 19 showed up today! It must have been in line well enough ahead of the SAL shutdown that it got to wait for a space on a plane! record for longest SAL for me, but understandable under the circumstances.
 

Now we will see if the EMS waiting at Tokyo cna get on a plane after two weeks.

 

jeff

Apparently, my EMS package was on a plane for 5 days Jeff! 7 days after arriving in the UK, it has made it as far as Essex, only another 455 miles to go 😣

[Tony Galiani]

I have seen quite a contrast in my last two orders.  My order from Model Trains Plus went to the post office on April 7th and still seems to be there.  My order from Hobbylink Japan took about 5 days to get here.

I just hope my Model Trains Plus order makes it here eventually.

 

Cheers,

Tony Galiani

[cteno4]

Hmm I wonder if hlj May be using a shipping agent that helped get it thru. Both Ems? My last EMS from HS has been at the airport for 3 weeks waiting for the plane to the us, but it was sounding like more cargo getting thru to Britton.

 

contact nariichi at MTP he may know what’s up with his shipment. Sounded like last month even some EMS were returned to HS, presumably because they thought they were not going to get them sent out in a reasonable time. Most sals in process when SAL shutdown happened are getting returned to the local post and presumably stores.

 

jeff