Vent about the post office

[emd]

Just need to vent and couldn't find a venting sub-forum anywhere. I guess the mods will move this if I've not seen the right forum due to my blinding fury.

So I have a post office box for my home-based business. I ordered some printing for my business - some of which was time-sensitive - back in December and it hasn't turned up. So I went in today to see if perhaps it's sitting there and I missed the card in my PO box. PO lady says that box was cancelled months ago, and any mail received recently would have been returned to sender!
:gasp
She said it was paid for with a credit card belonging to a business, and the business queried it because they said it wasn't their PO Box.
So I've come home to find my receipt, and it shows I paid with my bank EFTPOS card (not a credit card). But my bank statement doesn't have any record of the money coming out of my account.
Seems like there's been some kind of strange mix-up, and I know I did nothing wrong (I have the receipt that shows I paid for it! I just never noticed that my account wasn't debited). But I expect there's nothing that can be done about it. I'll still have to pay shipping again for the printing I ordered, even though some of it is now too late to be useful and will go straight to the recycling bin. And I may or may not get my post office box back again.
Very shitty.

Oh, and while I was searching my bank statements in the paper files, my four year old managed to drop the printer onto the computer box twice in five minutes, causing our internet connection to need a reset (I thought the computer was broken for a while there!) which was HUGELY annoying when I realised I needed to check my online bank statements as well as paper ones.

I should go back to the PO and show the receipt to the shop woman so she at least knows that it wasn't my fault - they thought I'd used some random company's credit card without authorisation! Not that she'll do anything to fix the damage she's caused by cancelling my PO box. And I don't have the energy to go back there with the three kids on my own, they're not in the mood to stand quietly and not touch the chocolate display while mummy argues with the shop people.

OK. Vent over. Accepting that this is out of my control, and letting it go. Will deal with the PO lady later.

[boy wrangler]

Oh that is frustrating! Could you call the bank and ask them what happened? Surely there'd be some recourse for you as a small business owner if they've made the mistake?

Vent away lovely!

[emd]

I expect it was a mistake at the post office. Their cash register gave me a receipt showing I'd paid using my EFTPOS card, but the money never came out of my account, so I haven't "not received" any services that I actually paid for and therefore probably nothing I can demand they do about it. Other than give me back my PO box if I pay for it again (and I'm seriously thinking maybe I won't - no good having a PO box that can be closed without me knowing they've done it). I think the money was actually debited from another business's credit card, which is why they closed the PO box.

[jodiemiller]

Oh, get it back if you can! Losing your postal address is like losing your mobile phone - all those contacts lost! Good luck Emma!

[lucylu]

Oh, wow, I would be very annoyed about that too! But I think I would be ringing Australia Post and asking for compensation for the printing. Sometimes we have eftpos transactions go through as 'declined' but our staff don't check and so the person takes their goods/services and believes they have paid. It's not until I reconcile the bank statements that I realise and normally noone can remember what the transaction was for or the customer. Sounds like perhaps a similar thing happened here? Regardless, it's not your fault as you say.

Hope you can get your same PO Box - that would be the thing that would most inconvenience me.

Good luck Em

x

[Astra]

Very frustrating, I would be calling to make a complaint so at least there is a record of what actually happened.

[Phoenix]

Agree with the others, it would be so frustrating.

[mama_bel]

I would be horrified at that. Once I didn't get my renewal notice, but I got a reminder that it was Overdue. So I missed the pay-by-date discount, but I got to keep my box. My box is in a business name too, but it's a smallish post office, under 1000 boxes? So I guess I get personalised treatment since I go in there about 4 times a week...

I really detest mix-ups like that. I hope you get something sorted out.

[emd]

I think I got it sorted as best it can be. Took in my receipt and the card I had used to show her. It looks like what happened was the transaction was processed offline when their EFTPOS link was down. When the link came back up, something went wrong and my transaction came out of someone else's account and nothing came out of my account. So I still have to fill in forms and pay again to get my Post Office box back, and probably pay again for the printing to be shipped again (if it can even be found). But at least they know I wasn't using a stolen credit card! That part really upset me.

[jodiemiller]

So glad it is somewhat resolved. Hope it doesn't interrupt your business too much Emma.