Santa delivers presents with the help of flying reindeer and an enchanted sled. Amazon depends on national carriers. As it turns out, the United States Postal Service may not be quite as reliable as magic reindeer. Two former postal service workers have come forward and accused the United States Postal Service of falsifying Amazon delivery records. According to the anonymous sources, USPS employees are instructed to mark late Amazon packages as delivered on time.
One former Atlanta mailwoman told CBS News that supervisors gave the following instructions to workers:
"At 7:15, whatever you have not delivered, pull your truck over to the side of the road and scan every single one of your Amazon packages. We cannot have late packages because that will jeopardize our contract with Amazon."
Reporters spoke with another Atlanta postal worker who confirmed the story. "Basically, we have to falsify the timing, and a lot of carriers don't want to do that, but we're mandated to with a direct order," the second source explained.
Both ex-employees asked to remain anonymous because USPS employees sign contracts promising not to talk to the media.
To find out more, we took to Reddit, where many posters confirm the allegations:
Why Late Packages Equal Free Stuff
Why would the USPS go to such great lengths to pretend packages on time?
In may be, in part, because of Amazon's unwritten Prime member delivery perks. Sources report that Amazon Prime members who receive late deliveries may qualify for a free month of Amazon Prime. Some Prime Members have reported receiving free gift cards and other discounts after informing Amazon customer service that they received a late package.
That means that every package USPS delivers late could cost Amazon $8.25, the cost of a month of Prime. Multiple packages that delivered later than 8 p.m. on the promised delivery day could land USPS in hot water with the e-commerce giant.
What to Do If You Receive a Late Package
If you receive a late package from the USPS, be sure to report it, advise the former postal service workers. USPS employees use handheld scanners with GPS records that can be used as evidence of late delivery and falsified records.
