Shipping to APO, why is this so "problematic"

So I call Toytec today because Im about to drop a lot of dough on them and the first question I ask is "do you ship to APO" ......."no we dont"

Now really....why, why , why is shipping to an APO so fricken hard for people. PKG the stuff up, fill out the stupid little customs slip, get a confirmation # and or request a signature for delivery and ship the shit! Its not that hard. Whats hard is the Hard working Military man wanting to get things shipped to him.

So now I either have to find another Co. that sells what Toytec has and shipps to APO or I have to pay double the shipping possibly even more than double by using ShipitAPO.com.

I cannot stress enough how much I hate living overseas!

No real offence to Toytec because they arent the only ones, but WOW....I guess they just happend to be the ones to light my fire today.

 

I was told once by god knows who.. Companies don't like to ship APO because once it hits the "Military Postal Service", the USPS can no longer "track it" or confirm if it has been delivered.
However, like you said.. throw a damn signature required on the sucker and call it good enough!

 

I just sent some brand new billies to a guy , which I sold on EBAY. I done over 1000 transaction- never had negative feedback. I wanted him to get them at the APO. I haven't heard back , but I hope it worked out.

For me , I'm just a little aprehensive about sending them without tracking them, but I have faith they will arrive fine. I bet he'll be pleased to get bilistieins with 50 miles off a 2011 TX pro tacoma.

Az

 

APO> Army Postal Office?

 

Good question! Maybe.....Air Postal Office? hell Got me....to me it means Complete Pain in my Ass!

 

Have heard the same and thats not true. It is true that "tracking" stops at the APO in New York or San Fran but it doesnt really just stop.

They can and some do, get a tracking# for parcel to APO, and FPO address's its just that a lot of companies dont wanna deal with the little tiny extra bit it takes to do it. Signature cards, tracking#'s, insurance, overnight, express, ect ect is all still available too and from APO.

I X2 what you said also!!!!!!!

 

Im sure it will be ok! I was trippin out because my wheels and tires hadnt arrived in the 3-4 weeks Wheelsnext.com told me they would arrive in. I called them and they said "no its always 4-6 weeks" "no we dont have a tracking #" I was like....HUH....you sent $2500 worth of wheels and tires in the mail and didnt get a tracking # even for yourself....?WTH

But anyway they arrived just fine at the end of the 5th week so all is good!

And good on you for shipping stuff to people like me! THANKS!!!

To get my lift from Toytech its going to cost roughly $100 to ship it from them to my ShipitAPO.com address and then probably $130 to ship it to me from there. SO.....thats roughly $230 bucks wasted on shipping that could have went twords my Camburg or TC UCA's. Not real happy about this!!!

 

i know it sucks some places will ship certain things and others wont shipp anything. its annoying

 

you said "matic". bwahahaah!

Dude. I bet my grandfathers inititials are scribbled all over that base somewhere. BEB.

 

X2

 

Ya I did

"BEB" Ill keep my eyes open.....funny thing is Ive probably already seen it several times and just didnt think anything about it. Watch....now, its gonna be everywhere like haunting me around every corner LOL

 

DOD sets the guidelines for overseas mail, military postal units handle it.
APO is Army/Air Force Postal Operations.
There is an extensive list of rules & regs (surprise!) that sellers in conjuction w/ shipping companies whether its USPS or other commercial handlers must follow.
In your situation its frustrating & sellers either probably don't understand it or have been burned somehow. It is especially hard to track where foreign handlers are in place.
Sorry yeah its a big machine .... just mail the damn package!
Can you get a friend in the states to get your stuff and ship to you?

 

Thanks for the info! And ya I can.....mom and dad or brothers are an option but ......again still would pay twice the shipping (from toytec-mom&dad-then to my APO) However, in my search for a way around this APO problem I have again found very usefull info on this Forum. Although the lift is not adjustable or ICON, RCD has a 4.5" lift that may actualy better suit my needs and prevent me from trimming fenders and body mounts. You do have to chop the crossmember but from the looks of things its a clean/ no hacking hear and there cut. And .....its free shipping in the 48. So I would only pay once, get a little more inches for the money and....its actualy a few hundred cheeper.
http://anyoffroadparts.com/i-2770976...-10-47405.html

but im still undecided

 

I run an internet business and I ship everywhere, including APO/FPO/DPO addresses, but I don't sell truck accessories right now.

Most internet sellers ship via UPS or FedEx only, not by USPS (United States Postal Service). Only USPS can deliver to an APO, FPO, or DPO address.

The number of customers who need USPS delivery is very small, so most internet sellers don't bother to set it up on their web sites.

Many internet sellers don't actually have the product in stock. When they receive an order, they place an order with their vendor (called a drop-shipper), and their vendor ships to the buyer. In my experience, less than 7% of drop-shippers will ship via USPS.

APO/FPO/DPO requires a customs form, which most internet sellers don't want to mess with.

USPS shipping is more expensive than UPS/FedEx for most packages weighing more than a few pounds.

As mentioned, every APO/FPO/DPO zip code has a different set of special rules that must be followed in shipping to it.

Sometimes, it take a long time for a package to an APO/FPO/DPO address to reach its destination. In the meantime, the buyer gets nervous and starts complaining to the seller, and/or PayPal and/or their credit card issuer. I've had properly addressed APO packages take months to arrive.

APO: Army Post Office. Land based military addresses
FPO: Fleet Post Office. Water based military addresses (i.e. ships)
DPO: Diplomatic Post Office. US embassy addresses

 

X2 thats why, they cant track it once it hits MPS

 

Thanks for clarifying

 

X2!!