USPS kiosk charge minimum .50 cents per postage/printout??

Snowball

Any body use the usps kiosk lately? I went to my local post office today (off window hours). I was purchasing a .49 cents postage for an envelope that is less 1 oz envelope but woulldn't let me. It stated that minimum purchase is 0.50 cents letter/package?? I also tried the plain letter for .37 cents but state minimum .50 cents. The only options I get are: additional service, .50 stamp or buy booklet. What's up with usps? I thought the machine ran out of label and will only dispense a vending machine stamp so I went ahead and purchase a .50 cent postage to my surprise it gave the usual machine printout.

This is not minimum .50 cents for whole purchase. This is minimum 0.50 cents per postage/package. I check my receipt it stated:

total cost: ------------- .50
base rate: -------------- .37
Min Postage Fee ------ .01
Surcharges
Nonmachinable 1st cla -- .12


Before I can print .49 cents and .37 cents postage. What's up with usps?

CopperJJ

Well, if you ever tried mailing a bubble mailer with only one card and nothing else, the kiosk thing would only charge .37 due to that being the charge for the weight of the item. It would not add the .12 extra for the bubble mailer. Therefore, the USPS was loosing all that money. I guess after a few months of that, the USPS got wise.

Snowball

It will add the .12 cents surcharge for nonmachinable item if large envelope is selected instead of the small/letter in the menu. That's what I've been doing when mailing small bubble mailer 1 oz or less I always select large envelope in the menu. That automatically adds the .12 cents. They could have just noted in the instructions.

packCollector

I think that is just the minimum required sale and has nothing to do with the package. I believe if you bought 2 postages, it would have let you do the 37cents becasue the total was over 50cents

mercurynut

Another good reason to privatize the post office!

Snowball

PC, it's not .50 cents minimum total, its .50 cents minimum for each postage purchase. I was trying to select .37 cents since I found I have .12 left cents stamp in my card case still wouldn't let me go through the next step. So if you happen to be in the PO after window hours and you have 7 letter envelope that only needs .37 cents stamps you will end up paying .50 cents for each of the envelope or you will end up purchasing a booklet (I don't know the booklet in kiosk if it is in multiples of 10 or 20 or more).

Also, why charge minimum of .50 cents if they think many people are getting away with the .37 postage in a bubble mailer or other than plain small letterenvelope. They can charge minimum of .49 cents. Why try to profit a penny more from it.

They can state if NOT mailing a letter envelope no. 10 or smaller (whatever their max size for letter .37 cents postage) choose large envelope. They told me at the window if 12 cents was not added to postage they return the package or some personnel will ran it in the machine.