Broken Rentals

[manuel]

Broken rentals are one of my pet peeves. I haven't received any broken rentals from GreenCine. I attribute the fact to GreenCine's padded envelopes. I was disappointed when GreenCine did away with them. The only problem I've had with GreenCine so far is missing rentals although I know it's only a matter of time before a broken GreenCine DVD arrives in the mail.

I've received 53 broken rentals (32 Netflix, 21 Blockbuster Online). You can't imagine how aggravating and frustrating my experience has been. I've just learned to accept it: It's part of the online rental experience. In 2006, Netflix claimed one of their rentals is used 20 some times before it "cracks, gets lost or stolen." It seems I was always Netflix's 20th customer.

[wowwee123]

I've had just 1 broken DVD title.

[Trisha M]

I have been with NETFLIX for a couple of years now and have only received like 3 or 4 broken rentals. I am a big fan of NETFLIX, not so much of Blockbuster though. Hopefully you will have better luck in the future with NETFLIX.

[manuel]

I keep getting responses saying the USPS is responsible for broken Netflix rentals. This is not true. Because Netflix rentals are sent uninsured, the USPS is not liable:

USPS - Frequently Asked Questions - What items are eligible for claims?

"To process and deliver the huge daily volume of mail in a timely manner, we use high-speed automated mail processing equipment; occasionally this equipment malfunctions causing damage to a few pieces of mail. The Postal Service is not held liable for damages occurred during the processing or handling of mail matter under Title 28, Section 2680(b) of the U.S. Code, except for the items listed above."

The postal service is complaining that Netflix rentals are jamming their sorting machines. It made national news a few months ago. These Netflix rentals are getting damaged when they jam the machines. The USPS is considering charging Netflix and extra 17 cents per DVD for the extra work involved.

[Spindaddydad]

The discs are not broken when they leave Netflix. They look at every disc by hand to make sure it's not broken. They get broken in transit by the postal service.

[wowwee123]

But that is part of the process till it reaches the customer.

[The Real Uncle Bob]

You ignore this bit:

We are somewhat concerned that the USPS has singled out the rental by mail industry, which could allude to price increases despite any compliance with the mailers. To this point, the USPS proposed annual rate increase of $0.17 would provide $56.5 million in revenue and more than cover the estimated $31 million in annual manual labor costs, which implies that the USPS may be looking at online rental plans as a way to subsidize losses from other parts of its operations.

The implication is that the PO is putting the squeeze on Netflix in order to recoup losses unrelated to Netflix. Since I doubt that Netflix is deliberately using packaging that destroys their costly disks, I suspect what you've documented is just a bureaucratic war over cash.

[manuel]

To be honest, I don't follow politics. Now, broken rentals are high on my agenda.

[Nataliology]

Wowza. I'd chalk that up to Murphy's Law in your case. That is the pits. So far, I have not received a broken rental.

[Maverick]

400 movies in the last 2 years and I have had 3 well actually 4 broken.

Time to get a new mail carrier or move to a more efficient postal area.

Thats too bad though.....keep in mind its a huge loss on netflix part as well. Think about it?

[manuel]

I've known our mail career for over a decade. Our neighbors have known him even longer. Great guy and does a great job. He has never once lost one of our Netflix DVDs even though they look like junk mail. It's not his responsibility if Netflix ships broken DVDs. It's not his responsibility to handle delicate DVDs with kid gloves because Netflix improperly ships them in plain envelopes. He's got a bag full of mail and makes his rounds everyday. I frequently order CDs and DVDs from Amazon and elsewhere and they never arrive broken. Amazon isn't stupid enough to ship customer's DVDs in plain paper envelopes.

It seems no matter what I say, the vast majority claims the USPS is at fault; even when I say otherwise.

[The Real Uncle Bob]

Netflix is not shipping your DVDs, they are shipping their own DVDs, and they have to finance them through all roundtrips..Since they are absorbing the cost of breakage, packaging is their call.

Your mail carrier has nothing to do with how your DVDs are handled within the PO before he ever sees them. Nobody doubts what you have experienced, but when you say "the vast majority claims the USPS is at fault; even when I say otherwise," you're right.

Because if Netflix was at fault, everybody subscribing to Netflix would see what you see;

Despite what you say, many post offices are handling Netflix mailers with very little breakage.

With over 600 people in this community, not one has mentioned an experience anything like yours.

Unless you think there's someone at your local distribution center who really hates you, the only possible explanation is that your PO (NOT your carrier) is messing up!

Please, when you get a chance, remove the broken dvds from the photo galleries. No one ever doubted that they existed, and we have all seen them. We do not need to see them every time the site serves up a random photo.

[manuel]

I hardly believe my situation is that unique. Honestly, I believe my situation falls within the norm. There's just not that many members who report incidents like this.