La Poste missing package

a lot o the time the delay is with USPS. I mailed some papers a few years ago, first class, tracked, from the UK. It left the UK within a week and then took NINE weeks to be delivered to Texas, where it hung around a post office somewhere for another FIVE weeks, eventually being delivered to a PO Box.

La Poste can't see anything after it has left the French postal system, probably not after it enters Customs.

It can get hung up at French or US Customs.

Have you tried tracking on the USPS website?

No idea about La Poste but the thought of tracking on USPS is a good one. I am signed up for "Informed Delivery" and can see packages posted to my address. If the package is already in the US and has been "processed" by USPS, it should should up there. This is assuming they are using USPS and not a partner like Fedex.

https://www.usps.com/manage/informed-delivery.htm

I can confirm what Nigel wrote.

I have sent numerous boxes from the UK to the US. Normally it takes about a week. Once it took three weeks.

The package made it to the US where I started following it on the USPS tracking site. It was held up at customs for two weeks according to them.

So, if the French Post tracking said it has been handed over to the USPS, start tracking it there.

Jane,
First try your tracking number on the USPS website. Once it's in the US, France no longer tracks. Things mailed to the US often end up for a while in a black hole near New York City.

Second, I'm surprised any Poste in France accepted a package in early May to the US because we haven't been able to mail anything to the US since the implementation of tariffs until about two weeks ago. Even now, we aren't sure anything is being accepted.

Third, we've been told that everything coming into the US is being opened, including letters.
So, try the tracking number on the US side. It could be stuck in the NY black hole. Any experience anyone had before tariffs is irrelevant to today.

When I had an important document to mail, I sent it UPS to a family member in the US who mailed it on to the US recipient. I had already had one important document not reach its destination and I wasn't chancing a second.

Edit: In fact, none of the EU countries had been accepting mail, especially packages, to the US until recently because nobody knew how the US wanted the tariffs collected or what percentage to charge, etc.

The phone number you have is incorrect.

To contact Colissimo (La Poste's parcel service) from abroad, you must dial:

+33 810 821 821 (the service is charged at €0.06/min + the cost of the call).

There is an online form on the website to request information. Go to:

https://contact.aide.laposte.fr/kb/guide/fr/formulaire-courrier-colis-55CJ9A5dgN/Steps/4901506

Click on the left on "Expediteur" (sender) .

Then enter your tracking number.

Since I didn't have a tracking number to enter, I didn't proceed further.

@ JoLui She need the 011 to call out of the US. The rest is the same. I'm pretty sure the package is sitting somewhere on the US side. It could take a couple of months to get to the destination.

Ah, La Poste. I tried on May 4 in Strasbourg to mail a magazine-sized package (in their packaging) containing souvenir brochures, maps, postcards, etc. to Santa Cruz. They would not accept it because of “the situation” between France and the US, which they elaborated was “political.” Neither their staff’s English nor my French was up to clarifying this further, nor did the help of another customer help resolve it. Thinking tariffs could somehow raise a question I explained the value of the package was probably less than 25 Euros and not covered by any tariff. I wasn’t able to get a copy of the policy or any other information. Only a shrug.
(I was just trying to create some extra space in my suitcase so I could buy some stuff….)

Based on my experience I imagine your package is hung up in some other part of La Poste. But maybe not.

Some good suggestions above for trying to track it down. Good luck!

Current situation…….thank you all for such good help……..Joy, Nigel Deb, Elizabeth and Frank II……I took the form from La Poste with the tracking number to my American post office 2 weeks ago….they said the French tracking number did not register with the American system so the package must still be hung up in customs…..they were kind but a dead end road. Jolui…….you may have saved me……I have logged almost daily through the La Poste website my complaint so they must be inundated with me……but never knew I was the “expedituer”…..so I tried that button this time-not the recipient button- and got an entirely different result……I had to translate but this was sent to me……WE HAVE DETECTED AN ANOMALY ON YOUR PACKAGE. THANK YOU FOR CONTACTING CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 3631. I do not know what the anomaly is but I listed my address again and hope that helps. It is mustard from Dijon, lavendar soap bars from Provence and clothing that we sent back early to help alleviate room in our luggage on our return 10 days later. I will let you know what else I hear……thank you again so much!!!…..let me add……we did try the phone number just as Jolui has it listed and we still just get a Verizon message that says they cannot complete the call

3631 is the number to call but only if you are in France.

So something is holding it up, It could be sitting in the Saint Rémy post office if they realized afterwards that they couldn’t send it to the US. But now, supposedly, it can be shipped, since there are no tariffs.

EDIT: Jane sent me pictures of the receipt. I talked to the center a few minutes ago. Indeed, the Poste should not have accepted the package. After one month sitting in the Saint Rémy post office, it was sent to a center near Bordeaux to be stored. We can now send letters to the US but not packages. Would it have been destroyed eventually?

They are sending it to me. At least Jane will know where it is and from there, we have a few possibilities: once I hear that packages can be sent, I'll take it to my local post office, or if a local is going to the US, perhaps someone can carry it over for you, or you need to come back and visit my town, or you know anyone visiting Paris or anywhere else in France to whom I could send it?
Once we know it's in safe hands, we can go from there.

We've had good experiences with DHL for international shipments, and I expect any similar shipments we have in future will use them if possible.

Elizabeth - wow! What a kind thing you are doing - going above and beyond to help someone in need. This forum is amazing!

Elizabeth...Dieu benisse!

jph Yes DHL is very good and the most common in Europe, but we have access to UPS here, which has wider US/destination coverage. I had to send one very large suitcase with Send My Bag when we moved, and Send My Bag contracted with DHL.

Judy and Dawn I'm retired and had time today, and speak French, so it was very easy.
The tricky part is getting it over to the US. Luckily there are no time-sensitive edibles inside.

Bravo Elizabeth!

Let’s just hope that Dijon mustard hangs in there while waiting to be shipped. Past the one-year mark, it definitely starts losing its kick! :-)

Thanks for sharing the update - great for Jane to know what happened to package, but also a learning opportunity to travelers in France.
This forum is really inspiring. I came across an older post when researching Budapest, when a forum member got unexpectedly hospitalized and needed a procedure/surgery done, and locals in Budapest (Mr. E and TTM) provided assistance.

Thank you, Elizabeth, for the UPS info. Great to know.

Love this forum…never ceases to amaze me how kind people are and always so willing to help!