From the Solosez list came a warning today: an anecdotal report that one lawyer’s clients were having to pay extra postage to receive mail from their attorney who used the familiar manila envelopes with clasps on the back in addition to a gummed flap. The reason? The US Post Office deemed the clasps to be “non-machinable.”
The member reporting the issue to Solosez recounted several attempts to verify the information:
I tried to verify the surcharge and when it would apply (does it apply if I put tape over the clasp, as I normally do?) I asked the postal worker who delivers my mail to my office and he said there is no surcharge for clasps. When I mentioned whether the clasps are considered “non-machinable”, he then recanted and said perhaps there was a charge for the clasp but he wasn’t sure. I called the 1-800 number for the US post office and was told first that whether there is a surcharge for the clasp depends on the weight of the thing being mailed. Then I was told that perhaps it depends on the size of the thing being mailed ~ that a letter sized envelope with a clasp has a surcharge for the clasp but “flats” (like manilla envelopes 9×12 or larger have the surcharge already included in the weight charge so there is no additional surcharge for clasps for flats. Then I checked the US Post Office website where I found a mention that the non-machinable surcharge is waived for letters but not for envelopes bigger than letter sized envelopes.
Anyone having issues with postage on clasp-type envelopes? Drop us a line or a comment below. I’ll summarize and follow up later.
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