Using Netflix DVDs to Measure The Post Office Decline

Posted by Thoughts and Ramblings on Saturday, April 30, 2022

I subscribe to Netflix’s DVD by mail service occasionally (yes they still have it). I subscribe until I’ve run through the queue of movies I’d like to see, cancel, and repeat a year later. I’ve done this for several years now and the for the past few years I’ve tracked when disks should arrive and when they actually do. It’s uncommon for a disk to be late but 2022 has seen a dramatic decline in the service the post office delivers.

Many years ago, if a letter were sent to me from the city housing the Netflix warehouse, it would arrive in one day. Since then, the post office has restructured their delivery as well as shutdown some sort centers resulting it it now taking 2 days, at least. Two days to make a <200 mile trip. This year it is taking between 2 and 3. Since I’m outlining the degradation in service compared to the immediate previous year, I’ll characterize anything more than 2 days as late. Additionally since Netflix informs me of when a disk arrives on their end, I can also characterize the return delivery as well.

In the past couple of years, across 71 disks (round trips for all but 1, so 141 mailings), 10 arrived one day late, 2 arrived 2 days late, 1 arrived a week late, and 1 never arrived. This totals 14 late or never delivered disks in 141 mailing or a rate of just under 10%
Then, in 2022, across 19 disks (round trips for all but 1, so 37 mailings), 15 arrived one day late, 2 arrived 2 days late, and 1 never arrived. This totals 18 late or never delivered disks in 37 mailings or a rate of just under 49%.

These 17 disks have had more late deliveries than the past few years combined and I subscribed for longer periods of time in each of those years. This year disks were late about 5 time the rate of previous years. In addition the postal rates have increase which means we are paying more for less service.