USPS never ceases to confuse us with its unique tracking updates. This is especially true for those who do not understand a word mentioned on the status update. Among all those confusing tracking updates, Arrived at Hub USPS is something that most people fail to understand. Unfortunately, most people presume that Arrived at Hub USPS means that the package might reach the destination in a day or two, but that’s barely true. So, let’s find out the real meaning of this tracking update and in what ways is this information useful for us.
Arrived At Hub USPS
What Is a Usps Hub?
Think of this, you’ve been anxiously waiting to view “Out for Delivery” on the tracking status, instead, you get “Arrived at Hub USPS”. Not only does this leave you a bit agitated but also confused as it does not give away the information you need to find where your package is at the current moment. Before jumping into the meaning of this status, let’s check out what does a hub mean and what does it do.
Learn about certified vs registered mail from here.
A Hub is a connected unit of the USPS and just like the rest of the units, a hub is also responsible for sorting and distributing huge chunks of mails. It is basically like a sorting/distribution facility. Once the mails reach this point, they are sorted into specific groups and taken for delivery. Not only are destination hubs great units for sorting mails, but at the same time, mails are distributed equally based on the region so that the letter carriers do not have any difficulty making the final delivery.
What Does Arrived at Hub USPS Mean?
When a parcel claims to “arrived at hub USPS”, it is sorted into smaller parts and will soon be on its way to being delivered once the sorting is rightfully done. With this message, the recipient will get assurance that the package is still moving and the process has not been stopped. The recipient can analyze that their mail is currently placed in a pallet with other mails and is awaiting to be sorted for final delivery.
Once the packages are sorted for final delivery, the pallets will straightaway be handed over to the local post office. From this point onwards, the mails will be loaded onto the truck for the local delivery driver to have them dropped off at the destination. As soon as the mails are loaded for final delivery, you will receive an “Out for Delivery” message pop up as the tracking status.
How Do Hubs Help Usps?
Hubs are local units that are placed in most parts of the state. With the help of hubs, the mails are sorted and transported easily by road, which helps cut down the costs as transportation by road is relatively cheaper when compared to air. Additionally, hubs are great in streamlining the delivery process as mails are sorted into pallets per region. Once done, the mails only need to be transported to the local post office for delivery.
When you receive the status “Arrived at hub USPS”, the delivery is imminent, but with the exception that you might need to wait for a day or two to have the mail delivered to your doorstep.
How Long Will the Mails Remain at the Destination Hub?
We’ve said this before and we shall do it again. After receiving “Arrived at Hub USPS” status, the amount of time spent by the mails at any USPS distribution facility depends on the priority of the mailing service that you have chosen and also the number of mails required to be sorted. For example: if you are using next-day delivery with USPS, then you should see a difference in the status within a few hours itself. For first-class delivery, the status might take 1-2 days to come into effect.
If you are using a non-priority mail carrier service, then you shouldn’t be surprised to see that there hasn’t been any update in the “arrived at hub USPS” tracking status for more than a few days. Due to any means, if the tracking status is taking longer to get updated, then this simply means that the mail has not been sorted yet. As USPS has a history of tracking update malfunctions, sometimes you might not be able to view the update even if your package has been sorted and it is Out For Delivery. So, just sit back and relax and if there hasn’t been any change in the tracking updates, then you can take some action to find out what’s wrong with your mail.
In these situations, the least you can do to find out what happened to your mails is to contact the USPS customer services and provide them the tracking details to help track the mails. If the customer service seems unresponsive, then your best bet is to give a call to the local post office supervisor and let them know about the lack of tracking updates on your mails.
What’s the Next Stop?
Arrived at Hub USPS? Okay!! Now, what’s next? Where will my package go next?
This is something that most people often ask. As mentioned earlier, USPS will send out a tracking notification when the mails reach the local post office to be loaded into the trucks for the final delivery. The next stop is the local post office and from this point, the mails are distributed to every street address in a serial order.
Moving towards how soon will you be expecting your mails, well, let’s just say that the delivery is close, considering the mails do not have to cross oceans and continents. You’ve waited this long, just wait a few more minutes to have the mails dropped off at your doorstep. But certain factors influence the delivery speed, which are; weather conditions, the number of workers available to deliver mails, the number of mails to be delivered, and the shipping speed you initially signed up for.
Can You Have the Packages Picked Up All by Yourself Before the Delivery?
Are you one of those customers who eagerly keep waiting for the mails to arrive by constantly checking the tracking updates? Or do you always have an eye out to the front door, waiting for the mailman to arrive and drop by all your pending mails? If yes, then we understand how eagerly you want to visit the USPS facility and have all the mails picked up on your own. But unfortunately, you cannot just walk in and demand your mails. As USPS follows certain procedures and protocols for every service they provide, you must also adhere to these rules.
Now, answering the above question, you cannot pick up the mails once they have Arrived at Hub USPS. A customer does not have permission to grab the mails directly from the hub. However, the customers can pick up the mails from the USPS local post office with the condition that they inform the postal services beforehand that they want to pick up the mail all by themselves. USPS offers two kinds of services for kicking up mails; Hold for Pickup and Package Intercept.
Below, we will take a look at how you can use these services, but before that, you must ensure that your mails are eligible for the package pickup services. Remember that if a package is sent out to be delivered, you cannot have it held for pickup at any USPS location. Another important point you need to remember is that you cannot walk into the USPS post office and ask for your package without giving them prior notice.
What does ‘USPS inbound into customs delay‘ mean? Check it out here.
Hold For Pickup
You can avail yourself of this service while you are creating the shipping label for your package. Once the shipping label is created, you also need to mention at which location from which the package will be picked up. As there is no room for delivery, you can have the mails picked up on your own accord. Hold for Pickup can be used through the USPS Click-N-Ship portal:
- Visit the click n ship portal on the USPS website
- Create a free account and sign in
- Enter the return address
- In the next step, do not enter the delivery address, instead, you can click on More Action>Hold for Pickup at a Post Office
- Select the post office location using the zip code
After confirming the package pickup service, the USPS services will send a notification to confirm the service either through the phone or through email. The drawback of using a hold package for pickup is that this service is only available for certain mailing classes such as Priority Express and other mailing classes. Make sure to collect the package at the post office as the mails will not be delivered to the recipient without the delivery details.
Package Interception
With package interception, you can reroute your mails to a new destination even if they are on the mails are on their way to be delivered or have already been delivered. This service is only applicable to domestic mails. Using interception, you can also hold the mails for pickup. Make sure to check if the package is available for interception. interception can be used for letters, parcels, and flats that have a barcode on the packaging for tracking. You can use this service in the following way:
- Check if mail is eligible for interception
- If the mail is eligible, log in to the account and send an interception request
- A total fee(inception fee + Priority mail fee) is given to you
- If the postal service has already routed the mail for delivery, then they will make attempts to check out the location of the mail. If the mails are not yet delivered, then they will be rerouted to the new location
- On successful interception, the credit card will be charged with the total amount
USPS Hubs Map and Distribution Centers
The Network distribution center is the largest facility across the United States. There are only 21 NDCs located across the United States, and these facilities are further subdivided by the Destination Sectional Center Facility. These sectional facilities are designated as per the geographical area as per the zip codes. Also known as Service Hubs, these facilities are responsible for routing the mails between the local post offices and the network distribution facilities. You can check out the location of the major USPS Hub Near Me from this page by downloading the sheet for the service hubs.
Here is a map of the major network distribution centers:
Conclusion
Nothing’s as exciting as viewing the Out For Delivery status as your latest tracking update. However, before getting to that point, the mails have to travel longer distances. To make the deliveries quick and cost-effective, USPS makes use of the hubs which are located in every geographical area. Mails are taken to a hub so that the sorting can be completed for successful mail delivery. When you have received the Arrived at Hub USPS, then this means that the final delivery will be done in no time.
What happens if you don’t pick up certified mail? Check it out here.
Frequently Asked Questions(FAQ’s)
After receiving the Arrived at Hub USPS status, the mails leave the USPS hub either within a few hours/overnight or it might take a day or two, i.e., depending on the mail service that you have chosen.
The mails cannot be picked up from a USPS hub. However, you can pick up mails all by yourself from the local post office if the sender signed up for a Hold for Pickup Service.
