Pitney Bowes DM450c, DM300C, DM200L, DM475, DP100i User Manual

...

Using USPS® Conﬁ rmation Services

with Digital Mailing Systems

DM100i, DM125, DM225, DM200L, DM300c, DM400c, DM450c, DM475, DP100i, DP200L, DP300C, DP400C, DP450C, DP475

Reference Manual

SV61156 Rev. F

June 2011

All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any fashion or stored in a retrieval system of any type or transmitted by any means, electronically or mechanically, without the express, written permission of Pitney Bowes.

We have made every reasonable effort to ensure the accuracy and usefulness of this manual; however, we cannot assume responsibility for errors or omissions or liability for the misuse or misapplication of our products.

Due to our continuing program of product improvement, equipment and material speciﬁ cations as well as performance features are subject to change without notice. Your mailing system may not have some of the features described in this book. Some features are optional and furnished at extra cost.

DM100i, DM200L, DM125, DM225, DM300c, DM400c, DM450c, DM475 and IntelliLink are trademarks and Postage By Phone is a registered trademark of Pitney Bowes Inc. SECAP is a trademark of SECAP, Inc. USPS and ZIP Code are registered trademarks and Certiﬁ ed Mail, Signature Conﬁ rmation and Delivery Conﬁ rmation are trademarks of the United States Postal Service.

USING USPS®

ONFIRMATION

ERVICES

1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................2

2. A

BOUT USPS CONFIRMATION SERVICES ..............3

3. U

SING CONFIRMATION SERVICES—AN OVERVIEW ...8

4. S

TEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS .......................... 1 1

5. A

BOUT LABELS ...............................................22

6. T

RACKING MAIL ON THE INTERNET .....................24

7. F

REQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ....................... 26

Digital Mailing Systems

1. Introduction

About this Book

Equipment Covered

What You Should Know

How to Use this Book

This book explains how to use your mailing sys tem to take full ad van tage of USPS what these ser vic es are and how to use them.

This book provides instructions for using confirmation services with these mailing systems:

• DM100i, DM125, DM200L, DM225, DM300c, DM400c, DM450c, and DM475.

• DP100i, DP200L, DP300C, DP400C, DP450C, DP475.

You should be thoroughly familiar with the operation of your mailing system. Please refer to the op er at ing guides furnished with your equipment for com plete in struc tions. You should also be familiar with the special ser vic es offered by the United States Post al Service pro vides general information about avail able confirmation services. For the most current in for ma tion, visit the Postal

Ser vice’s web site at: www.usps.com

Please take a few minutes to read through this man u al and familiarize yourself with the benefits of us ing your mailing system as a gateway to the spe cial electronic ser vic es offered by the United States Postal Ser vice.

confirmation services. It explains

(USPS). This book

• Sec tion 2 de scribes these services in detail;

• Sec tion 3 pro vides quick instructions for using confirmation services;

• Section 4 has step-by-step instructions for all mailing systems;

• Sec tion 5 explains how to apply and order la bels;

• Sec tion 6 tells you how to track your mail us ing the Internet; and

• Sec tion 7 has help ful an swers to a number of fre quent ly asked ques tions.

The USPS offers several services to confirm delivery of

™

your mail piece. Among these are Delivery Confirmation

™

Signature Confirmation

, and Certified Mail™.

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Using USPS® Confirmation Services

2. About USPS Confirmation Services

Delivery Confirmation— Green Label

Signature Confirmation— Pink Label

Delivery Confirmation allows you to verify the date and time of delivery of your mail pieces or, if the de liv ery was un suc cess ful, the date and time of the delivery at tempt.

The service is currently available for First Class Mail parcels, Priority Mail parcels, Standard Mail parcels and Pack age Services parcels, which include Parcel Post, Library Mail, Media Mail, and Bound Printed Matter.

You may combine Delivery Confirmation with other ser vic es

™

such as COD, insured mail, Registered Mail ceipt for Merchandise, or special handling. Delivery Confirmation may be combined with restricted delivery or return receipt, if purchased with either insurance for more than $200, COD, or Registered Mail service.

There is no charge for Delivery Confirmation when you ship by Priority Mail and provide an electronic file to the Postal Service.

The USPS also offers a signature proof of delivery ser vice—Signature Confirmation. This provides mailers with the first initial and last name of the re cip i ent, along with the date, time and delivery ZIP Code.

This service is currently available for First Class Mail parcels, Priority Mail, and Package Services parcels which include Parcel Post, Library Mail, Media Mail, and Bound Printed Matter.

For se cu ri ty pur pos es, dig i tal sig na tures are not pub lic ly

dis played on the web site. You can get ac tu al sig na tures from the USPS by fax, mail, or email.

This ser vice meets the needs of mailers who re quire a sig na ture for high-value ship ments or who are spe cif i cal ly con cerned with avoid ing fraud.

,Return Re-

SV61156 Rev. F

Digital Mailing Systems

2. About USPS Confirmation Services

Signature Confirmation— Pink Label (cont.)

Certified Mail— Dark Hunter Green Label

You may combine Signature Confirmation with COD Insured mail, Registered Mail, and special handling. It may also be combined with restricted delivery if purchased with insurance for more than $220, COD, or Registered Mail service. This is an additional cost for Signature Confirmation service.

As an add-on ser vice to De liv ery Con fir ma tion, there is an ad di tion al cost. When you upload (send) the trans ac tion using your mailing system, the additional cost is slightly lower than if your local Post Of fice han dles the transaction.

Certified Mail is a service offered by the USPS for a fee in addition to postage, and may be combined with restricted delivery and return receipt. This service is available for Priority Mail and First Class Mail. Certified Mail provides a delivery record that the Postal Service keeps for two years. You can view the Certified Mail delivery record on the Track and Confirm website at usps.com (see Section 6).

If you want hardcopy receipts or wish to specify restricted delivery of your Certified Mail, there are options available at your local Post Office (all at extra cost, payable to the

USPS). These are described below.

Return Receipts

Return receipt postcards are available from your local Post Office.

When you buy the return receipt post card, sending a mail piece by Certified Mail assures that you have legal proof of receipt of the communication. The Postal Ser vice sends the green return receipt post card back to you, the sender. This is a very useful tool for collecting funds, re cov er ing checks and making legal no ti fi ca tions. A return receipt for Certified Mail serves as a le gal doc u ment prov ing the date and time when the re cip i ent took pos ses sion of the mail piece.

SV61156 Rev. F

Using USPS® Confirmation Services

2. About USPS Confirmation Services

Certified Mail— Dark Hunter Green Label (cont.)

HINT: Contact your

local Post Office or

www.usps.com for

conditions and fees associated with Certified Mail options.

If you decide you want a return receipt after you’ve mailed

your Certified Mail piece, go to your local Post Office and ask for this service. The Post Office will give you a scanned image of the recipient’s signature, along with the date of delivery. Be sure to provide the 22-digit barcode used on the mail piece. There is a fee for this service.

Restricted De liv ery

You also have the option of requesting Restricted De liv ery of your Certified Mail piece. This assures that only the spe cif ic person you sent the mail piece to can re ceive and sign for it.

Certified Mail and Options

The Postal Service charges additional fees for the following:

• Certified Mail

• Return Receipt Requested at Time of Mail ing Shows to whom the piece was delivered, the orig i nal

signature, date of delivery, and recipient's ad dress, if different.

• Restricted Delivery Only allows a spe cif ic person to re ceive and sign for

the mail piece.

• Return Receipt Requested after Mailing Shows to whom the piece was delivered, scanned

sig na ture, date of delivery, and delivery address.

SV61156 Rev. F

For current fees, go to www.usps.com/prices or ask your

postal representative.

Digital Mailing Systems

2. About USPS Confirmation Services

USPS Forms

Obtaining a Mailer ID (MID) from USPS for Electronic Return Receipt (ERR)

Meters that use an ERR (Electronic Return Receipt) feature must be programed with a MID number in order for the mailer to receive e-receipt files from the USPS.

Before October 2010, the MID was requested from the USPS via the 5053/5051 postal forms that were filled out and faxed to the USPS. Now, an MID must be obtained

from the USPS via an online tool before the 5053/5051

forms are filled out and faxed to the USPS. The online tool provides a new MID immediately, avoiding the up-to-72hours processing time it took previously.

Once this process is completed, the mailer can obtain ERR

signature files on My Account at www.pb.com.

To obtain a mailer ID (MID) from the USPS:

1. Go to www.usps.com

2. Select the Business Customer Gateway located on the bottom right hand corner of the web page.

3. If you haven’t already, register as a new user to gain access to the Business Customer Gateway.

4. Select the "Mailer ID" link to obtain a MID.

5. Enter the Mailer ID (MID) on USPS Form 5053 and/or 5051 (see next page) and fax to the USPS for recording.

6. Provide the Mailer ID (MID) to the Pitney Bowes Customer Service Representative upon system installation.

Form 5052, Printer Certification Submission

Customers who wish to complete print their own Delivery or Signature Confirmation labels must complete this form.

SV61156 Rev. F

Using USPS® Confirmation Services

2. About USPS Confirmation Services

USPS Forms

PS Form 5051, Confirmation Services — Electronic Option Application

This is an administrative application used to establish mailers in the confirmation services database. This form is required of any customer who wishes to use Delivery Confirmation, Signature Confirmation or Certified Mail. Mailers applying to use these services complete the application and fax it to the number provided on the form or mail the form to the address listed. A key element of the application is the Mailer ID (MID) number for the company applying.

Form 5053, Bulk Proof of Delivery Application

Customers use this form to register for the Certified Electronic Return Receipt (ERR) service. Customers must enter their 9-digit Mailer ID (MID) provided to them from the USPS online tool (see previous page). This same MID must also be entered into their postage meter to complete the process.

Form 1357-S, Request for Computer Access

This is required only for those customers who wish to receive daily detail extract files from the USPS 16 times a day. Such customers can update their own systems with this tracking data.

SV61156 Rev. F

IMPORTANT! The application process cannot be completed without Forms 5053 and 1357.

PS Form 109, Application to Print Special Services Barcoded Forms/Labels

This form allows the USPS to verify your Mailer ID (MID) number and check that your barcode printing software is certified. This is for customers who want to print their own certified labels. This form is required in addition to PS Form

5051.

Digital Mailing Systems

3. Using Confirmation Services—an Overview

How USPS Confirmation Services Work

HINT: When you use

De liv ery or Signature conﬁ rmation services with your mailing system and send barcodes elec tron i cal ly, you get a discount on the cost of the ser vice.

Remember: The dis-

count ap plies only if you use the barcode la bels pro vid ed by Pitney Bowes and send the records elec tron i cal ly.

The diagrams on the next two pages show the con firm a tion ser vic es process.

You be gin by applying a preprinted barcode label unique to the specific service you desire. The barcode in each label includes a unique Pack age Iden ti fi ca tion Code (PIC).

To process a mail piece, select the service and class of mail you want, then enter the destination ZIP Code and barcode num ber us ing your control panel’s nu mer ic key pad. Your mailing system stores a con fir ma tion data record for each piece of mail you pro cess. It also prints the cor rect post age on a tape strip or di rect ly on your en ve lope, then prompts you for the next barcode.

Your mailing system sends con fir ma tion records to the Data Center when you’ve fin ished pro cess ing, or when you've pro cessed the max i mum num ber of piec es it can store. Your mail ing sys tem also prints a re ceipt for each trans ac tion.

You can drop the mail off any where mail is ac cept ed.

Using the Delivery Track ing System on our web site, you can verify delivery of individual items at:

www.pb.com

See section 7. Tracking Mail on the Internet for more infor-

mation.

For complete description of confirmation services, see

USPS publication 91 available at: www.usps.com

SV61156 Rev. F

+ 23 hidden pages