What the Fleur? of the Week

There are many unanswered questions that I and many other Louisville residents have about our great city. This series begs for an answer to those questions, or at least an understanding ear.

This week's "What the Fleur" asks: What the fleur is up with USPS only having to reimburse you for losing your package if you've purchased insurance?

At what point did we become a society where a business isn't held accountable for failing to do its job? Last month, I made a sale on Half.com. I shipped the item with tracking, and the post office tracked it right up to it getting lost in the mail and never arriving at its destination. Then they sent me a letter saying they found my package; unfortunately, it was empty. The letter informed me that I could go and get a refund on my postage costs from my local post office. I could get reimbursed for what was missing from my package too, but only if I had purchased insurance.

Why should I have to buy insurance to protect me in the event that the post office loses my mail? Shouldn't paying for the item to be shipped be the insurance? If I fly to Denver and my airline loses my luggage, I'm reimbursed for my loss. Why? Because it's the airline's job to get me and my luggage from Louisville to Denver. That's what I paid them to do. Why is the post office held to a different standard?

What if everything operated this way? What if the college I work at gave students the option to buy teacher insurance? It would protect the student in the event that the teacher never showed up to teach the class. If the teacher never showed up, but the students didn't buy the insurance, they would be out the money they paid for the class. Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? That's because it is.

Do you have a What the Fleur? question you've been dying to learn the answer to or just get off your chest? If so, send your questions to me in an email at louisville.guide@about.com. You might be featured in next week's installment!

Photo © Scott Hancock / Big Stock Photo