Trade Custom, Who is to Blame, Mailing Issues

[jlind]

Not really sure if this issue belongs here, but it happened after printing, so....Post Press.
This is a humble #10 envelope with a big logo and return address in the far upper left. It was printed on a white wove with a Presstek DI waterless press. Customer was a broker. Now the broker's customer is not happy. It seems that the logo is so large that the return address has drifted a little too low on the left edge, and the postal machines are seeing the return address and all the mail comes back to him....Fortunately, this was not a large job, just a slight mailing regulations issue.

The designer says 'It's not MY fault, you should have spotted this as a printer and known it was no good."
The customer says "One of you is gonna pay to do this over..."
Of course, to preserve the customer, the broker is chipping right in with some dead presidents (cash.)

What do you think? Should the designer own up? Is this just one of those lessons that turn us into better printers? This would never have happened at a mail house.....I would appreciate some shared opinions.

John Lind
Cranberry Township, PA
724-776-4718

 

[almaink]

Re: Trade Custom, Who is to Blame, Mailing Issues

When I see things like this I always question them. If the designer is OK with it, so be it, my rear is covered. I get a good chuckle when I tell them something is wrong, they disagree and I turn out to be right. Once a designer gets burned, they learn real fast to listen.

 

[Craig]

Personally I would throw it back to the designer. What if a font was Time Roman and not Times Roman Italic, who's fault would that be?

Tell the designer to make a trip to the Post Office and ask for the yellow OCR Template, it will tell you where you can and can't have "stuff" for the scanners to pick up.

You could always save face and split the reprint cost 3 way's and everyone looses a few dead presidents.

 

[[email protected]]

Do you mean the register of the DI waterless copier was off? The logo drifted during the run? Maybe the broker should find a company that uses better machines to produce envelopes, like a Halm jet 4 color. If a designer can dream it the machine should be able to produce it.

 

[Craig]

I think what their saying is that the logo on the top left was so large that the return address which was below the logo fell into the USPS OCR read zone and the envelopes were getting mailed back to the customer, instead of the person they were addressed to. The OCR readers are non discriminatory and will read the first address they see whether or not it is the recipient.

The only address in the OCR zone should be that of the recipient, which is a design flaw in my eyes, unless the position of the image was shifted on the press from the proof provided by the designer.

 

[bgardner]

Can i ask a dumb question.... Were the broker the ones that sent it to the mailhouse???

If they were the ones, Id say the broker is at fault... Clients pay print brokers for a reason, they pay for their professional experience...Whoever was the one to submit the job to the mailhouse, then they are the ones who are at blame, as they should have run the design by the mailhouse to begin with.

 

[jlind]

Thanks for the feedback. No it wasn't a faulty DI press. They get enough flack as it is on this forum. It was violation of OCR space as a couple of friends have pointed out. No it was not taken to a mail house, it was for a small business. Yes, the mail house would have flagged it. No, the broker didn't catch it, and neither did I or the place I brokered it!!!! That's great information, and I appreciate it.
John Lind
Cranberry Township, PA
724-776-4718

 

[Craig]

This is ironic, I just received artwork for a mailer from one of our customers who did the design with their return address in the OCR block. I just placed it under the USPS template and said I will gladly print and mail this, but don't be surprised if you start getting them at your address. The artwork has been re-designed and corrected.

 

[Vee]

... Clients pay print brokers for a reason, they pay for their professional experience............. as they should have run the design by the mailhouse to begin with.

Ding-ding-ding!! We have a winner.
What a shame someone is posing as a "print broker" and not having the minimal knowledge to get a simple Envelope job printed and mailed. There is no excuse for not knowing or understanding the USPS regulations, they are open and shared. Especially if one is positioning them self as a subject mater expert. If there were any questions, or doubt the best thing to do is always - ASK.

 

[jlind]

Who's To Blame....

Who's To Blame....

good catch Craig. That's like "value added". Can't stop learning in this racket, just too many minefields.

John Lind
Cranberry Township, PA
724-776-4718

 

[lfelton]

My opinion is that it's clearly the designer's fault. If we design a mailer, you can be darn sure that we use the latest royal mail templates (we're in the UK) and the job is checked and double checked. If we designed it wrong, it would be our fault, plain and simple.

If a trade customer (i.e. a design agency or a broker) uses us to print, they drop a PDF into our workflow, choose the proof type they want, approve it and they are good to go. With trade clients; we take care of the print, they take care of the design.

If the client had asked the print broker to manage the whole project, then I would also expect them to have checked the job.

 

[mical]

Trade Custom, Who is to Blame, Mailing Issues

Who ever approved the design is responsible for all cost, post approval, including the printing cost. If the broker paid the designer then it is up to the broker to have the customer approve it or approve it himself, making him responsible. If the customer hired the designer and then approved the proof and supplied it to the broker to process the order then the customer is responsible. The printer is responsible for printing exactly what is submitted as an approved proof. The reason we have proofs is to catch errors before they happen, the reason we have signed proofs is so blame cannot be passed off. If no approved proof accompanied the order then shame on you. The individual who signs the proof accepts all of the responsibility for the printed content. The printer might catch an error here or there and bring attention to it but it is not the printer’s responsibility.