Originally Posted by
moondog
If you have a good credit rating, those guys will bend over backwards for you. All you need to do is ask. While the fax thing was annoying, it worked like a charm (Schwab wanted to charge me $15 for the expedited service, but they didn't do so in end). For a 20 year old, the calculus might be slightly different, but phone calls from the mom (e.g. my son is in China, doesn't have any money, and I will close my account if you don't help him) could work wonders.
But WHY? What's the point in adding a layer of insecurity to the process? I WANT my cards and any negotiable instruments going to my address
in the USA, not China. Given the huge level of incompetence in the banking industry, I no longer trust bank personnel to "get it right" (yes, even as a Premier customer) on oddball shipping requests, even if they are willing. Either I pick the cards up when I return to USA (depends on timing and need). Or have a family member send them to a trusted friend who will hand-courier them over to China (again, a timing issue), or they get FedEx'd to my business address or to an overseas station for my pickup with signature.
Note that we are talking about shipping financial instruments or sensitive materials. For shipping non-sensitive items, using the Postal Service is OK, though many people report issues of incoming packages not making it to them via China Post. Or not making it to them intact and complete.