# UPS says "sorry"!!



## ed4copies (Jun 20, 2013)

Missed a couple calls today, so I reviewed the voice mail a few minutes ago.

"Ginny" from UPS had called to apologize for destroying one of our packages.  

That's it---no identification number, or description of package or contents, and no "return call number".

She did say we would be getting a letter.

Talk about "sketchy" information!!!!


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## redneckmedic (Jun 20, 2013)

To you or from you?

 Replacing an item sent to you is manageable if its a package for a customer could be almost devastating.


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## terryf (Jun 20, 2013)

Hopefully there will be a few Benjamins attached to that letter Ed!!


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## Scruffy (Jun 20, 2013)

*Ed... really no*

problem.  It was just a package of money from the House of Millions Sweepstakes.


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## ed4copies (Jun 20, 2013)

redneckmedic said:


> To you or from you?
> 
> Replacing an item sent to you is manageable if its a package for a customer could be almost devastating.



Although she did not say, we are assuming "from" us.


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## Smitty37 (Jun 20, 2013)

ed4copies said:


> redneckmedic said:
> 
> 
> > To you or from you?
> ...


 I got a package via UPS yesterday....dropped it in front of the garage door - didn't even ring the bell (we happened to be home eating dinner at the time so we know they didn't ring).  Fortunately my wife heard the truck and thought it might have stopped so we went outside to look sure enough the package was there.  I think UPS service has definately declined over the past 18 months or so.


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## brownsfn2 (Jun 20, 2013)

Whew.  I just checked.  I think mine was sent USPS.  

Hope they make it right for you!


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## ssajn (Jun 20, 2013)

Years ago I shot in a pistol match and took first place. I was suppose to receive a trophy shipped by UPS. The package never arrived.

I found it 5 months later in my Weber. They must have delivered it while we were at work but never notified me it was delivered and where it was.

They weren't very good then either.


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## Atherton Pens (Jun 20, 2013)

Maybe it was a package with several bottles of PR ink and it left a very large stain on the floor of the truck!


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## longbeard (Jun 20, 2013)

My luck, probably mine Ed.:frown: Nope, just checked my e-mail, mine is coming usps.:biggrin:


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## tbroye (Jun 21, 2013)

Mine got here this afternoon, Thanks for Freebee Yipees.


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## nanosec12 (Jun 21, 2013)

Smitty37 said:


> ed4copies said:
> 
> 
> > redneckmedic said:
> ...


 
I had one dropped off the other day, right at the front door (which was open), with nothing to tell us they stopped by (other than the package)...no knock, no ring, Nothing

and here I was just thinking it was a New England thing for the delivery people to be rude and inconsiderate, I guess its nationwide afterall


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## Waluy (Jun 21, 2013)

And they are fairly lazy a lot of the times when they drop off at my house, I have a custom made mail box big enough for up to a 20"x20"x20" box with a lid to keep rain out and a sign on it that reads PARCEL BOX and the will still just set it at end of the driveway (by the house at least) its only another four feet to the parcel box. I have had several things ruined because they left them out in the rain.


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## mikespenturningz (Jun 21, 2013)

You know as UPS and all of the other shippers expect more and more out of less people service will go down and not because the drivers want it to go down but because they are so hurried.


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## ssajn (Jun 21, 2013)

I've had the same UPS guy now for several years. Due to a claim I had with them years ago I must now sign for everything. If I'm not home or don't answer the doorbell because I'm in the shop Charles will call my cell to let me know I have a package. He's even flagged me down if he see's me on the road.

I finally got a good one.


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## TellicoTurning (Jun 21, 2013)

Even the USPS can do in a package... I sent off a set of 6 wine glasses on Bloodwood stems to a client that he was buying for his anniversary...   I packed in an oversized bow with double wrapping around the glasses and every peanut I could find in my garage and workshop...he got half of them.  He's a great guy, said my packing was well done, but that the package has some "krinkles" in it and I know it was brand new box right out of the package.... fortunately it was insured and he's still happy and wants me to remake and reship the three broken glasses... fun now will be to find the globes... they were really nice set I picked up at a Ross for Less.


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## Joe S. (Jun 21, 2013)

Wow, I was worried that it was mine untill I remembered I chose USPS, but it's not like they don't have any shipping horror stories either... Hopefully the unlucky customer understands you had nothing to do with it breaking...


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## Monty (Jun 21, 2013)

TellicoTurning said:


> Even the USPS can do in a package... I sent off a set of 6 wine glasses on Bloodwood stems to a client that he was buying for his anniversary...   I packed in an oversized *bow* with double wrapping around the glasses and every peanut I could find in my garage and workshop...he got half of them.  He's a great guy, said my packing was well done, but that the package has some "krinkles" in it and I know it was brand new box right out of the package.... fortunately it was insured and he's still happy and wants me to remake and reship the three broken glasses... fun now will be to find the globes... they were really nice set I picked up at a Ross for Less.


There in lies the problem. You should have used an over sized box, not a bow. :biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:


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## ed4copies (Jun 21, 2013)

Monty said:


> TellicoTurning said:
> 
> 
> > Even the USPS can do in a package... I sent off a set of 6 wine glasses on Bloodwood stems to a client that he was buying for his anniversary...   I packed in an oversized *bow* with double wrapping around the glasses and every peanut I could find in my garage and workshop...he got half of them.  He's a great guy, said my packing was well done, but that the package has some "krinkles" in it and I know it was brand new box right out of the package.... fortunately it was insured and he's still happy and wants me to remake and reship the three broken glasses... fun now will be to find the globes... they were really nice set I picked up at a Ross for Less.
> ...


Every gift needs a nice BOW, Mannie!!!


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## jsolie (Jun 21, 2013)

ssajn said:


> I've had the same UPS guy now for several years. Due to a claim I had with them years ago I must now sign for everything. If I'm not home or don't answer the doorbell because I'm in the shop Charles will call my cell to let me know I have a package. He's even flagged me down if he see's me on the road.
> 
> I finally got a good one.



I'm sure the continued extra mile could be encouraged by giving him or "letting him find" a pen.  Goodness knows I've managed to get all sorts of above and beyond service over the years with small gestures like that.


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## Smitty37 (Jun 21, 2013)

You know, I have found that our friends at Dayacom pack in the strongest cardboard boxes I've ever seen.  They are really good boxes.


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## SerenityWoodWorks (Jun 21, 2013)

The advantages of having a hot wife, the UPS, USPS and all other deliveries are made to our door, sometimes they even ask for a signature even when its not required.


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## ed4copies (Jun 21, 2013)

An hour and 15 minutes on the phone and I now know what happened (kinda)!

Seems there was a fire that destroyed quite a lot of merchandise in shipment.  Happened on the 14th!  So, UPS knew NONE of that merchandise was going to go where it was destined, so did they start calling shippers???   Nope
Sending out emails???  Nope

Started drafting a letter that would go out two days later, snail mail.  All the customers expecting packages would get NO notice, the senders would receive notice a few days later (making the total time from the time the package was placed for shipment a couple days more than a week).  

After over an hour on the phone (most spent fighting their automated answering devices),  they have agreed to pick up the replacement package Monday and get it to Texas on Tuesday (UPS is providing the label at no cost to me).  So the customer will receive on the 25th the package that was sent on the 8th.

They are very sorry (all their people told me that several times).  But, as we all know, the customer will not remember UPS screwed up, they will remember Exotics did not deliver.

I will be looking up FedEx on Monday.  

As many on this forum have said, we all make mistakes.   HOW WE SOLVE those mistakes tells the customer how important they really are.  The UPS employees are fine people, but their management did a HORRIBLE job---but managers will still receive their bonuses, I'd bet!!

Ed


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## turncrazy43 (Jun 21, 2013)

I guess Big Brown is to big to care anymore.


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## walshjp17 (Jun 21, 2013)

ed4copies said:


> ---but managers will still receive their bonuses, I'd bet!!
> 
> Ed



You betcha!  Those guys don't belong to the union!


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## Sandy H. (Jun 21, 2013)

ed4copies said:


> [snip]
> I will be looking up FedEx on Monday.
> [snip]


 
Well, recently we had an interesting experience with Fedex. My wife ordered a large item which happened to ship Fedex. It wasn't heavy for its size, but it was bulky. It had obviously been mangled a bit and left at the garage (no knock etc). She opened it and the shipper had included multiple items in this large box and none of those boxes looked bad. Sure enough, our contents were fine.

But, while unpacking, she came out to the shop with a very nicely turned stainless steel widget that was about 4" long x 2" dia with all kinds of features, cross drilling a threaded end etc. She asked 'What do you think I need 30 of these for?' hoping that I would know what this had to do with the swimming pool (i.e. the stuff she had ordered). I immediately knew there was some issue, because nothing mass produced for the lowest bottom dollar includes such an intricate widget!

We went back to the box and sure enough, it was addressed to a different company in a different part of the state. It was INSIDE our large box, which upon inspection had been retaped!

So, I suggest she calls the owner or supplier, tells them the issue and lets them figure out how to handle it. She asks why we don't just call Fedex. OK, she's smarter than I am (obviously) and she calls Fedex who gets the tracking information and says it will be picked up the next business day, sorry for the inconvenience etc. Problem solved.

Except they didn't pick it up! Neither she nor I knew that, because we rarely go in the front door and weren't expecting any other packages. Next time I checked for an expected package, I saw it was still there, around 3 weeks later.

I called Fedex and went through it all again and they saw the previous call, scheduled pickup etc. The said they'd get it Monday, sorry for the inconvenience etc. The part that got me was when the Fedex guy saw that there had been no claim from either the shipper or customer, the urgency of the call really changed to almost a non-issue sort of thing.

So, in general I've had good luck with most shipping companies, but I thought it very strange that this box of somewhat expensive looking items arrived and stayed with us for so long. I think unfortunate things just happen from time to time. . . 

Sandy.


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## Kinger (Jun 21, 2013)

Im dealing with ups right now going on 3 weeks for a package that was suppose to be overnighted with gaurenteed delivery by 11am the next day had a lot of personal and finanancial info in it some of which can not be replaced,  cost 164 dollars to ship it had the tracer to where they could check and see exactly where its at anytime and boom it disappeared according to the office it was dropped off at it left there but never made it to its destination and according to which office I talk to either it left or it never made it past being paid for,  and after all this time they finally called me back and offered me 100 dollars for my loss told them to **** off that didn't even cover the cost that was paid to ship it


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## Joe S. (Jun 21, 2013)

It's about to get real.


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## Joe S. (Jun 21, 2013)

UPS and Fedex are joining companies, they're calling it FedUp.


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## Wood Butcher (Jun 21, 2013)

Good luck getting anything settled on a UPS loss.  
Several years ago, on Ebay, I sold a leaded stained glass panel framed in buckeye that I made to a fellow in Arizona.  It was a large panel depicting an Indian maiden with a child, very involved and pretty expensive.  Being a woodworker I decided to package it myself in preparation for shipping.  I crated it.  I used 1/2" plywood and 1 x 3 wood stock and 1" foam insulation to pad and protect it, it was solid.  I paid extra because of the weight and for extra insurance of $500.  I took it to the UPS store and the manager wrote it up and collected the money and said nothing about the "crate".  Fast forward two weeks; UPS notifies me that the "package" was damaged beyond recovery.  They told me it was pierced by a lift truck and the crate was destroyed.  Seriously, a lift truck? Why?  They disallowed the insurance because, "You packaged it yourself instead of us doing it so it is not covered."  I fought and fought but but was told that unless I retained an attorney and took it to court (read several years of inaction) nothing would be done.  I was out the shipping cost, the insurance cost, the panel (I refunded the buyer's payment) and a bunch of lumber and time.  I have wondered if it's hanging in someone's home somewhere.
I'm just sayin', don't hold your breath.
WB


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## crabcreekind (Jun 22, 2013)

Ed, I do a lot of shipping of car parts on ebay. I have used to ship UPS for larger items that could not go USPS. I shipped 2 bug shields (the things that go on the front of your car, flimsy plastic). The first one I did not wrap with a whole bunch of packing stuff because it was shipped like that to the dealership. And it was not broken. So I figured it was fine. WRONG. They broke it in half. BUT UPS HAS AN EXCELLENT CLAIM SERVICE! I got my money back super easy, it did take a while. The next bug shield I packed like a rock. I probably put 5 lbs of newspaper in the box so it could not move around. AND THEY STILL broke it! I dont even know how. But I did get my money back. And I haven't shipped UPS since. My friend worked at UPS and he said they don't care about handling any of your packages, so you guys should not get upset about them dropping it on your porch. Because they throw them 20-30 feet into trucks and on the floor. They really don't care they just have to get them into the trucks as fast a as possible. I use fedex for larger things now and It is cheaper,faster,and they haven't broken anything.


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## sbwertz (Jun 22, 2013)

Years ago I managed a restaurant in a large mall.  I used to watch the UPS truck unload deliveries for the mall out by the employee entrance.  He would stand in the back of the truck and THROW the packages out of the truck onto the ground.  Every day.


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## dogcatcher (Jun 22, 2013)

Any package sent by any shipper, including USPS, UPS, FedEx, and commercial trucking needs to be packed to withstand a 30 foot fall.  Having a 70 pound package dropped on it, getting rain soaked for 30 minutes, and being played with a 2000 pound gorilla.  Packages are accepted by a human and delivered by a human, but in between they can and are handled by machines, conveyor belts, fork lifts etc., none of which can read.  If your package falls n the hamper first, the next one might be a box of bricks that will crush most packages, yours better be packed to withstand the weight.


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## Brooks803 (Jun 22, 2013)

My old roommate would work for UPS during the holidays and the stories he told me made me never want to use UPS. FRAGILE only means "Hey watch this hit the wall!". They had competitions on how hard and far the can throw boxes.


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## TellicoTurning (Jun 22, 2013)

Brooks803 said:


> My old roommate would work for UPS during the holidays and the stories he told me made me never want to use UPS. FRAGILE only means "Hey watch this hit the wall!". They had competitions on how hard and far the can throw boxes.




No No.... when I worked for the airlines and handled the ups & post office accounts, the general meaning of "Fragile" was ..."DO NOT DROP OR THROW OVER 20 FEET."  :biggrin::biggrin:


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## ed4copies (Jun 22, 2013)

In the end analysis, we found out UPS determined that CA glue would burn (along with many other items they were hauling).

Did not get any specifics except "consumed by fire".


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## edstreet (Jun 25, 2013)

ed4copies said:


> In the end analysis, we found out UPS determined that CA glue would burn (along with many other items they were hauling).
> 
> Did not get any specifics except "consumed by fire".



Few things worth noting here.

CA is indeed flammable, flash point is around 175F and up it does vary greatly.  Boiling point is 300F.

It is also certified to be shipped via air transport, hazzard class/division 9.  Under 500ml is unregulated by air transport and may be shipped unrestricted.


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## TellicoTurning (Jun 26, 2013)

edstreet said:


> ed4copies said:
> 
> 
> > In the end analysis, we found out UPS determined that CA glue would burn (along with many other items they were hauling).
> ...



I've forgotten all the details now that I've been out of the business for a few years, but CFR49 is the regulatory reference for shipping hazmats in the U.S.... it regulates both air and truck hazmat transport.

For a few years I worked for a company that specialized in hazmat shipments... once had a shipment of 50,000 lbs of oilfield explosives on a flight to Singapore (don't know why Singapore as I don't think there's oil there??)  Also once had a pair of distress flare cartridges in a shipment to Singapore on the same airlines just different flight...even though the airline tariffs said the shipment was okay, Singapore government refused entry and destroyed the package on arrival... cost me the price of a new package of cartridges (about $6) plus I had to arrange to meet the ship in Egypt - their next port of call - the cartridges flew into Cairo, then I had to arrange special police escort from the airport to the port of Alexandria to meet the ship....very expensive proposition...  by some maritime law the ship could not leave port again without the cartridges... Regulations don't always make sense... 

Also once had a can of black powder shipped via truck from Houston to Salt Lake... the can was the size of a 3# coffee can and cost me $1500 to ship it and it could not be inside of the truck?? It was suspended on the back end of the trailer....


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