FEDEX dropped the ball!!!

kjonnnn wrote in post #14334739
Wait til the Teapublicans get rid of USPS, and Fedex and UPS has to handle their load.. you'll be really happy then.

Getting rid of a tax-money black hole? Sounds like a good idea.

Remember: The advantage of Express shipping is that they are able to lose the package on the first day!

Leave us not stray into the area of politics.

Poe wrote in post #14335962
Getting rid of a tax-money black hole? Sounds like a good idea.

That's the Misconception. Until 1971, mail delivery was handled by the Post Office Department, a Cabinet department in the federal government. Postal worker strikes prompted President Nixon to pass the Postal Reorganization Act in 1971, transforming it into the semi-independent agency we now know as the United States Postal Service. The USPS in its current form runs like a business, relies on postage for revenue and, for the most part, has not used taxpayer money since 1982, when postage stamps became “products” instead of forms of taxation. Taxpayer money is only used in some cases to pay for mailing voter materials to disabled and overseas Americans.

kjonnnn wrote in post #14341231
That's the Misconception. Until 1971, mail delivery was handled by the Post Office Department, a Cabinet department in the federal government. Postal worker strikes prompted President Nixon to pass the Postal Reorganization Act in 1971, transforming it into the semi-independent agency we now know as the United States Postal Service. The USPS in its current form runs like a business, relies on postage for revenue and, for the most part, has not used taxpayer money since 1982, when postage stamps became “products” instead of forms of taxation. Taxpayer money is only used in some cases to pay for mailing voter materials to disabled and overseas Americans.

Who do you think covers their budget shortfalls?

BTW, do you know why it is illegal to deliver first class mail? Because a private company in the 1840's started up a mail service that managed to turn a profit while providing better service at lower costs than the US government mail service. When the government lost their lawsuit against Mr. Spooner, they simply outlawed the delivery of first class mail. Lysander Spooner invented the concept of having home mail delivery, and did it for less than the Post Office, while turning a profit. In 1840 the cost to have a letter delivered from Ny to Mass. was 14 and 1/2 cents. By 1851 Mr. Spooner had driven that price down to three cents while still turning a profit and delivering it to peoples homes rather than the town post office. There is not a doubt in my mind that UPS and FedEx could easily compete with the USPS.

1840? Its 2012. If you think FEDEX or UPSA is going to have minimum postage of 50 cents.. thats funny ... When FEDEX took over kinkos prices almost tripled.

At the heart of the matter is a 2006 Congressional mandate put on the US Postal Service contained in the “Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006” to pre-fund healthcare benefits of future retirees, a 75 year liability over a 10 year period. No other agency or corporation is required to do this. This provision costs the Postal Service $5.5 billion a year.

http://www.cnbc.com …Postal_Service_​s_Finances

I had a 90 pound wood crate lost at UPS for 2 months (yes, two months). I had no idea it had been shipped, so I had no idea it was lost.

One day UPS called our shop and said "Are you ever going to come pick this crate up? It's been on our dock for months."

I asked why they did not just deliver it, but since it was only 10 minutes away, I said I would come get it.

When I got there, nobody could find it. Then knew from the # that it was last seen in the building, but it could not be found.

While discussing the problem with the supervisor on duty, a worker overheard and said "Are you talking about a 30x30x8" wood crate that weights a ton? That thing has been sitting on the dock forever! I'm surprised we did not return it to the shipper."

The worker returned from the warehouse with our crate on a dolly. It had a huge gash in the wood that apparently once held the address label and invoice pouch. There was no identifying information on the crate at all. They did not ask me to identify the contents, they just rolled it out to my truck.

Lessons learned:

1. ALWAYS put the address on more than one surface of the box, in case one address gets damaged. UPS said they do not open packages to look for address information.

2. NEVER ship a package without warning the receiving party that they have a package on the way.

vid1900 wrote in post #14344046
I had a 90 pound wood crate lost at UPS for 2 months (yes, two months). I had no idea it had been shipped, so I had no idea it was lost.

One day UPS called our shop and said "Are you ever going to come pick this crate up? It's been on our dock for months."

I asked why they did not just deliver it, but since it was only 10 minutes away, I said I would come get it.

When I got there, nobody could find it. Then knew from the # that it was last seen in the building, but it could not be found.

While discussing the problem with the supervisor on duty, a worker overheard and said "Are you talking about a 30x30x8" wood crate that weights a ton? That thing has been sitting on the dock forever! I'm surprised we did not return it to the shipper."

The worker returned from the warehouse with our crate on a dolly. It had a huge gash in the wood that apparently once held the address label and invoice pouch. There was no identifying information on the crate at all. They did not ask me to identify the contents, they just rolled it out to my truck.

Lessons learned:

1. ALWAYS put the address on more than one surface of the box, in case one address gets damaged. UPS said they do not open packages to look for address information.

2. NEVER ship a package without warning the receiving party that they have a package on the way.

Similar thing happened to us. UPS lost a package in their Phoenix facility - we live in Phoenix! I kept calling - nothing. Seller filed a trace - trace came back that they could not find the package and seller should file for a claim. 4 weeks later the package shows up at our door - the label had gone missing - they finally opened the box and found our address on the invoice inside the box!

Back in 2007 I bought a used Pro 1 from MPG Photography (It is still cooking right along, thank you Matt). Matthew shipped UPS to the address I had given him. I tracked the package>out for delivery> delivered. I has been away from the house for a short time so I run to the front door, no camera.
I go back and check the tracking> delivered. Huh!
Then in a moment of dyslexic clarity I realized I had sent Matt the wrong address. My Bad. I check the porches of all my neighbors and talk to those at home. Still no camera.
I call the UPS trouble line and get someone on the east coast(Matt and I are in California). The help desk looks at the same computer screen I see and tells me, "The package was delivered as addressed." When I advise that was not possible because the address given is out in the middle of the cross street on the other side of the fence from the end of the cul-de-sac where I live and even Ace Ventura could not make such a mistake. "I'm sorry sir, the package was delivered as addressed." Jeez what a mindless dolt!
Okay, then give me the number of my local UPS center and I will call them and ask them to ask the driver where he delivered it. "Sir that will not be possible. The package was delivered as addressed."
Okay, then understand this. It could not possibly be delivered as addressed because that address does not exist! Either the driver dropped it off at his best guess address or he stole it and marked it delivered. Do you wan you nice you men in Brown talking to Men in Blue that have no sense of humor? You are giving me no other option than to report the theft to police. "Sir the package was delivered as addressed. In any event a claim will have to be filed by the shipper."

About that time a neighbor a couple of doors down call to say that he had found the package on his porch while on his way out and just returned to call the number on the package. Camera found.

Moral, the Boys in Brown are often pushed hard and do not take the time to call the numbers on the label if there is an address problem. The UPS help desk is anything but.

Everything nowadays is all speed speed speed so the faster they get their packages out the better as far as corporate goes. Dispatch doesn't care if the address makes no sense.

Yup. A long time friend of mine retired from UPS. He used to stop and actually talk to his customers Can you imagine that today?

CameraMan wrote in post #14321857
Sometimes FedEx transfers the package to the Post Office... How nice. Pay FedEx to have them send it to the Post Office...

I had this happen to me with a FedEx shipment. Took several days after they transferred it to the USPS for me to get it even though they transferred it in the nearby major city.

I had a fairly expensive lens (70-200 IS II) shipped 2-day from a vendor in NYC (can't recall if Fedex or UPS was the carrier). It made it all the way to Seattle (where it was supposed to be delivered) then suddenly it was tracked as being in Bellevue. It passed its delivery date by a couple days. I put a trace on it, and I called the vendor and they said they would put a trace on it. I called the vendor again 2 business days (4 real days) later and they hadn't heard anything from the carrier, just like me. So they went ahead and shipped me another one and put in a request to with the carrier to have the original package returned to them. I got my lens 2 days later, and about 10 days later the vendor got the original lens back.

One thing to always remember, whether selling or purchasing something online, is that the SELLER is responsible for the product until it is delivered to the purchaser. So in this case, if it never arrives or turns out to have been destroyed in shipping, the seller is responsible for replacing the camera or returning your money, in full.

I sell my old lenses on Amazon and I always fully insure them so if something goes wrong I end up losing nothing but the cost of insurance. It is entirely worth it when shipping something worth hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars.

I purchase everything using my American Express. Adds a year to the warranty plus accidental damage/theft coverage for 90 days and 2% cash back. When there is a problem receiving the product they step in quickly.

This thread reminds me of an incident a guy I know had in Australia (I think it was FedEx but I can't say for sure).

He was on the autocross circuit there and the company was one of his sponsors. Part of the sponsorship included shipping the car around from race to race. He had just finished a race and flew back home and a few days later he gets a call saying his car had "been misplaced"...

They eventually found the car sitting in a depot, but seriously???

Wait, wait, wait....you paid how much for this crate of wood? And after you paid, you don't expect a shipment yourself that someone had to tell you it is shipped? After 10 days...20 days...59 days, you didn't call the seller and say "hey, where is my wood"?? You must have too much money to burn...no pun intended

vid1900 wrote in post #14344046
I had a 90 pound wood crate lost at UPS for 2 months (yes, two months). I had no idea it had been shipped, so I had no idea it was lost.

One day UPS called our shop and said "Are you ever going to come pick this crate up? It's been on our dock for months."

I asked why they did not just deliver it, but since it was only 10 minutes away, I said I would come get it.

When I got there, nobody could find it. Then knew from the # that it was last seen in the building, but it could not be found.

While discussing the problem with the supervisor on duty, a worker overheard and said "Are you talking about a 30x30x8" wood crate that weights a ton? That thing has been sitting on the dock forever! I'm surprised we did not return it to the shipper."

The worker returned from the warehouse with our crate on a dolly. It had a huge gash in the wood that apparently once held the address label and invoice pouch. There was no identifying information on the crate at all. They did not ask me to identify the contents, they just rolled it out to my truck.

Lessons learned:

1. ALWAYS put the address on more than one surface of the box, in case one address gets damaged. UPS said they do not open packages to look for address information.

2. NEVER ship a package without warning the receiving party that they have a package on the way.