UPS

[chris319]

I United Parcel Service.

In the past I've ordered gear off the web and had it shipped via humble ol' USPS Priority Mail on a Friday, and the package was literally at my doorstep the following Monday.

Recently I ordered something and it was shipped via UPS on May 5 for estimated delivery on May 14 -- NINE days! It doesn't take that long to get from Atlanta to Los Angeles even if you walk! The item will arrive with signature required for delivery while I'm at work, earning a salary to pay for this stuff. UPS will leave a yellow slip saying they'll be back the following day at the same time while I'm at work, and the day after that, for a total of three delivery attempts. Alternatively, I can put the package on will call, meaning I go to the UPS depot to pick it up. The last time I tried this the driver had left the depot with my package in his truck so it wasn't available for pickup! I can't have the package delivered to a "UPS Store" (I've asked) and the central depot keeps banker's hours, with no Saturday service. Hmmm, the post office is open Saturdays.

Things are upside-down in this world when the U.S. Postal Service -- "snail mail" -- provides better service than a commercial competitor.

[grantlandau]

search usps, ups and fed-ex and you'll get complaints for all of em.

take your pick and bend over.

[slaves666]

I just got hit with a $108 bill on a $340 item from ebay, USA to Canada.......He stated USPS, but then sent it UPS......I'd take 9 days over $108.

[voicegenius]

Originally Posted by grantlandau

search usps, ups and fed-ex and you'll get complaints for all of em.

take your pick and bend over.

With no lube...

[iluvatar]

Originally Posted by chris319

I United Parcel Service.

In the past I've ordered gear off the web and had it shipped via humble ol' USPS Priority Mail on a Friday, and the package was literally at my doorstep the following Monday.

Recently I ordered something and it was shipped via UPS on May 5 for estimated delivery on May 14 -- NINE days!

That's only 7 business days. Where is it coming from? I thought the max estimated shipping time within the US was 6 business days, with most places being 5 and under.

The item will arrive with signature required for delivery while I'm at work, earning a salary to pay for this stuff. UPS will leave a yellow slip saying they'll be back the following day at the same time while I'm at work, and the day after that, for a total of three delivery attempts.

Take that up with the company who shipped it to you. In the UPS shipping software, delivery confirmation and signatures are options that actually cost the shipping company extra money. If you want it left on your porch, tell them to ship it "No Signature Required" or you could do like I do and have it shipped to your office.

When I ship expensive gear, I always ship it insured w/ delivery confirmation and signature required, because if something happens and the customer doesn't get the package (or it's broken), it's my responsibility to refund his money. If I don't take out the necessary insurance w/ UPS, what recourse do I have? I'd rather pay the extra $3 and not have to worry about being out a couple grand.

-Dan.

[ilovesound]

Lets not even start on UPS ... I bought a rack mount synth from one of the guys on here. He sent it UPS from USA to Canada ... I tracked it the whole time. Went through customs, and even made it out for delivery on the truck. Never shows up at my door. I call UPS, and they say the item was damaged while on the truck out for delivery etc ... I never did get the synth (which was $300USD) but did get a customs/brokerage letter from UPS saying I owed that $100+ and better pay.

I think the guy on the truck stole the item and just said it got dropped. I called UPS many times asking if I could come evaluate the item to see if it was damaged etc ... and that was never possible.

Now I only ship with the post office, and that seems to be working fine

[chris319]

Take that up with the company who shipped it to you. In the UPS shipping software, delivery confirmation and signatures are options that actually cost the shipping company extra money. If you want it left on your porch, tell them to ship it "No Signature Required" or you could do like I do and have it shipped to your office.

I recently did business with, I think, onlinemetals.com. As I was checking out the shipping options I noticed that if I chose UPS I could select to have it shipped with or without signature required. This is the only online vendor I have ever seen do it this way and it is brilliant. In the end, though, I had it shipped US Postal Service at it was literally waiting for me at my front door just days later.

I do business with FullCompass and I have told them in no uncertain terms that they need to improve their shipping options if they want any more of my business.

It appears that no longer can you go to the UPS web site and change your shipping options (but they haven't updated their web site to reflect this change). Instead, when you get a so-called "InfoNotice" there is a secret phone number (800-833-9943) to have the shipment placed on will call (if you're lucky). If you use the regular UPS contact number (800-742-5877) or the UPS web site, it is not possible to put a shipment on will call (it used to be possible on the web site until just recently).

Late last year I bought some audio gear on ebay. The seller was totally honest but the delivery was "lost" by FedEx (like a package can suddenly go "poof" and evaporate). I told a friend who has a friend who works for FedEx. My friend told me "lost = stolen". The seller collected the $100 insurance money and gave me a full refund. I just hope there is a FedEx driver somewhere who collects microphones and is enjoying his vintage Altec 633A.

[iluvatar]

Originally Posted by chris319

I recently did business with, I think, onlinemetals.com. As I was checking out the shipping options I noticed that if I chose UPS I could select to have it shipped with or without signature required. This is the only online vendor I have ever seen do it this way and it is brilliant. In the end, though, I had it shipped US Postal Service at it was literally waiting for me at my front door just days later.

While most companies don't put it on the web site, I'd bet you could place the order over the phone and ask them to drop the signature. Other places like Amazon probably don't want you to require a signature, because it costs them money and an extra dollar per package * a gazillion packages = $$$

It appears that no longer can you go to the UPS web site and change your shipping options (but they haven't updated their web site to reflect this change). Instead, when you get a so-called "InfoNotice" there is a secret phone number (800-833-9943) to have the shipment placed on will call (if you're lucky). If you use the regular UPS contact number (800-742-5877) or the UPS web site, it is not possible to put a shipment on will call (it used to be possible on the web site until just recently).

It's kind of a bitch from the business/shipper's end, too. Even if the driver has literally just pulled out of your parking lot when you call them, they'll hit you for $10 to change anything about the shipment, be it an address, shipping method, whatever.

-Dan.

[chris319]

Here is what the guy at the UPS depot told me when I picked up my gear.

Used to be that, if a shipment was sent with no signature required, they would make three delivery attempts and then hold it for five business days, then send it back to the shipper. No more. Now after three delivery attempts it goes immediately back to the shipper. No more five-day hold. Now they only do that with shipments sent with signature required. So you can take advantage of the five-day hold by having it sent signature required, or have it sent no signature required and they will either drop it off at your doorstep or leave you an InfoNotice after the first delivery attempt, in which case you can immediately call the secret number and have it put on will call right away and go down to the depot and pick it up. There is no charge for changing the delivery method.

I just got a Shure stereo bar and a third KSM109 on closeout from FullCompass which they sent no signature required, and it was waiting for me at my front door when I got home from work (I live in a condo building). So now I am hap-hap-happy dealing with FullCompass again

[AllAboutTone]

Originally Posted by chris319

Recently I ordered something and it was shipped via UPS on May 5 for estimated delivery on May 14 -- NINE days! It doesn't take that long to get from Atlanta to Los Angeles even if you walk!
Things are upside-down in this world when the U.S. Postal Service -- "snail mail" -- provides better service than a commercial competitor.

I'm not a fan of UPS but this time frame sounds correct.
1. you ordered on the 5th, they shipped it on the 6th
2. It takes 6 days UPS Atl to Ca.
3. Take away the 2 day weekend.
4. Sounds like they were 1 day late.

[Dean Roddey]

The whole thing with the UPS store is joke. They have absolutely nothing to do with UPS other than that the UPS guy stops buy there to pick stuff up every day, which they will do at any business. They are run buy other people, and so they don't want to do things that would be just completely obvious if they were actually part of UPS. They won't give you a receipt if you drop off a pre-paid package, because of course then you aren't paying them.

On the UPS issue in general... I just sold a Distressor and Pearlman. I had to get a signature on the Pearlman because of the value. I'd handed him the Distressor, then I told him I need him to sign on the other one. He reaches over and balances the Distressor very precariously on the fence 4+ feet above the ground, and it's there wobbling.

I mean what kind of brain dead idiot would do that? Even if you are going to pee on the package once you get it back to the warehouse, you should at least have enough common sense to act like you give a crap in front the actual customer. They obviously don't train these people to do anything other than open the van door and walk to and from the customer's house.

[ProducerBoy]

A buddy of mine worked for the ebay store a while back. The ebay store shipped through UPS. After working there, he opted to never ship through UPS. They would toss guitars around (packed in a box, of course), drop boxes, etc... fragile means absolutely nothing to them. If it's broken, it disappears... into UPS.
Lame, over priced, and frustrating. I have had much better service with USPS, surprisingly.

[aaeronn]

I've got a couple to share

I bought a motormix control surface for my Kyma and luckily the sender packed it well. My place at the time required you to open a 6' solid wooden gate to get to the front door. When I got home, the package was sitting on the ground, inside the gate against the bottom edge right in the center - no way you could open the gate, put the package down and close the gate and have it sitting against the inside edge with 1" between the box and the gate - the driver simply chucked it over and left.

Another time I had a keyboard stand delivered. This time the driver opened the gate but just left it on the ground in the pouring rain - which had been coming down all day - didn't even bother to put it under the overhang covering the front door.

Same thing with a used Virus Ti Polar i bought and had shipped from a guitar center in So. Cal - I'm in north Cal. Just left it on the ground inside the gate. I have no idea how it survived shipping either - it was in a box 3x too big for it with loose newspaper and a few air packs thrown in - the virus was totally loose - no protection whatsoever.

I've had much better experience with USPS and Fedex. Get to know your driver if possible - at least you might get better last mile treatment.

[Claude G.]

Originally Posted by voicegenius

With no lube...

UPS SUCKS......but yor avatar is awesome!

[Enginearing]

UPS driver caught on film. [VIDEO]

come on now... surely you can't beat service like that?

[Stevil]

they just delivered my new speakers to the Indian casino up the street. after talking to 4 people, one of whom ditched me in the on hold maze, i finally got a human who sounded like they were going to straighten things out with the local office. then the local office called back a few minutes ago asking when they could pick up the packages.

[AllAboutTone]

.........

[aaeronn]

Had another UPS experience Friday and learned an important lesson.

I ordered a couple of nice didjeridoos from a shop in So. Cal. - luckily I was at home and watching the UPS tracking page the day they were to arrive. Just happened to refresh the page twice in 5 minutes and the second time it popped up as status : delivered to front door. Hmmm - no doorbell , which they usually ring at least once. Go look outside the front door - no packages. Hmmm. I step outside and there's the UPS truck down the street - great! - I run down to the truck....

Me: "Hi - do you have a delivery for <my address> ?"

UPS driver: Looks at his electronic clipboard - " Yep - left them at the front door" and points off in the opposite direction from where I live.

Me: "Umm - my address is over there" I say, pointing back the way I came from.

UPS driver: "Umm, err, ahh ... lemme see..." consults his clipboard again, scratches his head....."Let me go get those for you - I'll bring them right over".

Ack! A 1000$ delivery mistakenly left at someone else's front door with no signature required

Moral of the story - always require a signature, even if it means you have to go pick it up at the UPS depot if you miss it. If whomever he delivered them to decided they wanted a pair of nice didjs for themselves, I'd have been up the creek. Since the driver had them marked as delivered to my address, even though they were dropped at a totally different address, I would have had no recourse. I never really considered this scenario before - our neighborhood is totally residential, on a deserted cul de sac - we don't have random people wandering through, and about as quiet and safe as you can get.

If the dealer you order equipment from doesn't offer the "signature required" option on their web order page - phone them and place the order with that option.

[Sentinel]

Yeah, I hear ya. I just had a package delivered through UPS, and it took 11 days.

[kafka]

Originally Posted by chris319

Things are upside-down in this world when the U.S. Postal Service -- "snail mail" -- provides better service than a commercial competitor.

USPS is my preferred shipper lately, although their tracking system is bizarre and worthless. UPS is good for ground, but around the holidays they're hard to deal with. Can't stand FedEx Ground or Home Delivery in my neighborhood. Just completely worthless. FedEx Express is OK, but you really can't beat USPS Priority Mail for rush deliveries.

It's all very neighborhood specific. If you go to another neighborhood, it's completely different.

[Batchainpuller78]

Just on how goods are being handled in delivery in general.
I live across an electronics store that used to be my dads, I've seen packages being delivered day in day out by all kinds of company's or postal services (actually the postal service is the most kind with the packages) all the others literally throw things out or in or around in their truck, I've seen them throw 40" plasma tv's (in their package of course) on the loading dock of the truck from within the truck (I don't know how to call it, the back thing on the truck that goes up and down for easy loading)

I've seen them stack stuff so high circus artists would have had difficulty balancing it, and i've seen those towers of goods stacked crash down as well.
These are all the nice new goodies we buy in the stores...

Once I waited 2 months on an item, vintage item a Roland VP-330 vocoder, that was hilarious (not really) but it went something like me driving the people at company crazy calling again and again on the whereabouts of my package, they would connect me through 5 or 6 times within the company until they finally just connect me with Belgian customs office, the 4th time I arrived with my call at the customs office the guy flipped, said it was no practice of connecting people through to them and he was really annoyed with the company and said he'll check it out, a few days later it was there!