Fed Ex Shady doings.
Zetsu
Posts: 186
How would you feel if you paid to send something though Fed Ex, a distance you can drive in 8 hours and it took them 4 days, because the decided to offload your package though USPS.
How can they even do that ? If i pay someone to ship something I expect them to ship it, not give it to someone else to ship it, not to even mention the amount of time they are taking. Always going to use UPS for now on after this..
How can they even do that ? If i pay someone to ship something I expect them to ship it, not give it to someone else to ship it, not to even mention the amount of time they are taking. Always going to use UPS for now on after this..
Comments
I've seen that with FEDEX and I think UPS may do it as well.
I think they have a shipping option for packages under a certain size and weight where they have an agreement with the USPS to do the "last mile".
Makes sense if done correctly, why drive a package car to a delivery when the USPS goes there everyday anyway.
C.W.
Actually I should of just drove it down there, it would of been less of a pain then this.
Bottom line, it could have been the sender and have nothing to do with FedEx at all.
EDIT: after re-reading your post, I realized that you were the sender, in which case it doesn't make sense that it would move to an alternative carrier ... Hmmm don't know.
FEDEX comes to the door and leaves a note, never the package. I always have to drive to the office to get it myself.
USPS: When the alternate carrier does my street, small packages fall to the bottom of the basket, and don't get dropped off. I have to stalk the letter carrier in parking lot when they return to the office if I even want to see my package alive.
Except for the one driver that does the above, UPS is usually the best, FEDEX is consistently a pain, and the post office is excruciating to deal with the people that "work" there.
If you used FedEx ground service I've always been told it was a 4 day service although they sometimes get there faster. Did you pay for a faster service? If so then you have a complaint with FedEx. Otherwise if the package got safely to the destination within the time promised by the shipper for the type of shipment you paid for then what is the problem? Even if it gets handled off to the post office for the last bit (I've seen multiple carriers do this) it should still be trackable by the main carriers site and they are responsible for it getting there.
How would I feel? As long as the package gets there by the time it was promised and it good condition I'm ok with it.
In general, our service from all three is very good. USPS 3 day works very well for me. I can order from Parallax on early Friday and get it on Monday (usually).
Our biggest problem is all of them not using well covered front porch if the weather is dodgy and instead leaving things at the poorly covered side door. I hate wet mail and packages!! After several calls to several supervisors at UPS, USPS and Fed Ex, they have figured it out.....for the most part.
http://blog.uspsoig.gov/index.php/tag/last-mile-strategy/
C.W.
UPS has been good with the same driver for this area most of the time. He's careful about where the packages are left and I've never come to the door to find a note left.
FEDEX has been a mixed experience. They're likely to leave a note (and have driven off) if too many seconds have passed since they've rung the doorbell or knocked. I tend to avoid them if possible as well as other delivery services
Fedex and UPS have always left items at door, I think the $2.50 residential address surge charge is actually a insurance.
As I think 2% of those packed are probably reported lost, but they calculated the risk and time saved and they still make out ahead
I am a bit shocked to find out Fed Ex is off-loading to the USPS.
On the other hand, my last delivered purchase was supposed to be Fed Ex from Shenzhen, China and it came via a completely different very obscure delivery service. I was expecting an email and what I got was a cellular phone call in Chinese that the package was on its way and the delivery would arrive 'in a little while". After waiting two hours I went to dinner and just after I ordered, the truck driver called me to ask where was I. I had to dash home to receive the package. and then dash back to the restaurant to get my meal.
Before that, I had an order from Parallax delivered via UPS and they just could not commit to an accurate time. They first said afternoon and came at 10 am in the morning and posted a missed delivery notice. This went on for 4 days with threats that the package would return to the USA due to failed delivery. It seems they only have an office in Taipei, so the package either sits on a truck or is returned for southern Taiwan.
At this point, I am very wary of ordering anything delivered ... unless it is for me to pick up at my local 7-11. This is one of the nicer services in Taiwan as I don't have to sit home and 7-11 will also handle COD.
There was a time when you ordering something shipped, it was considered a contractual agreement that they use the shipper you specified and that the shipping was at cost. But these days, all sorts of abuses are happening. In the end, people are just going to buy less.
It would be wonderful in the USA if local post offices could take over 'will call' deliveries of small packages. People wouldn't have to wait for hours on end for a truck to show up to their home, the drivers would be happy, and the post office could collect a fee. As it is the system is just frustrating everyone and it is way too expensive.
Since I don't have a mail receptacle, USPS packages addressed to my street address get rerouted by the local staff to my PO box. They wouldn't have to do that and could just return to sender, but they go the extra mile. Plus, to a person, they're always helpful and friendly at the post office.
My UPS driver usually takes time to chat and even gave me his cellphone number so I can call him when I need a driver signature for outgoing packages and can't drop them off at the local UPS Store.
The two FedEx (air) drivers are consistently good as well, but I don't get much by FedEx except international shipments. FedEx (ground) is another matter. The carriers are non-local contractors -- never see the same one twice -- and if they get to the end of the day with stuff in their truck, they will report "attempted; no one home" in tracking.
On a more global scale, USPS is surprisingly good and inexpensive. I've resorted to having small DigiKey shipments sent by Priority mail since it's cheaper and days faster than UPS ground. Their tracking sucks, though, so I still rely upon UPS for high-value shipments.
UPS has been consistenly reliable, with accurate and up-to-the-minute tracking. They're expensive, though, and some stuff I've sent to areas with snow and ice get delivered late, where I think USPS and FedEx would make an extra effort.
FedEx International is amazing, considering that everything has to go through their hub and still gets here in a day. But it's breathtakingly expensive. 'Seems every package I receive that way requires a phone call to them to question the shipping charges and/or customs duty.
Then there's Hong Kong Post. How stuff can come from China that way for free is an abiding mystery to me.
-Phil
-Tor
They eat the cost, I noticed that in Corporate America sending something cheaply reflects on the company being cheap too.
But I wished TI saved the money and sponsor some electronics contests instead.
-Phil
You gotta love a Chinese Ebay seller (Ebay gets a cut) using Amazon for fulfillment (Amazon gets a cut), offering crazy low prices and FREE SHIPPING!! How do they do it??
Its setting in Dallas with out moving for two days, that's the only way.
I get stuff sent to me from Dallas via UPS all the time and its never more then 3 business days.
So yeah when Fed ex is like 7 to 11 business days, and they are not even going to deliver it, i feel a little burned.
@why does it matter who actually delivers it.
If I rent a house out to you, then I find out you are subletting it to your friend.... I'ma be somewhat mad....
"You gotta love a Chinese Ebay seller (Ebay gets a cut) using Amazon for fulfillment (Amazon gets a cut), offering crazy low prices and FREE SHIPPING!! How do they do it?? " ... It's purely a numbers game. Take for example: It cost's $14 to make 50 units... suppose each unit sells for $4, and after shipping cost etc. the seller is only making $1.50 per unit out of the $4 that it sold for ... They only need to sell 10 units to come out even, everything after that is pure profit ... So at that point they could drop the price from $4 to $2.75 offering the same free shipping deal and still make 25 cents profit on every unit sold.
I am more than willing to wait if the shipping costs come way down. As it is, if I buy a book from the USA or an item from Parallax, shipping can easily be 50% of the cost unless I buy quite a bit.
The thing is... nobody in the 'logistics business' wants to service significantly lower costs for slower service. It seems as if they all are trying to subsidise the airplane industries. If you live closed enough for trucking instead, the US Postal Service used to be quite adequate.
There is a lot not to live about 'shipping & handling' as it has no longer been billed to the customer at cost. It has become a profit center and in many cases I find that the product is selling for next to nothing, but the shipping and handling are huge. This is what is known as a 'bait and switch' advertising practise. I can order a battery for my notebook for as little as $50USD or as much at $125, but when shipping and handling is added in, the cost becomes about the same.
To add to this absurdity, I purchase a new battery for my notebook from a Netherlands outfit as they were the only one that would accept a US credit card and ship to Taiwan. What happened to their 'fast shipping'? It took two weeks as the product originated out of Singapore, went to Switzerland, and then to Hong Kong, and finally Taiwan.
In other words, the product was never in inventory in the Neitherlands and rather than traveling directly from Singapore to Taiwan, it decided to log up a few frequent flier miles.
It is no wonder we have global warming with delivery services like these.
I do NOT mind waiting. But I do mind that there is a lack of commitment to timeline, to communication, and to clear cut costs. If a business wants customers, show some respect for the customer's needs. Do not try to always upsize toward unwanted costs.
It seems to me that getting your package in four days is good service from FedEx, regardless of who did the final delivery. You didn't state that you shipped it overnight or second day, so getting your package in four days sounds like great service on the part of FedEx. When I have something shipped to me economy and I get it in four days, I feel great. I'm not trying to be rude here, but I just don't see what your problem is with their service. You got your package quickly and I assume in good condition. And I don't see how shipping companies working together to get you your package in a reasonable amount of time and at a low cost is "Shady doings". I guess that I just don't understand your problem.
Jim...
Beau: It sounds quite reasonable as you explain it. Can you please talk the rest of the world into following suit?
I'm pretty sure Chevy has broken even on manufacturing Camaros by now. I'll be happy to pay them "their manufacturing cost" plus 25 cents (oh heck, 25 DOLLARS) pure profit for them!
lol ... as you would guess, it's completely optional to the seller... even raising the price if your the only 'player' in town. It all boils down to Volume/Demand and playing the numbers game.
BTW) free shipping is never free, the seller wraps it into the product making it appealing to the buyer... it's the same trick as marking something at $19.95 as opposed to $20 ... p[psychologically $19.95 seems like a much more better deal than only a nickel.
As far as Chevy goes, that would be fine if they only made a certain number of cars, but that's not the case... cars are still rolling out of the assembly line (to my knowledge) which means YOU the consumer must pay for the overhead in materials, staff to build the cars, etc. ... so they won't drop it to a quarter. But looking at other products from a manufacturer... typically when something is phased out for something new, the 'numbers game' allows the remaining stock of that particular item to go out at a much lower, sometimes unreasonably low, price. <- This assumes that in the lifetime of the product it paid for itself at some point in time.
Board arrived today, just 4 days after buying from Ebay China seller http://www.ebay.com/sch/trade_spotting/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=&_trksid=p2050430 , shipped from Las Vegas, NV! Some of his items do say "US stock".
Not bad in terms of price. Of course, a year or two from now, Amazon and EBay will be indighted for dumping Chinese goods at below cost as American suppliers just can't compete. But that's all part of the game, right?
Nevada warehouse? A state with no income tax and no inventory tax....
This all keeps coming back to the same theme - big companies survive and prosper by ignoring or bending rules and customs to fit themselves.
Ray