UPS rant

[superdave]

Again UPS has screwed me over with a delivery. I pull up the tracking info and it says it has been sent to Paris, TN because the street address was missing. So I call them. Sure enough, the address was right there. So she said I could come pick it up in Paris between 2:30 and 6:30. Paris is a pretty good drive from here. About an hour or so. I told her no, you can deliver it today like you were supposed to. It isn't my problem that your drivers either can't read or don't care to do their job correctly. The last time I had experience with UPS they delivered to an address 2 blocks away even though everything on the label and the street signs were very clear. I told her Fed Ex and the post office don't have this problem and it wasn't by my choice that this was sent UPS. She didn't like that and said that someone would be calling me back by the end of the day.

So really, why is it so damn hard to read an address and deliver it? My house isn't in the boonies, nor are there a bunch of houses nearby for confusion. The number is very easy to read on the mailbox. Does UPS not have a policy that requires drivers to be able to read? Do they not understand that street numbers generally have a pattern of incrementation and that if you cross a county line that can change? Get a freaking GPS if you are that stupid. Better yet, quit and let someone who actually can read and does want to do the job take over.

I know there are probably some UPS employees on here and if I offend you, tough. Your company has not lived up to expectations on multiple occasions. If I ever have the choice for a delivery service I won't choose UPS.

Just got that phone call and it will be delivered Monday. Which means another WEEK of not being able to drive my Jeep because the only time I have to work on it is WEEKENDS. She said it was because our road can be either east or west and the driver was confused because a direction wasn't in the address. Really? If it ain't one it's the other, scooter. Call the home office and have them google it for ya. It isn't rocket science. Better yet, call the sender and ask for my phone number which they had on file when I made the purchase.

 

[iwannadie]

I work for UPS and am not offended at all but would like to maybe comment and blame the shipper. I know I see a lot of packages that have bad addresses from the shipper which cause tons of headaches for us.

Some times the street address(happens a lot with packages from canada) gets mixed up on the printed shipping label. The information is there but not in the correct order so when the information gets input into the computer system it ends up with no street number or no lot number or North instead of South etc. When you call and an actual person is able to look at the actual information they can figure it out when the computer failed them. Your situation is actually very common, the shipper failed to put your address correctly.

If a package like this makes it on to a package car, the driver uses the computer to look up the address which can be wrong for the above reasons. Something as an example, if the shipper inputs the zip code slightly off it could turn an address that is 1601 E. Street to 1601 W. Street and there could be no 1601 W. street so the driver sheets it up as no such number and sends it back to the building for an address correction. It could be very possible that 1601 East and West exist, how would the driver know which is correct? I would also bet the same driver doesn't deliver to East and West so even if it was clear which was correct it may not be in his area to deliver. It is not feasible to send a guy to knock on both doors and ask for ID if it was an address mistake from the shipper. UPS needs to contact the shipper to find out the correct address. They can't stop in the middle of the day and drive 1 package back to the central hub and have it taken care of right away. It stays out the entire day of attempted delivery and the next day is sent to the clerks who call the shipper.

Having a GPS wouldn't help as they would be entering the same bad address in the system. Most drivers I have ever dealt with know their delivery area like the back of their hand but are stuck following UPS regulations. The driver may have seen your address missing East/West and knew there's only one correct possible address but has to sheet it up and charger the shipper an address correction fee rather than make a special trip to deliver it.

It sucks and is the fault to a degree of UPS yes, but I see it more as a computer problem or shipper not having the address correct and not an incompetent person screwing things up for you. Contact the shipper and complain to them and ask for a shipping refund if it was promised within a time frame that they did not meet. Or, try to get a discount out of them for entering your information incorrectly.

 

[H8PVMT]

New ups drivers can start at 75k so I'd XXXXing hope they can read, a lot of my guys work filling trucks for ups at night and they say to avoid if possible

 

[Darky]

My regular UPS guy is awesome. No complaints.

And since when do UPS drivers start at 75k? Anytime I've seen a job advertised it's been more in the 10-15/hr range.

 

[AeroSync]

I work at a UPS Store and some driver's are making $40/hour. It all depends on the driver really. Some are cool, some are not.

 

[Haulin]

I've just got to say I have a FedEx guy that's a real piece of work. He's even marked shit delivered in his system and left it on his truck because he was to lazy to do his job and deliver my stuff that day.

And if you really want to talk bottom of the barrel lets add in the totally useless USPS!

 

[dave92cherokee]

I'm still getting a bill from ups for shipment charges for some plastic trim pieces their gorillas decided to throw around like monkey crap. Got them back and they were totally destroyed, had insurance on them for $100 to cover shipping and purchase price if damaged. Filed a damage claim and was denied because of " improper packaging" and continue to get a bill for $44 for shipping that went to the next county then back to me the day after I shipped it.

 

[iwannadie]

I work at a UPS Store and some driver's are making $40/hour. It all depends on the driver really. Some are cool, some are not.

Pay cap is I think 28 bucks an hour or 32 with the new contract I can't remember but its around that. If you are counting over time then yes the hourly goes way up but no one is making 40 bucks an hour normal time driving.

 

[H8PVMT]

Drivers that pass the 6 week course in dc save the company around 150k somehow so they make a ton by paying tbe best guys top money, big writeup in a few mags a year or so about it

 

[superdave]

I work for UPS and am not offended at all but would like to maybe comment and blame the shipper. I know I see a lot of packages that have bad addresses from the shipper which cause tons of headaches for us.

Some times the street address(happens a lot with packages from canada) gets mixed up on the printed shipping label. The information is there but not in the correct order so when the information gets input into the computer system it ends up with no street number or no lot number or North instead of South etc. When you call and an actual person is able to look at the actual information they can figure it out when the computer failed them. Your situation is actually very common, the shipper failed to put your address correctly.

If a package like this makes it on to a package car, the driver uses the computer to look up the address which can be wrong for the above reasons. Something as an example, if the shipper inputs the zip code slightly off it could turn an address that is 1601 E. Street to 1601 W. Street and there could be no 1601 W. street so the driver sheets it up as no such number and sends it back to the building for an address correction. It could be very possible that 1601 East and West exist, how would the driver know which is correct? I would also bet the same driver doesn't deliver to East and West so even if it was clear which was correct it may not be in his area to deliver. It is not feasible to send a guy to knock on both doors and ask for ID if it was an address mistake from the shipper. UPS needs to contact the shipper to find out the correct address. They can't stop in the middle of the day and drive 1 package back to the central hub and have it taken care of right away. It stays out the entire day of attempted delivery and the next day is sent to the clerks who call the shipper.

Having a GPS wouldn't help as they would be entering the same bad address in the system. Most drivers I have ever dealt with know their delivery area like the back of their hand but are stuck following UPS regulations. The driver may have seen your address missing East/West and knew there's only one correct possible address but has to sheet it up and charger the shipper an address correction fee rather than make a special trip to deliver it.

It sucks and is the fault to a degree of UPS yes, but I see it more as a computer problem or shipper not having the address correct and not an incompetent person screwing things up for you. Contact the shipper and complain to them and ask for a shipping refund if it was promised within a time frame that they did not meet. Or, try to get a discount out of them for entering your information incorrectly.

The shipper is Summit Racing, so I assume they have good shipping labels. And when I contacted UPS they recited the exact address correctly.

They are supposed to deliver it today. Which means another WEEK of not being able to drive my Jeep because the only time I have to work on it is WEEKENDS. She said it was because our road can be either east or west and the driver was confused because a direction wasn't in the address. However, east and west isn't on our official address nor anybody else's on this road. There are no designations on any signs. This is not the fault of the shipper, (nor the purchaser which the lady at USP insinuated)it's UPS that catches the blame. If you google our address it goes right to our house. There's no confusion.

 

[ECKSJAY]

Maybe karma is slapping you for not supporting local business.

 

[Haulin]

I know I try to support my locals as much as possible. But at some point my account balance becomes more important. And to be honest sometime the simplicity of point, click, pay, and deliver is a factor too. Sometimes you just don't have time to drive, order, pay, drive, and pick up.

 

[superdave]

The package arrived today. UPS had stuck a new label on it, I peeled it off carefully and the Summit label was very plain and easy to read. Also, the Summit label has my phone number on it. Nobody bothered to call me.
I also got in the mail today a card from UPS (addressed exactly like my package was from Summit) saying my package couldn't be delivered because the street address was missing. Well then, how the *bleep* did you mail me a postcard?

 

[H8PVMT]

The package arrived today. UPS had stuck a new label on it, I peeled it off carefully and the Summit label was very plain and easy to read. Also, the Summit label has my phone number on it. Nobody bothered to call me.
I also got in the mail today a card from UPS (addressed exactly like my package was) saying my package couldn't be delivered because the street address was missing. Well then, how the *bleep* did you mail me a postcard?

They had the USPS deliver it, thats how

When I ordered parts and lived in a funky area I would tell them to add specific directions to the address, once the driver knows it once they usually remember.....that and I got a package a week

 

[ehall]

It really depends on the driver. I've lived a bunch of different cities, and one of the delivery guys is *always* a moron, but never the same company's driver. Most of them can read the label, one of them will always leave stuff at the wrong house, or a day late, or throw it behind the bush, whatever.

 

[Voteban]

I work at a UPS Store, and the drivers CAN be real A**holes. There are a few that I really like that are good at their job, and actually care about getting packages to their destination safely. Then there are the guys that think a fragile sticker means that a package should be used as a soccer ball and should be carelessly thrown around. In my immediate area there is only 1 guy like that, and he keeps getting suspended, so he'll probably be gone soon enough.

I packaged some sort of medical face-cancer-scanner a few weeks ago, it was insured for $3k, so I packaged it with extreme care, and guess what... Some f**king idiot driver broke it before it got there. We got pictures of everything and it looked like they had kicked and thrown the box around. UPS denied the customer's claim because he shipped it on the buyer's account, filled out the waybill wrong, and the buyer refused the package because it was broken. Now the dude that sent the face scanner is out $3k and there's nothing that I, or anybody else at my store, can do.

I think the drivers need a more active evaluation, and should have some sort of penalty for broken stuff...

/rant

:conceited

 

[5-90]

I've just got to say I have a FedEx guy that's a real piece of work. He's even marked shit delivered in his system and left it on his truck because he was to lazy to do his job and deliver my stuff that day.

And if you really want to talk bottom of the barrel lets add in the totally useless USPS!

Really? I've not had any trouble with the Postal People - I ship with them exclusively (domestic and international.) No complaints!
- Flat rate Priority Post (weight don't really matter)
- Saturday delivery at no extra cost
- Online paid postage
- No need to make special arrangements to pick up or drop off a shipment
- There's a mall substation that keeps mall hours - only closed on Sunday. Very handy
- PO Box, APO, and FPO delivery without any trouble (I ship to a lot of PO boxen, and we ship "morale goodies" to soldiers overseas)
- Haven't had a delivery get screwed up by the Postal People yet - just two shipping errors in the last six years, and both of those were due to being supplied the wrong address (I put the wrong address on the label because I got the wrong address. Oops...)

Now, why should I not use the Postal People? Only if it's ORM-D or something like that would I bother to go with UPS or someone else...

 

[beakie]

Really? I've not had any trouble with the Postal People - I ship with them exclusively (domestic and international.) No complaints!
- Flat rate Priority Post (weight don't really matter)
- Saturday delivery at no extra cost
- Online paid postage
- No need to make special arrangements to pick up or drop off a shipment
- There's a mall substation that keeps mall hours - only closed on Sunday. Very handy
- PO Box, APO, and FPO delivery without any trouble (I ship to a lot of PO boxen, and we ship "morale goodies" to soldiers overseas)
- Haven't had a delivery get screwed up by the Postal People yet - just two shipping errors in the last six years, and both of those were due to being supplied the wrong address (I put the wrong address on the label because I got the wrong address. Oops...)

Now, why should I not use the Postal People? Only if it's ORM-D or something like that would I bother to go with UPS or someone else...

totally agree with ya on the support for USPS.

granted I'm north of the border from most of you, but I WILL NOT use UPS unless it's an outright last resort... and even then I'll have it shipped to a drop box instead of them bringing it over the border.

USPS $10 flat rate box will get just about everything I need to me no problems at all, and in a normal time (7-10 days)

UPS will get me the same thing, same time frame, but they will cost most to start, and then when they deliver they require payment of a "brokerage fee" of anywhere from 10%-50% of the part they delivered. I don't know how they determine the cost, but my original lift kit (6 years ago) cost about $800 to my door, then UPS added another $150 brokerage fee. $125 steering part from BTF, brokerage fee of $45.

FedEX good to go, USPS I'll take everyday of the week... UPS, not unless it's last resort.

 

[UNCC_99XJ]

totally agree with ya on the support for USPS.

granted I'm north of the border from most of you, but I WILL NOT use UPS unless it's an outright last resort... and even then I'll have it shipped to a drop box instead of them bringing it over the border.

USPS $10 flat rate box will get just about everything I need to me no problems at all, and in a normal time (7-10 days)

UPS will get me the same thing, same time frame, but they will cost most to start, and then when they deliver they require payment of a "brokerage fee" of anywhere from 10%-50% of the part they delivered. I don't know how they determine the cost, but my original lift kit (6 years ago) cost about $800 to my door, then UPS added another $150 brokerage fee. $125 steering part from BTF, brokerage fee of $45.

FedEX good to go, USPS I'll take everyday of the week... UPS, not unless it's last resort.

UPS is very weird about their brokerage fee's for importing things into Canada. As for the percentage, it really comes down to what exactly it is you're bringing in, it's value, country of origin..etc. Among other things, I import products into the US from Italy for a living (sea and air freight), and export a fair amount into Canada (usually a few thousand pounds worth of winches and/or gearboxes, or spare parts that are in small packages). That being said, I avoid UPS like the plague. The driver that comes by my area at work treats the packages like a football (literally dropping them onto my dock from his truck), rude attitude..etc. My personal favorite was last week, I had some equipment down at work and the company who was fixing it had the parts overnighted early-am directly to me so that all the technician would have to do is show up around mid morning and get to work. UPS driver shows up at 8:45, hands one to me and says "I show another one on the truck for you...i'll bring it by later on today". Ummmmm...why don't you take 1 minute right now, look in the back of your truck to find it, and give it to me now? Then you don't have to come back by later...and I kinda need that part now.

It's to the point now that we're telling our customers that we won't even ship UPS using their account. If there's ever a problem, I can't just call and give them our account to access any shipments we've booked. I have to have separate accounts within UPS to access any type of shipment (i.e. one for small package ground, one for air, one for freight...etc). Not with FedEX. One account covers everything.

I use FedEX so it gets there quickly, in one piece, and they're a stones throw away from my dock, unlike UPS which puts their locations in the worst part of town, and their shipping hub (for when they've really screwed you over and you have to go get the package your self) in an even worse part of town.

 

[H8PVMT]

The closest ups distribution center to me is on MLK drive lol