Lost packages anyone?

[Mike Holbrook]

UPS has been leaving packages at the entrance to our long driveway, may be some Christmas driver in a hurry. Still this has happened more and more frequently. Two packages were found down near the street and another package that was delivered to our neighbor, in error, was brought to us by the neighbor. All of that plus the lost package all happened in one week. So My LV order on Dec 11 never arrived. I talked to a very nice lady (Sue) at LV customer service and I think they reshipped the items a day or two ago, but I want get them in time for Christmas. More project delays I guess. Over $600 in items floating around, stolen, lost at UPS, at the wrong address...

In Atlanta they have been showing videos in which young women in SUV's drive up to houses with packages outside and just grab them, nice! It's a problem.

Buyers beware!
So we posted a bright yellow sign down at the street asking that packages be left at the house. I found my UPS account on-line and selected deliver to garage. I also asked LV not to send any more packages by UPS for a multitude of reasons. I get packages quicker through Priority Mail. The US Mail Package Tracking System is much better too. They let me know within hours of exactly where the package is. UPS's messages fade out after they pick them up and one can never be sure where they are or when they got there. I remember a day when I use to prefer UPS for speed and reliability, what happened? UPS customer service was not helpful. Sue at LV called me to explain to me that although UPS changed the delivery address in their system she did not ask them to do it, even though there is a message on the record saying the sender requested an address change...They kept saying that what I was reading on their tracking screen was wrong, but they could not see the customer package tracking system. No one at UPS was able to see the same UPS screen I was looking at, no one could explain it to me either. Why have a customer package tracking system that UPS customer service can not look at? Last I heard, on the last day of their delivery range, UPS, after the package was obviously lost, said it would be 8 business days before they could get back to me about the package. With Christmas and New Years in the middle of those "business days" no telling when or if I will ever hear back. I have bought many items through internet auctions and have been amazed at how safe it has been to buy items from all those private individuals, which, at least in my mind, begs the question... why can't UPS with all their resources do it?

I thought maybe this was a subject of interest since we all rely more and more on buying things on the internet, especially auction sites, for home delivery.

[Mike Henderson]

I also asked LV not to send any more packages by UPS for a multitude of reasons. I get packages quicker through Priority Mail. The US Mail Package Tracking System is much better too. They let me know within hours of exactly where the package is. UPS's messages fade out after they pick them up and one can never be sure where they are or when they got there.
I made the same request of Rob Lee - that he ship via USPS priority mail instead of UPS ground. Priority mail is much faster and the tracking is very good. Rob told me that the reason they use UPS is that they ship from Canada and UPS handles the cross border shipment. LV has a shipping address in NY state but apparently that's just a UPS address.

I wish LV would find a way to ship Priority mail instead of UPS. It'd be much better and a lot faster.

Mike

[Mike Holbrook]

Good info. Mike. I was confused about that too. I thought LV had a storage area in the US they shipped from but I found out differently in conversations with them recently. Now I get it. I figured there must be some service UPS provided them. The lady I talked to seemed to think she could ship through the US postal system but that may be incorrect. I use Amazon Prime a great deal too, they might work a deal with Rob. I frequently get two day shipping for free. I suspect Rob will find some better way to handle shipping at some point, unless all the free shipping offers allow them to control order flow and stock quantities to their advantage.

[Jim Koepke]

Shipping companies often have changes in staff. Have you ever seen a gray haired UPS delivery driver?

Some are great, some good and others are not worth the shoes they walk in.

In California FedEx ground always had a problem with my location. The company that FedEx bought to get into the ground delivery business could never find my house and didn't want to pay the cost for maps. My understanding is the drivers are independent contractors.

FedEx lost a package from Lee Valley to me. It was replaced and at that time my request was to never use FedEx.

Now the local FedEx driver is my neighbor and they can usually find my house at the end of the day. Though last time I requested FedEx I was told LV no longer uses them.

UPS is also fairly good in my area.

UPS also works with the USPS on some deliveries. I am not sure of the details on this.

jtk

[glenn bradley]

All my stuff gets walked right up to the door. I thought this was jut standard but, have you seen some of those UPS and FedEx videos on YouTube? Unbelievable. I had no idea that some managers let their drivers get away with that stuff. If you don't call and let them know, they can't improve. The boss is obviously NOT on the job so he really needs your help.

[Andrew Kertesz]

If I am concerned about a package sitting on the porch or anywhere else I have it delivered to my wife's work location in her name. There is always somebody there during business hours. Her company ships hundreds of packages a day and broke their contract with UPS because of lost and damaged packages and terrible customer service even with their own account rep.

[Jim Koepke]

Her company ships hundreds of packages a day and broke their contract with UPS because of lost and damaged packages and terrible customer service even with their own account rep.

Employees treat their work the same as their employer treats them.

With high pressure work for low pay and part time hours many in the small package shipping industry do not build loyalties to the company. Many see it as a job to get them through college.

Not sure if it is still the case, but many years ago many of their workers had two part time jobs with the company. One in the morning for filling the trucks with items for delivery. Then they would come back in the evening to sort and fill containers or trucks with the outgoing packages. Not sure if this is still the practice, but it makes sense for the shipping company if there is little to do during the middle of the day when all the trucks are out.

jtk

[John Huds0n]

...Have you ever seen a gray haired UPS delivery driver?...



Yep - My regular driver retired last year and his replacement only has a year or two left before he retires. They bid on routes by seniority, so I guess I am pretty fortunate and I never have any problems with UPS or FedEx for that matter. Now the Post Office in my area is a different story - I would actually avoid having anything delivered by them

Sign up for 'UPSMyChoice" and get email notifications a day before a package is scheduled to be delivered and then after the delivery

http://www.ups.com/mychoice/?WT.srch=1&WT.mc_id=iPros_mkwid|s5un2r9DO_dc|pcrid|2515911832 7|pkw|my%20ups|pmt|e|

[Jason Roehl]

Our local UPS has always been great. Package tracking is almost always better than USPS by far. I'll often see nothing from USPS until it's actually delivered, then there will be updates posted from days prior. I also had two pieces of mail screwed up by USPS recently--one a check that showed up shredded several weeks after being mailed (sender had to place a stop-payment and re-send), the other an item that should have been forwarded and wasn't (a sizable invoice).

All that said, I wouldn't order anything remotely breakable that will be shipped by UPS this time of year. They load their trucks by hand as fast as humanly possible with less than zero regard for Eye-talian (Fruh-GEE-lay) packages. This from a friend's son who worked there for a time. They literally throw them on the truck and cram them in tight, walking on them and everything.

[Mike Holbrook]

I went to UPS mychoice during my issues, made sure it says to deliver to my garage. They have not updated my package status in a week. A week ago they said they put a tracer on it. Now the message just says there is no info. available. What really irritates me is they tell me what their own system says is wrong and can't explain what the information on their own package tracking system means. Someone seems to change what is entered and posts information they say came from the sender when the sender assures me what they posted is not what they were told.

This is the third time we have called UPS and explained the problem of them leaving packages at the street. UPS is the only delivery company we have had this issue with in the 18 years we have lived at our current location. UPS has made these errors on and off for the last 5 years. They provided good service for the prior 12 years.

[Tom Bussey]

I will not ship oany thing UPS.

[Shawn Pixley]

Our UPS service is great. The driver likes our dogs (Doberman and a mixed breed rescue dog). They visit if we are home and the dogs are out. If we are not home, he walks through the gate and leaves it on the entry stoop out of sight from the street. The gate is ten feet from the "curb". Admittedly we live in a pretty urban environment (35' by 100' Lots).

[Robert Delhommer Sr]

WOW, USPS is the absolute worst around here, I specifically request no USPS involvement in my pkgs.

[Art Mann]

I count myself lucky. My UPS guy always delivers packages to the front porch and hides them behind an Adirondack chair so they can't be seen from the street. The only exception is when I leave the garage door open and then he will leave packages leaning against the entrance to the house. UPS tracking alerts me when the package is out for delivery. I also have excellent USPS service (I know the normal delivery lady) but their tracking is almost useless. It never lists intermediate places where the package has stopped over and it doesn't alert me that the package is being delivered until the day after the package arrives. What good is that?

My worst experience involves Fed Ex and final delivery by the USPS. In this case, I can trace a package until it is delivered to the USPS facility and then all traceability is lost until after the package is delivered. That could be anywhere from 1 to 3 or more days, although it has been getting better in recent months.

[Mike Holbrook]

Apparently different shipping companies are better in different areas, good to know. Years ago I would have rated UPS at the top of the heap in my area. I just wonder if what I have seen in recent years is part of a national trend?

The bad/changing information on the UPS tracking system screen is the issue that most concerns me. I can't even interpret the screen. There is a large section at the top that I have asked quite a few people at UPS customer service to help me to understand. They all insist they use a different screen, have no access to the screen I am looking at and argue that what I am looking at is wrong. This is a conundrum that I have no idea how to resolve. I am looking at a UPS provided screen; I don't understand how/why that information is apparently meaningless. I am tracking a postal service package right now. I saw it update as being in the city that it is delivered from at about 7:30AM when it arrived at 7:05AM. The last package update information on the UPS screen for my "lost" package was 12/14.

[Brian Holcombe]

Best thing IMO is to get to know your local drivers in all areas, they'll take care of you.

[Mike Holbrook]

Good idea too Brian. I try to take opportunities to talk to delivery people, talked to the mail person just a few days ago and thanked her for delivering so close to Christmas. Unfortunately UPS has been leaving my packages later and later, lately most deliveries are at dinner or after when it is dark. The other problem has been a large percentage of the packages have been left down at the main road, well out of sight of my house.

I will keep trying.

[Jacob Reverb]

UPS stinks. I needed to return a $1600 item to the vendor. The vendor wanted me to use the UPS return label. UPS wouldn't give me any kind of receipt, and their driver picked up the package at night, and didn't even drive the truck down the driveway. (I was suspicious, since the driver wasn't even wearing a UPS uniform ... though he was carrying their signature gizmo ... so I followed him down the driveway and saw the truck out there in the dark, at least.) Then I went online to make sure they logged the package pickup. Nope. Same thing the next day and the day after that. I called UPS on the first day it didn't show up online, and they "Initiated an investigation." Then, on the third day, the package miraculously "reappeared." I definitely grew some new gray hairs in that 72 hours, though!

[Joe Bradshaw]

I have good luck with UPS. My driver leaves my parcels inside my shop. I also keep water and soft drinks in the fridge if he wants is thirsty.
Joe

[DOUG ANGEL]

I live in Bulverde, Tx., that's about 20 mi. outside San Antonio, our UPS ans USPS delivery folks are OUTSTANDING. I do a lot of ordering online, mostly Amazon, as their customer service is exemplary.
Packages shipped by UPS are always delivered at front door. Our driveway is about 75' of curvy asphalt with trees and large limestone rocks lining it. The UPS drivers park and walk up the driveway for delivery. Some packages do get a bit battered during shipping, but Amazon usually packs really well so no damage to item. Amazon and UPS delivered on time every time when I ordered Christmas presents for my family. This is incredible considering where I live.

[Mike Holbrook]

Sounds like I have run off into the Bermuda Triangle of shipping. The owner, president..something of UPS is suppose to live right down the road, maybe that has created a black hole.

[Lornie McCullough]

Best thing IMO is to get to know your local drivers in all areas, they'll take care of you.



Brian has what I believe is the correct response. Delivery drivers are living breathing humans. Every one of us makes mistakes, most of them of no consequence. But a delivery drivers mistake is seen by at least 3 people.... the person at the wrong address, the person at the correct address, and the delivery boss.

If you get to know your local drivers, then they can mentally connect a package with your face/residence, and make fewer mistakes. Keep in mind that every regular driver has days off, vacation time, and sick days. Substitute delivery drivers will almost always make more mistakes than the regular driver.

Lornie (I delivered mail and packages for 30 years)

[Tom Vanzant]

As Brian said it...get to know your delivery people. My UPS man delivers packages to the front door, but not visible from the street, and rings the doorbell. If we get to the door before he drives off, we give him a loud "thank you." The USPS delivery man always rings the bell if he has a package. Exception at 0730 on Christmas Eve...he saw activity in our kitchen and several cars in the drive, so he knocked quietly. The grandkids' dog was not jarred awake so she didn't bark. Trash collectors get cold water and canned drinks in the heat of summer. Those little things go a long way in both directions.

[Mike Holbrook]

Apparently I am at the end of the line for UPS. They have delivered later and later in the day in the last year or so and I usually do not see the driver, which is weird because I see most of the other drivers regularly.

I suspect there is a specific issue with my current UPS driver. I think he is very afraid of dogs, especially large dogs. The one time I saw him in the last month he refused to get out of the truck, apparently because I had a dog with me. My dogs are never left out in the yard alone. If I am not with them they are in dog crates or fenced areas. I train dogs and their people just about every day of my life. I specialize in socializing dogs with other dogs and people. I trained the original K9 units in my city/state. My dogs are trained at a level the majority of the population has never even seen. They are very safe. Still I can't fix an avoidance problem with a person I can't talk to. None of the other UPS drivers, mail/delivery people have this phobia so they have no problem.

I wish there was some way to explain to all the people out there with dog phobias that the specific behavior they exhibit due to their phobia is instantly recognizable by dogs and increases their suspicion level several orders of magnitude. I am attempting to not get off topic and climb up on a stump here. The point I am trying to make is, I believe this delivery person is exhibiting what we dog trainers refer to as a classic avoidance issue.

[Brian Elfert]

I have had good luck with package deliveries at both my previous house and my current house. Both houses have equally long driveways to the house. Everything has always been waiting for me at the front door of my previous and at my current house they usually put the stuff at the back door. Both houses have enough trees to block the view of any packages from the street.

One USPS carrier didn't leave my package one day at my old house and I had to go pick it up which is a pain. With my current house I hope that never happens as the post office is 10 to 15 miles each way.

[Mike Holbrook]

Same situation with us Brian. We own a 35' x 900' strip of property through woods with driveway which goes to the house and business on 12 acres. It is a long walk to check packages and a little daunting at night. There is no reasonable way to monitor the area next to the main road. There is enough traffic on the road to place any package left there at immediate risk.

I just installed a large mail box with a locking mail area and one way access via a blocked chute door. There is plenty of room inside but large items can not just be shoved in the front and left hanging out. I hope this will reduce the number of packages left in the mail box. I understand it is illegal for companies other than USPS to leave packages in mail boxes, but in my experience it is often done anyway. I don't know that there is a perfect solution to this situation but I am trying every thing I can think of to reduce the chance of packages getting left in risky areas.

[Dan Duperron]

Mike, I have had issues with specific drivers from UPS over the years. Usually it's around the holidays when they have lots of temp drivers who just don't give a crap - that's when packages get left out at the road 1/4mi from my house. Several times I have had to call the 800 number and ask for a call back from the "local delivery supervisor". That's the person you want to talk to. That supervisor will call you back, and in my experience they have been very helpful. In my case I explained (nicely) that I was paying to have packages delivered to my house, not 1/4mi away, that's the way the regular drivers always did it, and I expected it to continue. The supervisor agreed the driver was supposed to deliver to the house. The next day they picked up the package from next to the mailbox and drove it to my door.

Obviously this depends on the temperament of the supervisor, but if you are polite and explain the security issue there is no reason they should not back you up. It's worth mentioning your hunch about dogs too, you may be on to something there.