Am I wrong in thinking this delivery company sucketh? And do I owe her an apology?

[WillParkinson]

Quick prologue...I ordered an item for a friend for her birthday. I paid $100 for it, including engraving. According to the mail I got it was to be delivered yesterday. I waited up till 1 pm. No one came. Paul came home at 3 pm. Never during that time did any of the 3 dogs bark. I woke up at 5 because Mom Nature was calling and she doesn't like to be kept waiting. I said to Paul that I was annoyed the package hadn't come. He said it did. I said, "Oh? The driver never rang the bell." He said, "Well, there's a reason and you're not going to be happy." I asked what it was. He told me that the driver left the package on the front steps to our house. We HAVE an enclosed porch which is just inches from the step. Yes, he was right. I was very unhappy. I wrote the following mail:

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS
================================
I want to know why the driver who delivered our package today felt that it
was acceptable to leave the package on our doorstep, outside, when there
is an enclosed porch just inches from those stairs. The driver did not
ring the bell, just left the delivery - a piece of crystal, on the steps,
in Wisconsin, during winter time. I'm VERY disappointed in your service
and will be contacting Things Remembered about future deliveries.



To which I received the following reply:

Dear Ms. Bowden,

We are so sorry for the problem with your delivery. Apparently the Shipper did not request a signature on your shipment and the courier is allowed to the leave the shipment at our customer's door. Some customers get angry if our courier enters the porch area of their homes some would rather that the courier come into their porch. Unfortunately, we don't know who does and who does not. We really apologize and maybe suggest that if you want shipments left in a certain area you might want to put a note on your door.

Best Regards,

Deborah Wheeler

Executive Response Specialist
Customer Advocacy and Resolution Services


****
The fact that they called "Will Bowden" Ms. annoyed me as did the attitude of the letter. So I fired off this reply:

Dear Ms. Wheeler,

First off, I'm not "Ms." The name Will usually refers to a male. (Though not always, I'm certain.)

Secondly, regardless if the shipper did not request a signature, would it not be standard practice to attempt to hand-deliver the item? I was home all day. No one ever rang my bell.

And, finally, despite what you've said, I would rather a customer be angry for me trying to safeguard their important shipment by putting it in an enclosed place than leaving it on the door where it's exposed to the elements and the potential for theft.

I've already contacted Things Remembered. If they say that they will send my next shipment via your company I will not order. I'm not willing to take a chance on a $100 order walking away because a driver is so careless or lazy. The safety of my shipment should be paramount. Your company failed, Ms. Wheeler. End of story.



And this was her final reply to me:

Dear Mr. Bowden,

I am extremely sorry for the error regarding your name sir. I can certainly empathize with your frustrations, and offer you our sincere apology for the problem this caused you. Please believe that we are committed to providing our customers with the kind of service they can rely on.

I have forwarded your e mail to the managers of the delivery station in your area in regards to where the courier left your shipment.

Best Regards,

Deborah Wheeler

Executive Response Specialist
Customer Advocacy and Resolution Services

****

Now I'll admit I was probably a bit harsher than I needed to be, but this package had a piece of crystal that I paid over $100 for. I don't appreciate it being left out where anyone could have just walked off with it. And the story about customers being upset because they came onto the porch? Sure, I suppose it's possible, but c'mon.

So, do I owe the woman an apology?

[Midlodemocrat]

1. I think you over reacted, personally. The item wasn't damaged, so where's the harm?

[WillParkinson]

3. Where's the harm?

The potential for damage or loss was there. Thankfully it did not occur. But I paid to have the item delivered to me, not to my steps. If the item had been damaged or stolen would they have reimbursed me? Insurance wasn't an option on the package delivery. And, I'm sorry, it's sheer laziness to not open a door and set the item in the porch.

[northzax]

5. um, yes, things remembered would have

if they are anything at all resembling a legitimate company. without a signature, the onus is on the delivery company to demonstrate that they did, in fact, deliver the package. if it's that crucial to you, check 'signature required' or tell the place you are ordering from you insist on it.

and why did you get that upset about being called 'ms. bowden'? a gentle correction is all that is needed, they have to use one or the other, and frankly, the demographics of "Things Remembered" is probably overwhelmingly female, so they guessed. you are making a mountain out of a molehill here.

[WillParkinson]

6. To be honest...

I've never once had any delivery company place a package anywhere but on the porch. It just frustrates me that this company felt it was acceptable to leave it outside. (Especially with my freaky neighbor who has 6 kids you hardly ever see and debt out of the wazoo who is already into most neighbors for money, but that's a different story.)

As for why I got so upset...The name "Will" generally refers to male. And it was the semi-snarky (in my opinion, and it's very possible I'm wrong) that got my dander up. The name thing just added fuel to the fire.

And I believe what upsets me the most is that the driver did not even attempt to deliver my package into my hands. I work in a hotel as a room service server. That would be like me dropping food outside the guests door without attempting to knock. My responsibility is to make sure that the guest gets their food delivered to them, as they're paying for. If they don't answer I call Security and they assist me. Now, of course, I don't expect DHL to do all that, but I do expect an honest effort to be made to get my item to me.

(Wow. Lots of edits to this message...sorry!)

And you're probably right. Things Remembered would likely have replaced it. But then I'd have to wait another week to get the item which means it wouldn't have been in time for my friends birthday.

[northzax]

13. but I can see the position of the delivery company, as well

after all, opening the door to someone's enclosed porch without their permission is technically trespassing. you may not have a problem with it, I may not have a problem with it, but if someone has a problem, it's an issue. Imagine, just as a thought experiment, you are a DHL guy, you knock on the door, no one answers, even though you can tell people are home. you don't know if this is actually the correct address, maybe the shipper got it wrong. you open the screen door to put in a package and all of a sudden, someone's dog comes at you, or some whackjob with a gun shoots you (castle doctrine, you would probably not even be charged) we live in a fucked up world.

always ask for a signature. always.

[WillParkinson]

14. Trespassing?

I might be able to agree if the address was wrong, but if I asked for delivery then I asked for the service to be provided and expected it to be so. So technically the man has the right to be on my property.

And if the DHL man might assume that the address was wrong then why leave the package on the steps?

Believe me, I do understand your point. I just hope that you understand mine as well. I'm not trying to be a hardass about this. I just refer to my job as the point. If a guest pays for delivery I'm responsible to ensure that he or she gets what they paid for.

[northzax]

16. of course it's their responsibility

and they gamble, in your neighborhood, that it would be safe. Trust me, in my neighborhood in DC, they don't leave anything on the stoop, even if you ask for it. they gamble that leaving it there is safe enough that you will get it often enough to make the speed and increased safety of the employee worthwhile.

if you want a signature, go with UPS or FedEx and ask for one. DHL is cheaper for a reason.

[China_cat]

2. No, especially not if it was UPS.

They pull shit like that around here all the time...including one time THROWING a package over the fence (I have a surveillance camera and saw them do it before I could even get to the door). It happened to be a digital camera that I had sent off for repair.

And trying to get hold of anybody to complain is the pits. Our local delivery station for UPS has an unlisted number.

[WillParkinson]

4. No, not UPS

DHL.

[Magrittes Pipe]

18. Milwaukee DHL is garbage.

I had an unbelievably hard time dealing with them over a relatively simple matter (I don't recall exactly what, it was 4 years ago or so), and I refuse to give them my business again.

And yes, if I'm doing business with a merchant who ships via DHL, I will select another merchant. It was that bad.

[China_cat]

19. DHL doesn't deliver much here anymore.

Took me (and the company that used them) over a year to get them to stop delivering my inventory (from when I had my shop open) to a place around the corner.

My address was 9 Sycamore and theirs is 9 Decatur. Except for the 9, I don't think they look alike, do you?

The best one from UPS, though, was the time they left a box for me on the porch half a block up. This was early in 2002 and the old people living there were scared out of their wits, sure that someone had left a bomb on their porch. The police delivered to me one soaked, punched, ruined box of software. (After the bomb squad used most of their toys to make sure it wasn't dangerous)

[grace0418]

10. My friend ordered an Apple flat-panel monitor (large box with a life-sized photo of the

monitor on the outside) and purposefully had it delivered to his wife's office because, although he worked from home, his doorbell often malfunctioned. His wife's office is in a storefront with a large reception desk no more than 6 feet from the front door. The UPS driver apparently didn't feel like walking the extra 6 feet and left the monitor sitting outside on a busy street, in the rain, where it was promptly stolen. My friend's wife said she was working with a client, saw the UPS truck stop, then a few minutes later saw a box sitting on the sidewalk. Before she could get out there it was gone. The UPS driver thought he could get away with just signing my friend's name, spelled complely wrong. The problem was my friend wouldn't have signed for it because he wasn't at that location, not to mention he probably knows how to spell his own name.

They had the HARDEST time getting it replaced, because Apple rightfully wanted UPS to pay for the replacement, but UPS said "too bad, he signed for it."

[LeftyFingerPop]

7. It sounds like it is company policy to not leave packages on...

enclosed porches.

If that is the case, the delivery person cannot be faulted for following policy.

That being said, common sense dictates, in my opinion, that the package should have been left inside your porch.

I am in the same situation as you...having an enclosed front porch. I've never received a delivery from DHL, but UPS and FedEx ALWAYS leave the package inside the porch.

Therefore, I believe that the policy of DHL is flawed from a common sense point of view. I find it hard to believe that they would receive that many complaints if a package were left on a recipient's enclosed porch.

I think you complained strongly and properly, and I do not think you were too harsh. I do not think you owe an apology. You expressed your concern in a rational manner, and you did not insult the woman.

[DS1]

8. This is why I ship things to my office

It gets there earlier, and there's always someone to collect stuff even if I'm not there.

[azmouse]

9. I think the root of the problem isn't just where they left the package it's

that they didn't try to see if someone was at home. Ringing the doorbell would have solved all the problems that followed. But ringing the doorbell would take more time and the driver is expected to deliver the packages in a certain amount of time so they'll do anything to save time.

[WillParkinson]

12. Exactly my point...

Do your job and ring the bell. That's all it would have taken to make me happy. That the attempt was made.

[azmouse]

15. It happens here a lot.

I've had items left by my front door (fortunately it can't be seen from the road or sidewalk easily) that were perishable or they were left on a rainy day (yes, it does rain here sometimes!) and were nearly ruined, and it was all because the delivery person didn't bother to ring the doorbell. Here they have no excuse... there is no enclosed porch, the doorbell is right by the spot they left the package. I think they get used to no one being home so they by default just don't bother trying.

I'm glad things worked alright in the end for you.

[Gormy Cuss]

11. I can understand why you're angry, but your issues isn't with the delivery company.

They don't ring doorbells or enter enclosed porches unless they need to get a signature. That's pretty standard these days.

You do have a beef with the company who shipped the item that way but it's minor because the crystal wasn't damaged. I do understand why it made you mad. We do have a tendency to think that service should be a bit better on one-of-a-kind or pricey objects, but the companies shipping them may not.


on edit: we have an open porch and have ground deliveries from all three companies on a regular basis. The FedEx driver rings the bell and runs. The others just leave the packages at the edge of the porch.

[Sweet Freedom]

17. It seems to be standard practice now

to just leave a package at the door. I've had this experience with UPS, FedEx and DHL. I've also had them leave the package and then ring the bell as they walked away.

I guess the solution is to require a signature, but then, if you aren't home, your package is returned after a certain number of attempted deliveries. Or you could leave a note on the door for them to ring the bell.

I just doubt that any delivery service now waits for someone to answer the door when a signature is not required.