Do any other FFL's have bad experience with UPS?

[bigjohnson]

Two bad experiences with UPS deliveries:
(1) I had a guy build a custom-made percussion rifle for me to use in N-SSA competition. It cost me $1200. UPS couldn't find my house, and left the package leaning up against the garage door of the house two doors down the road. It took me two days to find the gun.
(2) I bought a nice brass ship's clock from a guy on eBay. Cost me $350. The UPS guy dumped it in the bushes next to the mailbox at the end of my driveway. I had a tracking number, and had been tracking the package. At about 6PM, I noticed an entry that the package had been delivered at 4:30PM, but couldn't find it anywhere near the house. That's when I walked out to the end of the driveway and found it in the bushes at the side if the road.

 

[Bubbles]

(Knock on wood) FedEx, UPS, and USPS are all great at my house. At my old house I would only use FedEx for packages, and the USPS guy regularly dropped my neighbors' outgoing mail (things like mortgage payments) into my mailbox.

 

[mainmech48]

It seems to me that a lot of these problems may have more to do with the particular drivers than any company policies. In many of the instances cited, it would appear that the driver either didn't feel like exerting the physical effort required to deliver the parcel to the door, didn't care to spend the time it might take to go through the routine of obtaining a signature or couldn't be bothered to find the place it was supposed to go.

It also sounds as if the drivers feel that they have little to be concerned about in terms of personal accountability as far as local or corporate QC/CS management goes either.

The Drone at the Phone can apparently be counted upon to accept whatever that driver enters in his log as Gospel and assume the attitude that the complaining customer is mistaken, stupid or lying.

It would be interesting to read what it is exactly that they consider their contractual obligations to the customer might be.

IIRC, the fine print on the back of the old Western Union telegraph forms (you know, the stuff that nobody ever actually took time to read) were held up as a model contract in law schools.

All that it said after the gobbledy gook was decyphered was that, for a fee, they would accept your message and transmit it. They guaranteed absolutely nothing else and had absolutely no liability under any circumstances.

 

[Neo-Luddite]

It would be interesting to read what it is exactly that they consider their contractual obligations to the customer might be.

Yes, read the fine print sometime--ESPECIALLY for FedEx (I am a former employee); their potential liability for fouling up boils down to refunding the cost of the shipping.

This said, FedEx (Express) does a pretty fair job. Honestly, I have good luck with UPS, FedEx Ground and OUTSTANDING service from the USPS.

The tipping point comes down to the carrier that delivers to you--they make or break the customer experience. If you can cultivate a good interpersonal relationship with that individual, they can make things move smoothly. UPS and FedEx (Express) drivers tend to be long-term career employees.

 

[XDKingslayer]

I haven't had any gun related trouble with UPS, but that's because I've had enough trouble with them with other things that I'd never ship a gun through them.

I had them leave $2000 worth of brand new laptop sitting outside my front door in the rain.

Locally though, USPS is the worst. I have two mail carriers, 1 male and 1 female. The female, who is not only way too good looking to be a postal employee, works her butt off. She walked a case .45 ammo to my door and hand delivered it.

The male on the other hand is a lazy slob and won't leave the truck. If it doesn't fit in the mailbox he'll throw it back in the truck and let the female deliver it. I've watched him do it from my window and have mentioned it to the woman.