UPS 'lost' my lower receiver.

[Robb]

My order from Palmetto made it to the UPS Hub in Commerce City and then disappeared, never made it on the truck for delivery and appears to have vanished into thin air.

The package should have been to me around Dec 6th. I talked to UPS and Palmetto after a week of no delivery from the UPS hub and Palmetto opened a claim on Dec 11th. I emailed a contact at Palmetto day before yesterday and her response was that I'll "be notified when UPS finishes their investigation of the trace of the package." I was really hoping Palmetto would leave me out of the loop and resend my order.

This is the current status from the UPS page: *Commerce City, CO, United States 12/17/2013 3:03 P.M. Tracer request. / Claim issued.*

How do I handle this? Should I just sit back and wait, request a replacement? I'm ready to contest the charges and reorder.

[rondog]

I've heard a lot of horror stories on the news about UPS and their package overload/backlog this holiday season, they're having Hell this year - too many people shopping online.

Hopefully it'll turn up! If not, you may have to get loud, "where's my GUN? I've been expecting my GUN for weeks now! You've lost my GUN? Somebody stole my GUN from UPS???? Find my GUN!!!" I've heard that'll build a fire under their asses....

[Great-Kazoo]

UPS Customer service how may i help you.
Yes a firearm was lost in transit from the manufacture. it has been XX days with no response. As of today i have notified the ATF about theft within your organization, have a good day.

UPS "lost " a FN-FAL i shipped to MA say 10 years ago. Tracking showed in transit, yet no delivery to the address it said "delivered" to. UPS jerked me around for 5 min, till i said. Your driver and warehouse have no idea where it went. No problem. I have ATF on the other line and they will be handling the investigation from here. 5 min later, that lost in space rifle was located, go figure.

One of the main reasons there is a required next day delivery on hand guns was the high theft from within ups and fedex. Supposedly better oversight of firearm shipments would solve the issue.

[flogger]

If you paid with a credit card, contest the charges. It could take forever for UPS to complete an 'investigation'.

[Great-Kazoo]

If you paid with a credit card, contest the charges. It could take forever for UPS to complete an 'investigation'.

Shipping companies are supposed to report to the authorities, any time a firearm goes missing.

[sniper7]

Definitely mention to ups it is a firearm. Since it is just a lower and you never had it transferred in your name I wouldn't really care though. Tell palmetto you want a new one shipped.

[electronman1729]

UPS never delivered an AK rail my wife got me. According to the tracking it was delivered but no package was left on our door step

[merl]

UPS Customer service how may i help you.
Yes a firearm was lost in transit from the manufacture. it has been XX days with no response. As of today i have notified the ATF about theft within your organization, have a good day.

UPS "lost " a FN-FAL i shipped to MA say 10 years ago. Tracking showed in transit, yet no delivery to the address it said "delivered" to. UPS jerked me around for 5 min, till i said. Your driver and warehouse have no idea where it went. No problem. I have ATF on the other line and they will be handling the investigation from here. 5 min later, that lost in space rifle was located, go figure.


And we wonder why shipping companies don't like shipping firearms. Anything else it'd be "was it insured?"

[rondog]

UPS never delivered an AK rail my wife got me. According to the tracking it was delivered but no package was left on our door step

There's friggin' thieves out there that will follow delivery trucks and snatch the packages they just dropped off, hoping they'll score something of value. If it's something the thief can't use or quickly resell, they'll toss it, regardless of what it is or actually cost. An AK rail? "WTF is this? Toss it."

[Bailey Guns]

There are 2 M1A rifles floating around out there somewhere (this was probably around 2005) courtesy of FedEx Ground. They were sent by AcuSport from Billings, MT. I never got them so never paid for them or had to worry about reporting lost firearms. But I never heard a word from anyone. As far as I know, they're still on a truck somewhere.

And ATF isn't gonna care as long as the paperwork's filled out. Fill out this form, fill out that form. It's not like this doesn't happen practically every day somewhere. They won't drop what they're doing and go look for a lower receiver that didn't show up somewhere. This thread is about as much attention as your lost receiver will get.

Have your credit card company credit your account and reorder a receiver.

Sometimes, a lost package isn't due to something really sinister or evil or anything like that. Labels occasionally fall off and packages get thrown in a bin/area for undeliverable packages. Had that happen, too. The person who shipped it said there was a distinctive mark on the box and he gave me an accurate description. I was able to relay that info to a person at the UPS hub and they found it in their undeliverable package area. It was on the truck for delivery to me the next day. With the number of stuff they deliver this time of year it's amazing more isn't lost.

[Great-Kazoo]

And we wonder why shipping companies don't like shipping firearms. Anything else it'd be "was it insured?"

BS. IF we have to jump through their hoops to ship a firearm. They should be held to the same level, if not higher, of accountability.

[Bailey Guns]

In a perfect world UPS and FedEx would just worry about shipping packages in accordance with the law. Not the moral implications on society of the contents of the packages. When was the last time anyone at a UPS store asked if you were shipping child pornography or something like that?

[sroz]

Everything Jim said.....ATF. Aurora USPO lost one of mine and kept giving me the runaround. Got my FFL on the phone with them and mentioned we will have to notify the ATF. They found it within a couple of hours....just magic.

[PugnacAutMortem]

My father in law's Christmas present got lost in the Commerce City hub as well. I think they have somebody in there snagging the good packages for themselves to be honest. Mine wasn't a lower receiver, but it wouldn't shock me in the least if the same guy grabbed my father in law's gift that snagged your lower.

[merl]

BS. IF we have to jump through their hoops to ship a firearm. They should be held to the same level, if not higher, of accountability.

Would there be as many hoops if a lost package didn't result in threats of getting the feds involved? They have an interest in stopping thieves and loss, it is not like they don't care.


In a perfect world UPS and FedEx would just worry about shipping packages in accordance with the law. Not the moral implications on society of the contents of the packages. When was the last time anyone at a UPS store asked if you were shipping child pornography or something like that?
Been asked about alcohol before, hmmm ATF again... :)

Agreed, it should go like this: here is the package, no it is not hazmat, yes I want insurance.

[Robb]

When I can get through to the PSA person handling this, I'll request they re-send my order. I don't know why they couldn't do that. The issue appears to be between them and UPS. If they can't or won't resend my order I'll contest the charges this afternoon.

[Robb]

What a joke, all I had to do was rattle the cage.

"I just spoke to UPS and they have approved the claim. I am going to take your order across to our compliance department now and have it re-shipped.
Kind Regards"

[RCCrawler]

You don't have any business dealing with UPS, you ordered a product from Palmetto, they have not provided you with that product.

[Skip]

Sorry Robb--that sucks. That is too long for UPS to just suddenly find it. I've had USPS claim a package was delivered and then six days later it appeared in my mailbox with no explanation and no response to my "case."



UPS Customer service how may i help you.
Yes a firearm was lost in transit from the manufacture. it has been XX days with no response. As of today i have notified the ATF about theft within your organization, have a good day.

UPS "lost " a FN-FAL i shipped to MA say 10 years ago. Tracking showed in transit, yet no delivery to the address it said "delivered" to. UPS jerked me around for 5 min, till i said. Your driver and warehouse have no idea where it went. No problem. I have ATF on the other line and they will be handling the investigation from here. 5 min later, that lost in space rifle was located, go figure.

One of the main reasons there is a required next day delivery on hand guns was the high theft from within ups and fedex. Supposedly better oversight of firearm shipments would solve the issue.

I had this happen as well. Had a Colt M1911 in the wind for three days. Got a supervisor and told them it was a firearm and I would have to report it lost/stolen (it was insured to full value which was high).

Got a call back in 30 minutes. Package was located and was delivered in the next two days. They didn't care until they knew it was a gun. The value didn't even impress them--just the word "firearm" was all it took.

I know for a fact UPS has prohibited persons as employees because I've had issues dropping off packages (one guy wouldn't physically touch a P226 going back for warranty work). If anyone really looked at the law and what they do there would be issues. Of course, that would be bad for us... ;)

[Robb]

My post wasn't very clear. This was the response of the gal at PSA... "I just spoke to UPS and they have approved the claim. I am going to take your order across to our compliance department now and have it re-shipped.
Kind Regards"

At the moment, it appears PSA is working with me and all is well.

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

At the moment, it appears PSA is working with me and all is well.

I know elsewhere on the board is an "I hate PSA" thread, but they really have been my go-to for AR parts and what-not and I've had great service. [Dunno] I have a stripped lower from them floating around out there somewhere in UPS-land. It isn't due yet per their tracking number and I don't need it anytime soon. It was actually an accidental order, but a decent enough price I'll keep it. :)

[ChunkyMonkey]

My post wasn't very clear. This was the response of the gal at PSA... "I just spoke to UPS and they have approved the claim. I am going to take your order across to our compliance department now and have it re-shipped.
Kind Regards"

At the moment, it appears PSA is working with me and all is well.


Dispute it with your credit card anyway. The cc will follow up with them. I got manager's email, phone call ensuring me the same thing but PSA didn't send me the replacement item until I was being very obnoxious. Got the item 4 weeks after PSA email stating that its in the mail 'tomorrow.'

[Robb]

Well Hell, that's good to know. Thanks for the heads up on that one.

[Gman]

...too many people shopping online.
There's no such thing. UPS is in the shipping business. For every online shopper, it's a business opportunity. If they can't run their business well enough to take advantage of those opportunities, then the folks running UPS aren't doing their fiduciary duty for their shareholders.

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

There's no such thing. UPS is in the shipping business. For every online shopper, it's a business opportunity. If they can't run their business well enough to take advantage of those opportunities, then the folks running UPS aren't doing their fiduciary duty for their shareholders.


That could be said of any publicly traded corp that isn't nailing it. I'm not sure I'd call bad management that exactly. Does your company have the agility to scale up and down when your volume doubles temporarily and you have a strict time-frame?

[PugnacAutMortem]

That could be said of any publicly traded corp that isn't nailing it. I'm not sure I'd call bad management that exactly. Does your company have the agility to scale up and down when your volume doubles temporarily and you have a strict time-frame?

It's not like it was a sudden thing though. Christmas time is the same time every year...UPS just doesn't want to spend the money hiring seasonal workers.

[Robb]

Get this... I just received one of those automated UPS updates. Yup, you guessed it! This was shipped 11.27, supposidly UPS has settled a claim with PSA. PSA is supposed to be shipping a new lower. The automated message I just received said UPS just tried to deliver the package to the FFL.
Wow.
I think UPS may be going down the same path as the USPS.

[Gman]

That could be said of any publicly traded corp that isn't nailing it. I'm not sure I'd call bad management that exactly. Does your company have the agility to scale up and down when your volume doubles temporarily and you have a strict time-frame?
Yeah, because hiring temporary help during the Christmas shopping season is new and unique to retail and shipping. [Sarcasm2]

In other news, Butterball seems to be able to figure out that they get a lot more customer contacts around the last Thursday in November and staff accordingly.

There are a ton of businesses that have to adapt to the realities of our modern day society, unless you're the US Postal Service. You either adapt or die.

[MrPrena]

This holiday season was the worst in terms of delayed packaging all across the board. USPS wasn't an exception either.
One of my package had 7 business delay. Stuff I shipped Priority and 1st class had an average of 2 days of delay. Glad I did not receive any stupid feedbacks.

It is showing etail business is clearly a winner this 4Q.

[sneakerd]

Imho this is a whole lot of crying and whining about NOTHING. Supposedly they were overwhelmed when the packages exceeded their estimates by a huge margin. So- guess what- service suffered and a lot of stuff is late. So what. At least we have the ability to buy stuff on the computer, have it shipped to our house while we sit on our butts. It's just not a big deal.

[Double00]

It's not like it was a sudden thing though. Christmas time is the same time every year...UPS just doesn't want to spend the money hiring seasonal workers.

Not true. UPS screwed up big time. It had nothing to do with not hiring seasonal help. The system got overloaded plain and simple. I have been working 12hrs days since the beginning of Nov. It wasn't the lack of seasonal help.

[sellersm]

UPS is in a world of hurt... Take a look: http://www.naturalnews.com/043332_UPS_logistics_breakdown.html

[PugnacAutMortem]

Imho this is a whole lot of crying and whining about NOTHING. Supposedly they were overwhelmed when the packages exceeded their estimates by a huge margin. So- guess what- service suffered and a lot of stuff is late. So what. At least we have the ability to buy stuff on the computer, have it shipped to our house while we sit on our butts. It's just not a big deal.

So you are good with paying a company for a service, and then that company doesn't do what you paid them to do in the timeframe you paid them to do it?

You must be rich if people taking your money for a service and not following through doesn't bother you.

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

It's not like it was a sudden thing though. Christmas time is the same time every year...UPS just doesn't want to spend the money hiring seasonal workers.

Do you really think it is that?
http://upsjobs-problemsolved.com/home


Yeah, because hiring temporary help during the Christmas shopping season is new and unique to retail and shipping. [Sarcasm2]

In other news, Butterball seems to be able to figure out that they get a lot more customer contacts around the last Thursday in November and staff accordingly.

There are a ton of businesses that have to adapt to the realities of our modern day society, unless you're the US Postal Service. You either adapt or die.

Do you really think Butterball significantly increases their staffing around the last Thursday in November?
Which do you think is easier to predict? How many turkeys you are raising on your farms, and therefore need to stuff into sacks, or how many companies out there may or may not use your services and how many presents people may or may not buy this year as the economy and holiday retail cycles over the past few years? Shipping an unknown quantity of items all over the United states is JUST LIKE retailers staffing registers at Target and Kohl's, right?


Just think, if UPS hired a few of the folks here to manage these logistics, they wouldn't have to deal with with the backlash. Well, that's just not doing fiduciary duty for the shareholders.



Edit: And I'm not apologizing for them, but let's be serious and sincere for a moment in our critical thinking and criticisms of why this may have happened. Maybe their whole routing system did go down. Maybe the weather did impact some deliveries. But the stories I'm reading also include a lot of what Double00 is saying, too. Is this really the worst thing that can happen to you during the holidays? If so, count your blessings. Seriously.

[Gman]

Do you really think Butterball significantly increases their staffing around the last Thursday in November?
Absolutely. They even market their assistance hotline.

Hiring more men to staff calls was even a priority this year; http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/22600127-423/a-first-butterball-wants-men-talking-turkey-on-hotline.html

Face it, you're an apologist for UPS, even though you deny it. They failed at their own game. PERIOD.

http://youtu.be/mRAHa_Po0Kg

There was more to this than just Christmas presents;


Medicine didn't arrive (http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=28139873#1vwGKVZE1o5XQ1gF.99)

The backlog isn't just affecting Christmas presents, of course.

The Warren family of Heath, Texas, had to go a few days without special medicine their 14-year-old son needs in order to eat. "It was just sitting" at a UPS outlet in Mesquite, where the family finally picked it up, Patrick Warren told CNN affiliate WFAA.

[trlcavscout]

Holder probably stole it to sell to the cartels, gotta make that bonus quota!

[sneakerd]

Pugnac, it has nothing to do with the money or "being rich". Now- if I paid them for overnight, and it didn't get there, and it was important- I'm due a refund on the extra money I paid for fast delivery. I just don't worry about little stuff. By the way- yes I do have a package currently in UPS limbo. My point was that if you have the time to whine and complain because the delivery was not on time, and that's you're biggest issue, you're doing pretty well. Shit happens every day, and this is nothing in the big picture.

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

Absolutely. They even market their assistance hotline.

Hiring more men to staff calls was even a priority this year; http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/22600127-423/a-first-butterball-wants-men-talking-turkey-on-hotline.html

Face it, you're an apologist for UPS, even though you deny it. They failed at their own game. PERIOD.

<snip video>

There was more to this than just Christmas presents;

Fine. I'm an "apologist." And I obviously deny it.
OR, I just don't think it is this big crime against humanity.
Let's even go with "they failed." Think you'll use them again? I bet you will. $0.02

And as a former (but still licensed) pharmacist, I also don't have tons of sympathy for a family trying to ship meds that are available locally. Of course I understand why people do it and I get that they are occasionally heavily incented to do so. My own company does this. If it is so serious, though - go and buy it locally. That is an appeal to emotion that omits the obvious, and I'm not feeling sorry for them.



Lastly, do you really think some extra call center folks is a significant staffing increase? You said you do.
I guess I don't. But then again, I'm just a UPS apologist. Having said that, from your link:

But the line, which has grown from six operators to about 60 since it launched in 1981, has never hired men before.
to the corporate website: http://www.butterballcorp.com/corporate-information/facts/

Butterball employs 5,000 associates in its five plant locations and corporate offices.
So 60 extra in a corporation of 5,000 is a significant staffing increase. Fair enough and we can agree to disagree. [Beer]





It does beg the question, though, do you think UPS increased by at least 1.2%? Do you think their increase in volume was more or less than 1.2%?

[Gman]

I've previously had no option but to get medical equipment through UPS due to insurance requirements. The first wife had a uncuffed fenestrated tracheostomy tube that was needed to replace a cuffed unfenestrated tube several years ago. It arrived 2 months after her tube was removed. It sat in Kentucky for a couple of months. Lots of win.

My comparison with Butterball was something recently in the news and has a seasonal peak in business volume. You're making direct comparisons of 2 different business models to bolster your argument. What product does UPS create? What's that? They're just middle-men that deliver a service? Yeah, fail on the direct comp.

Many companies have seasonal peaks, including the one I work for. It's part of the business cycle. You forecast for it and scale to meet demand. UPS failed in a big and public way, no matter how you want to make excuses for them.

Whenever I have the option, I use FedEx. Whenever I buy from Amazon Prime, I get what they've arranged, UPS. Amazon is now reviewing their shipping options, as any responsible business should.

[osok-308]

Raise hell for sure, tell UPS that you'll report the claim not only to the ATF, but also the FBI (since it involves interstate commerce). That's what I would do.

[MrPrena]

Not a fan of 6sig, but I think FedEx and UPS should train their employees.
3.4 F**k up delivery out of 1 million package would be nice.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Six_Sigma_companies


Sigma level Sigma (with 1.5σ shift) DPMO Percent defective Percentage yield Short-term Cpk Long-term Cpk
1 -0.5 691,462 69% 31% 0.33 –0.17
2 0.5 308,538 31% 69% 0.67 0.17
3 1.5 66,807 6.7% 93.3% 1.00 0.5
4 2.5 6,210 0.62% 99.38% 1.33 0.83
5 3.5 233 0.023% 99.977% 1.67 1.17
6 4.5 3.4 0.00034% 99.99966% 2.00 1.5
7 5.5 0.019 0.0000019% 99.9999981% 2.33 1.83

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

I've previously had no option but to get medical equipment through UPS due to insurance requirements. The first wife had a uncuffed fenestrated tracheostomy tube that was needed to replace a cuffed unfenestrated tube several years ago. It arrived 2 months after her tube was removed. It sat in Kentucky for a couple of months. Lots of win.

My comparison with Butterball was something recently in the news and has a seasonal peak in business volume. You're making direct comparisons of 2 different business models to bolster your argument. What product does UPS create? What's that? They're just middle-men that deliver a service? Yeah, fail on the direct comp.

Many companies have seasonal peaks, including the one I work for. It's part of the business cycle. You forecast for it and scale to meet demand. UPS failed in a big and public way, no matter how you want to make excuses for them.

Whenever I have the option, I use FedEx. Whenever I buy from Amazon Prime, I get what they've arranged, UPS. Amazon is now reviewing their shipping options, as any responsible business should.

Wait…what? [ROFL2] *I* didn't bring up butterball at all to make any comparisons or bolster arguments!!! [LOL]You did! [ROFL1] Reply #28. [facepalm]I would never have addressed such an absurd comparison without a prompt. Sorry it didn't work out for you, but please don't blame me for that.


Your wife had more than one option. You can also go to the doctor or a hospital if it is emergent. Or, you can buy it locally and submit a claim with documentation on why you couldn't wait.
Feel free to tell me I am wrong again, but I do work for an insurance company now and am very familiar with the claims process both as an employee and as a cancer patient. We don't have to agree on this either.



The truth is, I actually don't care for UPS myself. However, having some formal training in economics and supply chain management as well as real world experience in managing supply and demand, I guess I do (personally) have a soft spot for unexpected demand spikes. You are very pissed at them, and call them a failure times several, but I also notice you aren't quite pissed enough to take your own business elsewhere, for all your complaints. I am not either. Like yourself, I use them for amazon prime. I hate the hours and inconveniences UPS has, but for all their faults, FedEx (which is more reliable) is even less convenient for me to ship with. USPS is unbelievably convenient and the least reliable of the bunch. So, every time the decision is a balance of these points. It would seem you do the same, as does Amazon. I don't expect amazon drones to be in Golden (or even Denver) anytime soon. I don't expect a big comeback from DHL, nor do I expect FedEx to suddenly take over that market. For all the complaining, I expect UPS to get better, but the status quo to be maintained.

Incidentally, if you are so adept at predicting seasonal peaks and forecasting business cycles - why wouldn't you have just shipped sooner and with a different carrier and avoided yourself all this heartache? [Dunno]


I stand by my original thought again - if this is the biggest complaint of your holiday season, seriously, count your blessings. [2cents]

[Gman]

The point was made that seasonal peaks were the problem. Retailers and shippers make most of their money during the holiday season. Car dealers have seasonal peaks. Jewelry stores have seasonal peaks. Yes, even turkey producers have seasonal peaks. This shouldn't have been such a big surprise to UPS as many lines of business have to deal with seasonal peaks. Get it?


Incidentally, if you are so adept at predicting seasonal peaks and forecasting business cycles - why wouldn't you have just shipped sooner and with a different carrier and avoided yourself all this heartache? [Dunno]

The wife's family makes their wish lists on Amazon and we order early. I didn't have anything come late for the holidays.

UPS will reap the rewards of their business failings whether we disagree that this will be filed as 'no big deal'. The business side of this discussion doesn't forgive so easily.

If you really want to talk about a crappy shipping model, how 'bout the arrangement where UPS ships to the USPS hub for delivery to the final addressee (UPS Mail Innovations). [panic]

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

The point was made that seasonal peaks were the problem. Retailers and shippers make most of their money during the holiday season. Car dealers have seasonal peaks. Jewelry stores have seasonal peaks. Yes, even turkey producers have seasonal peaks. This shouldn't have been such a big surprise to UPS as many lines of business have to deal with seasonal peaks. Get it?

I totally do, don't get me wrong. I just don't think UPS scales with the agility of Kohl's / Target or a call center somewhere. To your point, they aren't "making" anything, true. But shipping is unbelievably complicated. I guess I have some respect for it knowing it is way outside my own wheelhouse. In other words, I sure wouldn't want to own that problem.



The wife's family makes their wish lists on Amazon and we order early. I didn't have anything come late for the holidays.

UPS will reap the rewards of their business failings whether we disagree that this will be filed as 'no big deal'. The business side of this discussion doesn't forgive so easily.

If you really want to talk about a crappy shipping model, how 'bout the arrangement where UPS ships to the USPS hub for delivery to the final addressee (UPS Mail Innovations). [panic]

I can't really disagree with much here. I think most of this is correct, and the only minor counter I'd even have is that USPS got pretty beat up in all this as well this holiday season. Probably less because no one expects much of them.
The shipping world is basically an oligopoly with none of the players primed to take over completely if one were to fail, and all three have nicely carved out their niche. So while I think you are correct that they'll reap the "rewards" of this in the business world, until a serious game-changer comes along (the drone thing maybe?), I'm just not sure I expect radical improvement. [Dunno]

Agree 100% with the UPS -> USPS hub. That is some serious BS. But, like everyone else, I basically just take it.

[Gman]

The drone delivery model is totally unrealistic. It's a way to get your name in the news, but it's unsustainable.

Order an item to a known location and steal the drone. GPS location doesn't account for weather, including wind. Object detection and avoidance issues, mechanical/electrical malfunctions, lawsuits, etc.

Has anyone seen the flying cars we were promised half a decade ago?

Sent from my tactical assault shmart phone

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

I don't think it is going to be that either, but I like the thought process.
Email basically killed letters for personal correspondence, what can we do for shipping that is unlike today?

I expect my mattel hoverboard by summer, 2015. I do not expect the Cubs to win the world series, however.

[sneakerd]

Careful when you throw knives at my beloved Cubbies.

[Double00]

Can't wait until the first drone drops it's parcel onto a big pile of dog s**t.

[clublights]

Have not read every post but this is what I gotta say ....


When you deal with 16.3 MILLION packages a day mistakes are bound to happen ...

As for the should have scaled BETTER.. ( they did scale just not enough apparently)....

Those same share holders that should be " screaming for their heads" would be calling for blood if they over staffed and wasted profits. it's a double edged sword.

[clublights]

GPS location doesn't account for weather, including wind.



What does GPS have to do with the weather ESP wind?

wind sleet or snow the GPS grid stays the same .

[Gman]

What does GPS have to do with the weather ESP wind?

wind sleet or snow the GPS grid stays the same .
Have you seen the Amazon drone demo? I'm sure those puppies will handle in weather just fine going to their GPS coordinates. [shithitsfan]


http://youtu.be/Le46ERPMlWU

[clublights]

Have you seen the Amazon drone demo? I'm sure those puppies will handle in weather just fine going to their GPS coordinates. [shithitsfan]


Different story ...


I read ( and the way you wrote it ) that GPS has a problem in weather.... not the delivery vehicle ....

but yes the Amazon "drone" will likely have issues with high winds. I would tend to think that they would not deploy them on bad weather days. they are meant to be local to distro centers only ( less then 10 .. maybe less then 5 miles I can't recall which) they would know the current weather be for take off.

[Gman]

What I wrote was in the context of the Amazon drone strategy.

It sure would be interesting for Flight for Life or other pilots with those things buzzing around.

http://youtu.be/F9_vxLNooa4

[Graves]

There's friggin' thieves out there that will follow delivery trucks and snatch the packages they just dropped off, hoping they'll score something of value. If it's something the thief can't use or quickly resell, they'll toss it, regardless of what it is or actually cost. An AK rail? "WTF is this? Toss it."

This. The new did boards they carry won't let them mark it as delivered unless the package is within 5' or so from the address.

[Graves]

It's not like it was a sudden thing though. Christmas time is the same time every year...UPS just doesn't want to spend the money hiring seasonal workers.

It isn't the same every year. Every day this peak season yielded more volume than our peak day last year. And as for seasonal employees...we STILL have over 130 rental vehicles on the road, and peak should ended the day after Christmas given last year's record. I guess the rentals will be used for a couple more weeks. With 2-300k pcs moving through there a day, I'm sure we're bound to make a few mistakes...

ETA: Im only talking about the commerce city location.

[jerrymrc]

To this old guy this is funny stuff. Saying that basically the only game in town should prepare for the "worst case possible" or they will go out of business is absurd. Only 3 players in this game and the instant, want it now crowd was miffed because their order on Sunday did not get there Tuesday.[LOL]We can play this any way one wants from the Hospital that does not have enough staff waiting for the tornado to produce patients in the middle of nowhere so they will be replaced to all the company's that do not have enough powder or primers or ammo on hand because of the rush after someone shoots up a school or get's re-elected.

They knew the election was coming and had 4 years to prepare for it. They were unable to met the sudden demand so now I wait for all the new company's to replace them because if you fail (even for a couple of days) "someone will replace you" has been said.

No bullets, powder, primers, ammo for months and all most did was sit around going "please, can we get some" instead of "we wont stand for this and heads are going to roll" "you can be replaced" "you should have known" "I want it NOW". Then when the stuff you had ordered 6 months ago shows up you were happy as a pig in shit and grateful it came.

I sent a package on Saturday 1300 miles away and fully expected it to not get there until this weekend. It was delivered on Xmas eve by the USPS.

Once again I see a bunch of misplaced anger and "pile on" mentality about this issue. And it is still funny how the instant society is evolving. [Coffee] Just a thought from an old guy.

[sneakerd]

Word.

[hollohas]

Losing a Christmas package for a few days is no big deal, but there are some legitimate beefs with UPS this month.

Someone already mentioned the mail order RX problem. Another countered by saying it's no big deal, buy it local and file an insurance claim. I'm sorry, but it isn't that easy. Many insurance companies require you buy through their mail order pharmacy or you pay full price. Fine, if its an emergency you go pay full price local...only if you can get in touch with your doctor to get a new Rx sent to a local pharmacy. Good luck with that during Christmas. Then filing a claim? Again good luck. The insurance company will say, "we're sorry, we already paid for the first set of meds shipped, we're not paying for the 2nd set bought locally". The insurance company does not care if the meds are late. I know this because it's happened to me and this wasn't during peak season. Was I able to get the meds? Sure was but at a major unnecessary cost because my package was lost for a couple weeks.

Example #2. Legitimate businesses suffer when packages get lost too. I sell supplies to contractors. A large amount of those supplies are not available locally so we order them. They base their schedules on when those supplies are going to arrive along with the owner of the building that needs to be completed. When a building is supposed to be completed by a certain date so the owner can occupy it and start making money to pay their bills, it's pretty important. When that date isn't met because some materials didn't arrive after being lost for a week+ at UPS in December, the contractor can face fines. That happened to one of my contractor customers earlier this month.

This country is working on a "just in time" inventory model. The only reason they are working on this model is because the shipping companies have promised delivery dates. When the shippers break the promise for any reason, then they cost people money.

Not getting a Christmas present in time is the fault of the buyer because they didn't buy earlier, but at the same time, if they were promised a delivery date which was subsequently broken, don't they have a reason to be mad? UPS and others made those guarantees and then broke them...UPS certainly has a responsibility to honor those commitments. From what I've read, it sounds like they are honoring it to those that did fall outside the guaranteed date by refunding the shipping costs. For late Christmas presents, that's all the "apology" needs to be.

[ben4372]

It's funny, most good stuff has to be ordered. We rely on these shippers because we almost have too. The whole economy is relying on them? They know they got us by the short hairs. What I hate is having to get insurance just in case they eff up. Does Dominoes require insurance in case they mess up the order or leave a hair in the sauce? Why do we pay extra for them to fix their own mistakes? Go brown.

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

Careful when you throw knives at my beloved Cubbies.


Haha. Take heart, the only thing worse is my beloved Brewers. [Shake]

[TheBelly]

This country is working on a "just in time" inventory model. The only reason they are working on this model is because the shipping companies have promised delivery dates. When the shippers break the promise for any reason, then they cost people money. .

Ultimately, this is the problem. In a race to be efficient, we have lost a bit of effectiveness. I say this is the problem because the average first-world human these days simply cannot handle it when they can't have both.

Fast. Cheap. Easy. Pick two because that's all that you're going to get.

[jerrymrc]

Losing a Christmas package for a few days is no big deal, but there are some legitimate beefs with UPS this month.

Someone already mentioned the mail order RX problem. Another countered by saying it's no big deal, buy it local and file an insurance claim. I'm sorry, but it isn't that easy. Many insurance companies require you buy through their mail order pharmacy or you pay full price.

Example #2. Legitimate businesses suffer when packages get lost too. I sell supplies to contractors. A large amount of those supplies are not available locally so we order them. They base their schedules on when those supplies are going to arrive along with the owner of the building that needs to be completed.

#3. This country is working on a "just in time" inventory model. The only reason they are working on this model is because the shipping companies have promised delivery dates. When the shippers break the promise for any reason, then they cost people money.

#4. Not getting a Christmas present in time is the fault of the buyer because they didn't buy earlier, but at the same time, if they were promised a delivery date which was subsequently broken, don't they have a reason to be mad? UPS and others made those guarantees and then broke them...UPS certainly has a responsibility to honor those commitments. From what I've read, it sounds like they are honoring it to those that did fall outside the guaranteed date by refunding the shipping costs. For late Christmas presents, that's all the "apology" needs to be.

Shortened it up a little. Makes it simpler to respond.

The Meds. Did not know that some company's REQUIRE a person to buy from there mail order. I guess for the more common ones that is why my local king soopers is cheaper than what the co-pay is.

#2. Yep, I fully understand and for some things it can be a pain. My little shop overnights many items because the .gov regulations say I can't stock it. so when a "one of it's kind" piece of medical equipment need a part it costs $4-600 to ship the $150 item. this will also tie into #3.

#3. I still fume about this one. I could type for pages on this. For a safeway in that everything that is not pilfered runs through a cash register this seems to work but when you tie it to a hospital where every nurse has to push buttons to make sure the inventory and ordering is correct good luck. We have been on a system for 8 years now and still have issues with the human interface.

#4. We have been over the fun and games of the 3 shippers many times. Everyone has there horror stories and mine is Fed-Ex. I think the MSM blow up of it stems from people using more online purchases during the year and not thinking, everyone else had the same idea of last min shopping and "guaranteed" delivery. Throw in a little weather and some did not get there stuff on time. [BooHoo]

[Double00]

To this old guy this is funny stuff. Saying that basically the only game in town should prepare for the "worst case possible" or they will go out of business is absurd. Only 3 players in this game and the instant, want it now crowd was miffed because their order on Sunday did not get there Tuesday.[LOL]We can play this any way one wants from the Hospital that does not have enough staff waiting for the tornado to produce patients in the middle of nowhere so they will be replaced to all the company's that do not have enough powder or primers or ammo on hand because of the rush after someone shoots up a school or get's re-elected.

They knew the election was coming and had 4 years to prepare for it. They were unable to met the sudden demand so now I wait for all the new company's to replace them because if you fail (even for a couple of days) "someone will replace you" has been said.

No bullets, powder, primers, ammo for months and all most did was sit around going "please, can we get some" instead of "we wont stand for this and heads are going to roll" "you can be replaced" "you should have known" "I want it NOW". Then when the stuff you had ordered 6 months ago shows up you were happy as a pig in shit and grateful it came.

I sent a package on Saturday 1300 miles away and fully expected it to not get there until this weekend. It was delivered on Xmas eve by the USPS.

Once again I see a bunch of misplaced anger and "pile on" mentality about this issue. And it is still funny how the instant society is evolving. [Coffee] Just a thought from an old guy.

+1

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

Someone already mentioned the mail order RX problem. Another countered by saying it's no big deal, buy it local and file an insurance claim. I'm sorry, but it isn't that easy. Many insurance companies require you buy through their mail order pharmacy or you pay full price. Fine, if its an emergency you go pay full price local...only if you can get in touch with your doctor to get a new Rx sent to a local pharmacy. Good luck with that during Christmas. Then filing a claim? Again good luck. The insurance company will say, "we're sorry, we already paid for the first set of meds shipped, we're not paying for the 2nd set bought locally". The insurance company does not care if the meds are late. I know this because it's happened to me and this wasn't during peak season. Was I able to get the meds? Sure was but at a major unnecessary cost because my package was lost for a couple weeks.


I never said it was easy or cheap. Being truly sick isn't.
Just a few tips - instead of the headache of calling your doc yourself, have your pharmacy call his office. Also, let them reverse the claim on the other meds.
It still isn't easy, but it beats taking the absolute hardest route.

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

Ultimately, this is the problem. In a race to be efficient, we have lost a bit of effectiveness. I say this is the problem because the average first-world human these days simply cannot handle it when they can't have both.

Fast. Cheap. Easy. Pick two because that's all that you're going to get.

Yep. Nailed it.
And I agree, this really is "first world problems" in a nutshell.
Imagine describing this problem to your Grandparents when they were in their 20s. They'd be absolutely blown away.

[Skip]

Yep. Nailed it.
And I agree, this really is "first world problems" in a nutshell.
Imagine describing this problem to your Grandparents when they were in their 20s. They'd be absolutely blown away.

True!

But Gramps could also mail-order a 1911 from Sears. :) (Now why he didn't and put them in his will to me is a conversation we'll have to have in heaven) So maybe our first world problems are trending third world?

I think Gramps would also wonder why we value cheap shit from China, trust paper money, and most people can't even fix a flat tire. Hell, he'd kick me in the ass for buying a car that doesn't even have a spare tire!

They'd be blown away by a lot.

IMHO, there is a difference between something being "late" and being "lost." Going back to the OP... Losing something of value (especially a firearm) is intolerable. Something being late a day or two is forgivable--happens to me all the time. I usually don't complain until I can rule out a reasonable delay and am worried it might be lost.

I'm happy to hear this is working out for the OP. We know a receiver is technically a firearm, but in reality it's a chunk of metal and I can't imagine anyone at UPS is going to break his back tracking it down knowing this (weight and size).

[Jeffrey Lebowski]

Excellent points.