Road Cycling - UPS Ruined my Bike

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Gripped
07-21-04, 12:09 PM
Abstract: Don’t use UPS to ship bikes, use FedEx instead. Buying insurance is a waste of your money since they don’t pay anyway. Bike boxes aren’t designed to ship bikes “one at a time.”
http://www.hoyerfamily.com/images/merckx_1.jpg
http://www.hoyerfamily.com/images/merckx_2.jpg
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In May of this year, I bought an Eddy Merckx cyclocross bicycle through Ebay. The purchase price of the bicycle was $1,500 plus shipping. I suggested that the seller use FedEx Ground since that is the cheapest method to ship bicycles. He told me that he had heard some of his acquaintances complain about FedEx Ground and that he preferred UPS. He had a UPS account and had used UPS for many years without incident. I assented.
On Monday, May 17, 2004, the seller shipped the bicycle to me using UPS. He insured the bike for the full purchase price of $1,500. I received the bike on Friday, May 21, 2004. When I unpacked the bike, I discovered that there was damage on the down tube. The damage amounted to two dents and some scratches to the decals and finish. The damage occurred when the shipping box was compressed and the hub of one of the wheels was pressed into the down tube. Each dent must have occurred during a separate compression event. It would have been very upsetting if the damage were merely cosmetic. However, the damage may have compromised the structural integrity of the bicycle frame.
A frame is tolerant to some dents but a dent on the down tube of at least the size of a quarter will seriously compromise the frame integrity. I purchased this bike to race. Racing, especially cyclocross racing, puts high stresses on bicycle frames. Racing this frame will cause it to fail.
The seller has shipped bicycles before. He packed the bicycle in a box specifically designed to ship bicycles (a bike box). He put padding on all the frame tubes, bagged and taped all loose items, and cut cardboard baffles to prevent the wheels from shifting. In other words, he packed the bike very well. In fact, he put padding around the down tube and there is a hole in the padding where the hub was pressed through. There is no question that the damage occurred in transit.
The seller and I talked about the damage and he filed a claim with UPS. The seller also formulated a plan to repair the bike. He would be able to purchase a new frame through his sponsor’s bicycle shop for cost. He would then ship me the frame for a total cost of about $750-$800 – far shy of the insured amount of $1,500. A UPS employee came out to my house and inspected the bike and the packing materials.
On June 22, 2004, one month and one day after I received the bike, UPS informed the seller that the insurance company denied the claim. He appealed. After playing telephone tag endlessly with the insurance representaive of Crawford and Co. (the insurance company UPS uses), he finally found out July 15, 2004 that the claim was still denied. The insurance agent stated that UPS stipulates that all packages must be buffered by 2 inches of foam packing. The agent further claimed that bike boxes were designed to be transported en mass on pallets and that they were unsuitable for standard shipping.
I am very disappointed that the claim was denied. The bicycle was well packed. In fact, a bike shop owner saw the packing job and commented that it was more than they do when shipping bikes. The bike was obviously damaged in transit through significant compression loading. No matter what monetary resolution the seller and I agree to, the bike frame is unusable for racing. It took us almost two months to learn of the final resolution. Nothing about this experience has been good.
Going into the claim process, I speculated that there would be three possible outcomes: 1) UPS paid the claim in a timely manner and everyone was happy, 2) UPS paid the claim only after some prodding, or 3) UPS denied the claim. I thought that the third outcome was the least likely. At this point, I have no recourse other than to let as many people as possible hear about my poor experience with UPS.
Aw man that sucks. Have you tried taking them to court over this? Or maybe contact a local news or radio station.
Insurance companies are vile. They operate to do one thing and one thing only: rip you off.
I'm constantly amazed at the BS that UPS calls "standards" When we receive new bikes at the shop were lucky if there is any foam at all in the box (Haro's being a notable exception) and these are shipped INTERNATIONALLY with the final leg being either a local freight company, UPS, or Fed Ex (depending on supplier and order size) If they can deliver those bikes unharmed 95% of the time they should be able to handle a bike that is packed much better. Also UPS CONSISTENTLY FAILS to mind the directional package markings (THIS END UP) on ANY package they ship. I've mentioned this to our drivers on several occasions and they just shrug. It's no surprise to me that they are trying to screw you on this.
I'll weigh in on the pallet comment...
I worked in a LBS for 5 years. Every single bike that came in our door was individually packed in a standard bike box with far less padding then described above and delivered by a standard courier guy. In other words, no special treatment. So right there UPS is full of bull.
I can't remember what happened with the inevitable damaged deliveries (very few mind you). I think the manufacturer credited us so we could sell it at a special price.
I received my bike via UPS, and upon receiving it i notice the box was all dented and stuff. Good thing the seller took it to a bike shop and had it professsionally boxed. There was still some scratches, but there were all from the original owner. He didnt take good care of it.
Btw my box was marked Fragile
I'll weigh in on the pallet comment...
I worked in a LBS for 5 years. Every single bike that came in our door was individually packed in a standard bike box with far less padding then described above and delivered by a standard courier guy. In other words, no special treatment. So right there UPS is full of bull.
I can't remember what happened with the inevitable damaged deliveries (very few mind you). I think the manufacturer credited us so we could sell it at a special price.
That's excatly right. We generally sent the damaged items back to the supplier.
I received my bike via UPS, and upon receiving it i notice the box was all dented and stuff. Good thing the seller took it to a bike shop and had it professsionally boxed. There was still some scratches, but there were all from the original owner. He didnt take good care of it.
Btw my box was marked FragileI have a buddy who was a UPS employee, he's told me that marking a package "Fragile" is the same as painting a bullseye on it.
Smoothie104
07-21-04, 01:00 PM
I went round and round with Crawford and Co.
You need to get a name and number for the person that denied your claim, talk to them, and/or their supervisor. I had a smiliar incident when shipping some motorcycle parts, they said "in suffiecient packaging" etc... I took digital photos of the box, with the corner crushed in. Someone obviously dropped the box on the corner, the box was 3 feet by 4 feet, so it took a pretty good whack to crush the corner. I got my money finally, and i got the feeling that all the claims are denied initally, and its always blamed on the packaging. You have to start working the chain of command and get to someone who can actually do something.
Good luck. Keep us posted.
Insurance companies are vile. They operate to do one thing and one thing only: rip you off.
Let's not overstate things. Some insurance companies are shady, but many of the provide a good service. That said, it sounds like this company might be one of the shady ones. They are trying to find reasons to deny the claim in this case. Get your ducks in a row. Photograph the damage and the packaging, and then get some bike shop guys (several) to indicate the typical packing of bikes when being shipped. If possible, have them sign a statement about shipping practices in front of a notary. Get the seller to give you the pictures of the bike before it was packed (if available), to prove the damage took place in transit. Also, look at the policy to determine what it says and read any exclusion of coverage very carefully. If it says packages must be packed to a standard of care, but that standard isn't defined, then the insurance company is not the arbiter of what that standard is. Additionally, if the standard is defined but the standard is unreasonable, and UPS did not indicate to you that the package was not up to this standard nor warn you of the potential denail on that basis, you can probably make the case that coverage applies despite the exclusion of coverage, since your understanding was that it was professionally packed, and thus should have met the expectations. This is a contract of adhesion, meaning that the insurance company had all the knowledge and power in drafting the contract. Thus, when you go to court, any statements that are considered to be ambiguous will be interpreted in favor of the consumer.
Assuming everything you have said is the true, the item was packed to industry standards, and the item was damaged in transit.
Since the damage was only to the frame, the company will probably offer to settle for the cost of a new frame, the 700 or so. I think that's all they are required to pay, since that is the extent of the damage. If after talking to an adjuster the issue is still not settled, ask the claim rep for their name and number so that your lawyer (have the name of the lawyer & the number ready, and if possible, have their card) will be in contact with them about the claim and the filing of bad-faith.
Be sure to use the words bad-faith, since those are dreaded words in the industry. Bad faith is defined as willfully violating the terms of a contract with the intent to do harm. Most likely this will take a lot of time and effort on your part if you do it without a lawyer, but you should be able to get the claim paid. If you must hire a lawyer, be aware that you will most likely not see all the money you are wanting, since they will take 30-40% of your settlement.
Good luck. I think your biggest problem here is that you are not the insured in this case, the seller is. If it comes to that, insist that the seller replace the frame since they were in charge of the shipping, and they are responsible for the exclusion of coverage. Either way, you should not have to pay full price for a damaged bike when it was damaged in a manner outside your control.
[Edited to add: Just so we are clear on this, I am not a lawyer, and this should not be considered to be legal advice or counsel]
****. when i had a computer shipped to me through them last year they smashed. they still haven't payed. i'd sue if i could afford it. they refused to even respond. that's $170 extra down the drian. personally i am of the boycott ups attitude. i don't trust any popular shipper. aren't there some shippers that actually take care of the shipment? airborne express or soemthing?
The only reason i choose UPS was because I like their tracking system. The USPS one is a joke.
Next time I will definitely try FedEx. They have an excellent tracking system and I usually get my package a day earlier than scheduled.
[Edited to add: Just so we are clear on this, I am not a lawyer, and this should not be considered to be legal advice or counsel]
Only a lawyer would add that to the end of a post in hindsight. :p
The only reason i choose UPS was because I like their tracking system. The USPS one is a joke.
Next time I will definitely try FedEx. They have an excellent tracking system and I usually get my package a day earlier than scheduled.
I happen to like the USPS binary tracking system.
7/21/2004 2:43 PM EST.
Tracking # 23X38EL9382K938
Your package:
(X) Has not been delivered.
(_) Has been delivered.
...jeff
07-21-04, 02:42 PM
Terrible luck Gripped. I for one have recieved two bikes via UPS, both in excellent condition.. :\
Let's not overstate things. Some insurance companies are shady, but many of the provide a good service.
Well yes. You're right. I used to work for a very large Insurance company and I got to see how processes were run internally and it left a very very sour taste in my mouth which tends to colour everything with respect to insurance companies. I just don't trust them!
Only a lawyer would add that to the end of a post in hindsight. :p
Or someone who worked for an insurance company that was sued for "providing legal advice" to claimants because they sent a flier to them suggesting that they didn't need a lawyer, but if they chose to use one, they should find out what the company settlement offer was, and negotiate a fee that excluded that initial settlement.
Corsaire
07-21-04, 02:56 PM
UPS has already a bad rap, i see it all the time at my workplace. You're lucky if your package makes it passed the gorillas.
I know a guy who works at UPS loading trucks, his boss tells him to get it done, no matter how, in the end what matters is how fast they load the trucks than caring for your package.
FedEx has a better reputation.
Corsaire
I happen to like the USPS binary tracking system.
7/21/2004 2:43 PM EST.
Tracking # 23X38EL9382K938
Your package:
(X) Has not been delivered.
(_) Has been delivered.
really? i never liked them because they arent as detailed as ups and espicially fedex
Retro Grouch
07-21-04, 04:58 PM
My personal experience has been quite different.
During the time that I owned my own shop, we received over 1,000 bicycles via UPS. During that time we had exactly ZERO damage claims. Not even one. I wish that my experience with some other freight companies was as good.
Sometime take a close look at how a bike is packaged at the factory. Each one of those packaging gizmos serves a purpose. How many people, for example, bother to put those little plastic thingies over the rear axle. The factories wouldn't package pointy things like pedals and quick release skewers in a little cardboard box if a plastic bag was adequate.
I don't know how to reconcile my personal experience with all of the horror stories that crop up on bulletin boards, like this one, several times a year. The one irrefutable fact that keeps coming back to me, however, is 1,000 bikes received without any shipping damage claims.
gcasillo
07-21-04, 05:04 PM
Words of advice:
1) Don't ship via UPS.
2) Don't ship via UPS.
3) If you have no other choice, take the package to its destination YOURSELF. Distance is irrelevant.
4) If the gun to your head is about to go off, then pack the item as if it will be dropped off a radio tower, dragged behind one of those brown trucks from one end of a time zone to the other, and penetrated like a pornstar short on cash. Then give your package to the friendly if indifferent person at the UPS counter, say four Our Fathers and seven Hail Marys, and hope you've accrued enough karma to see your package to its destination.
Don't do UPS if you can ever help it. Period.
I recently bought a bottom bracket from repartocorse.com. They ship UPS. It arrived late (as expected). I wrote a letter to repartocorse.com explaining to them that UPS would stand between them and a loyal customer. Unfortunate, but that's what it comes to.
ke422azn
07-21-04, 05:35 PM
why dont you just repaint that, its only cosmetically damaged.
why dont you just repaint that, its only cosmetically damaged.
i think the second pics shows alittle dent and the first one has a deep jagged scratch.
washed up
07-21-04, 07:03 PM
First off, find out the exact relationship between Crawford & Co and UPS. I don't think Crawford is an insurance co. I think they are just an independant appraisal company and they work for insurance companies who don't have field adjustors. If this is the case you may be able to plead your case directly to the insurance company.
Secondly, don't take no for an answer as said above. If necessary it is very inexpensive to file in small claims court and it can be a pita for them.
operator
07-21-04, 08:10 PM
So the moral of the story is don't buy anything online...?
Downhill Racer
07-21-04, 08:20 PM
You need to review the insurance agreement. If you paid UPS for insurance and they didn't tell you the insurance was an outside company, UPS is the insurer. If they pay a third pary to limit thier liability that doesn't affect your contract with UPS. Deal directly with UPS (or let your attorney deal directly with UPS) and get the names and titles of everyone you talk to. Don't deal with the insurance company, they don't make thier money paying claims.
bianchi_rider
07-21-04, 08:59 PM
[Edited to add: Just so we are clear on this, I am not a lawyer, and this should not be considered to be legal advice or counsel]
And here I was going to ask what your retainer fee was, and if you could send me your card should I ever need your services... But since you are not a lawyer, and tho you talk and sound like a Lawyer, maybe you should consider being a lawyer.....
TriDevil
07-21-04, 09:33 PM
I too had a bike shipped UPS last summer. I got it and the rear wheel had been farely well whacked. Way out of true, a spoke or two bent. The box had a big hole in it where the rear wheel was, a lot of the box had been poked through or crushed. I got reimbursed for it but I got the impression UPS seemed to believe themselves to be capable of no wrong. They made the bike shop pay for it. I was amazed at that. It was blatantly obvious some 'what can brown do for you?' man rolled it off the back of the truck. I use fedex, cheaper and havent had any problems. If I did more traveling with my bike I would very seriously considered one of those bomb proof hard cases.
Interesting...
I own a computer company and so my shipments are fragile. I am also in Canada so I guess that makes a difference as I normally deal with Purolator. I have dealt with the same purolator guy for the last 3 years. I just moved and am hoping the new one is as good.
The guy always took extra care of my stuff because I took the time to talk to him and what not, is there a way to tell if this stuff was crushed on the loading side or the delivering side of things?
Btw, I agree with the guy who said to talk to a supervisor and keep working on appealing. I have a part time job at a credit card company and the only way to get anything done is to be the most aggressive and loudest customer. Unfortunatly :(
Chad
I suggest you go down to your nearby LBS and ask if you can photograph a bike as it come out of the original shipping carton (preferably delivered by UPS) so you will have a comparison between how your bike was packed and the 'industry standard'. If your bike was packed similarly, then you may have some good ammunition with regard to your claim.
It's a shame that th eseller apparently is taking no responsibility here. Offering to sell you another frame is hardly a suitable remedy. After all, he is the one who packed the bike. I think you should be discussing the return of the bike for a refund.
silverbullet84
07-23-04, 02:46 PM
First off, find out the exact relationship between Crawford & Co and UPS. I don't think Crawford is an insurance co. I think they are just an independant appraisal company and they work for insurance companies who don't have field adjustors. If this is the case you may be able to plead your case directly to the insurance company.
Secondly, don't take no for an answer as said above. If necessary it is very inexpensive to file in small claims court and it can be a pita for them.
Get as much information as you can about who you talk to, supervisor, location, etc. A cheap alternative which I have used before is to get a cheap telephone conversation recorder from a place like radio shack, and record the phone calls you have with the insurance company. YOU MUST TELL THE PERSON YOU ARE SPEAKING TO THAT THE CONVERSATION IS BEING RECORDED!!! Once that is established, say your name, the date, and have the person you are speaking to identify themself. Often, people have a huge change of heart when they know that what they say can be used against them in a legal battle.
Here in NJ, claims under $2,000 qualify to be heard in small claims court. File a claim against them, it usually costs under $50, and if they do not show up for court you win a default judgement. It sucks that you have to go through all of this, but that's the legal system in the US. Good luck.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer, and this should not be considered professional legal advice I am simply reflecting my own personal experiences with bad businesses and the **** they make us go through to make a problem go away.
cyclezealot
07-23-04, 02:55 PM
I have been furious with UPS for over 20 years..An incident I shall never forget...Sent my grandmother her Christmas present..Forget now what it was...It arrived broken...Wanted to turn in a claim....
Had to b*itch at the manager of the Ypsilanti UPS office....That manager claimed my grandmother broke it and was trying get reinbursement for her actions...
I have never used UPS ever since.Whether at home or work....Man I was angry...
Dahon.Steve
07-23-04, 04:58 PM
I received my bike via UPS, and upon receiving it i notice the box was all dented and stuff. Good thing the seller took it to a bike shop and had it professsionally boxed. There was still some scratches, but there were all from the original owner. He didnt take good care of it.
Btw my box was marked Fragile
My brother worked for a couple of weeks at UPS and told me NEVER put with word "Fragile" on the box because those are the ones that get tossed the hardest! He saw workers who would step on an drop boxes with the word Fragile on purpose. They considered those words to be an insult and they weren't going to work harder for anyone!
Dahon.Steve
07-23-04, 05:03 PM
UPS has already a bad rap, i see it all the time at my workplace. You're lucky if your package makes it passed the gorillas.
I know a guy who works at UPS loading trucks, his boss tells him to get it done, no matter how, in the end what matters is how fast they load the trucks than caring for your package.
FedEx has a better reputation.
Corsaire
Agreed. UPS is like working in a sweat shop. Boxes get tossed as if the only thing inside were worthless rocks. Fragile boxes get worse treatment. The attitude is, "how dare they write the world fragile and make me work harder for the same pay"!
Dahon.Steve
07-23-04, 05:09 PM
Here in NJ, claims under $2,000 qualify to be heard in small claims court. File a claim against them, it usually costs under $50, and if they do not show up for court you win a default judgement. It sucks that you have to go through all of this, but that's the legal system in the US. Good luck.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer, and this should not be considered professional legal advice I am simply reflecting my own personal experiences with bad businesses and the **** they make us go through to make a problem go away.
You can't go to a lawyer for this case. Are you kidding me. Maybe a paralegal might take this case but forget the lawyer.
Three words: SMALL CLAIMS COURT.
I doubt UPS will have a lawyer represent this case and will settle. Ask for a higher number than what you want and see what happens.
yup, small claims. You will win and get your money back.
washed up
07-23-04, 09:58 PM
Just another thing to think about. Who would have to file suit? The person who shipped the item with UPS? or you the buyer? Might be the person who shipped the item as they were the one with the relationship or contract with UPS. UPS may argue that they did not owe the purchaser anything but they did have an obligation to the seller who purchased their services. Just something else to think ablut before running off to court. Want to make sure all your ducks are in a row.
Trek Rider
07-23-04, 10:06 PM
Just another thing to think about. Who would have to file suit? The person who shipped the item with UPS? or you the buyer? Might be the person who shipped the item as they were the one with the relationship or contract with UPS. UPS may argue that they did not owe the purchaser anything but they did have an obligation to the seller who purchased their services. Just something else to think ablut before running off to court. Want to make sure all your ducks are in a row.
I just checked their website and it's the shipper that has to file the claim.
http://www.ups.com/content/us/en/resources/service/tracking/claims.html
I just checked their website and it's the shipper that has to file the claim.
http://www.ups.com/content/us/en/resources/service/tracking/claims.html
Should all plaintiffs check with the defendant if it's ok to sue them?
Trek Rider
07-23-04, 10:21 PM
Should all plaintiffs check with the defendant if it's ok to sue them?
The reciever of the package never entered into a contract with UPS, the shipper did. Therefore the reciever has no legal standing to file a claim, only the shipper. He might get lucky in small claims court but I doubt it.
The reciever of the package never entered into a contract with UPS, the shipper did. Therefore the reciever has no legal standing to file a claim, only the shipper. He might get lucky in small claims court but I doubt it.
Yeah it's better to just give up and sit there with a broken bike than try to get your money back.
Trek Rider
07-24-04, 05:17 PM
Yeah it's better to just give up and sit there with a broken bike than try to get your money back.
It's up to the seller of the bike to take care of the damages. He sold the bike, he entered into a contract with UPS to ship it. If it arrives damaged he is responsible to eat the cost if UPS doesn't.
But go ahead and sue UPS anyways.
capsicum
07-24-04, 05:57 PM
I actualy worked as a temp in a ups warehouse loading and unloading trucks.
They don't use pallets much anymore they use clamps on the forklifts(no forks just the clamps) that sqeeze a stack of boxes. Yes the bosses say get it done, and fragile is ignored. I was in the ups supply chain division which is none union and mostly temps, ****ty managment, the higher up dudes were very slimey, none of the regulars liked it, boxes of dvd players marked 'stack no more than 14 high' were stacked 30 high at the bosses instruction or 14 high with a half ton of other boxes piled on top, it was rare somthing made it through without a large drop or being actualy thrown into trucks upside down, sidways and diagnal. Stuff the trailers to the brim and do as fast as possible is how its done because that minimises cost and increases profit. Not to menthion the half warehouse full of lost/unknown items.
And some fed-ex stuff came through the warehouse too which I found odd, bussiness supply chain type shippments but still.
A couple of days ago a co-worker of mine, who used to be a semi-truck driver, was talking about this same subject.
He said he went to a drop-off depot in Savanna, GA where there were four UPS trucks waiting. Apparently they hire alot of illegal aliens to unload semis and many of them are wearing dredlocks and smoking ganja while waiting between loading times. I guess the boss don't care since they're probably being paid ten bucks a day or something and speak little English.
I don't know how true this story actually is but I thought it was interesting.
zonatandem
07-24-04, 07:17 PM
Call the insurance outfit, Crawford & Co. Whomever answers the phone, use the following dialog: "I want to talk to the person who can fire you" when that person gets on the phone and identifies him/herself, use the same dialog 'til you work your way pretty up the management ladder. It's been known to work!
crosscut
07-24-04, 08:24 PM
I personally think you ought to provide the name and number of the claims adjuster and have everyone of us call him/her to ask why the claim was denied. The we can all call the UPS manager you spoke with and ask them why. The is power in numbers and the number of us that call = money that will not be spent.
What do you think?
Matt of Iowa
07-24-04, 09:02 PM
I personally think you ought to provide the name and number of the claims adjuster and have everyone of us call him/her to ask why the claim was denied. The we can all call the UPS manager you spoke with and ask them why. The is power in numbers and the number of us that call = money that will not be spent.
Have you every heard of this consumer advocacy radio show www.troubleshooter.com. They do stuff like crosscut suggested and get real results. Anyway, I enjoy listening sometimes. It's fun hearing stories about the public taking on a big company that cheats.
Bryan T
07-24-04, 09:19 PM
My .02 -
FedEx Ground bears watching, too.
I worked for them as a loader/unloader, and folks, I have witnessed
some stuff that leaves me amazed that anything arrives in one piece.
They're an excellent shipping company to work for, but in the heat of battle,
it's about speed, and the unloaders in particular care NOTHING about the fact
that a package's contents contain something that someone paid for and is
waiting for delivery.
One takes a chance with any of them.
ChiliDog
07-24-04, 09:30 PM
I've sold over 20 bikes on Ebay as an Ebay broker and a private seller. In all that time, only one bike ever arrived damaged via UPS ground. A comfort bike with a slightly bent fork prong. It was replaced by the buyer.
This kind of thing that you speak of, however, is one reason I got out of selling/shipping bikes on Ebay. I heard lots of stories...got out before I was one of them!
In no real defense to any particular shipping company.... You have to package your merchandise to handle multiple personnel, conveyor belts, vehicles and not to mention that the roads are not perfectly smooth so your box is most likely to be on the bottom getting crushed by all the other boxes on top of it. There are 2 ways to ship, pallet load which is usually the freight companies and the safest but expensive way, and less than pallet load or LTL. UPS, FED-EX, DHL, USPS is LTL, YOU need to properly package your merchandise not just put some cardboard around it. The shipping companies do not try to damage your parcels, think about it, that is food on their table. Damage WILL happen, sometimes more than once to the same people. If you think you can get into your car and drive somewhere with no chance of someone hitting you then you are in a magical dreamland my friend. I feel for the ones who have had their valuables damaged by someone I've had the same problems, but what can you do, better yourselves the next time. The whole thing about "fragile" signs being bullseyes gimme a break! These shipping companies have knuckleheads working for them who only want to make it to quitting time at the customers expense of their negligence, but it takes time to weed out these so-called employees. Have you seen how TREK packages up a Madone 5.9???? A cardboard box around a bike with some padding. Have you seen how DELL ships their computers?? They ship a TON more units than TREK with hardly any claims why because they package their products with care and with knowledge of the "system" The shipping companies are not going to pay claims if you just put it in a box. You need air pillows and soft "peanuts" not crumpled up newspapers. These people are NOT trying to damage your packages. I will use either FED-EX or UPS it doesn't matter but I assume the possibility of damage. If you have trouble with a claim keep going higher up, but if you know that you only threw 1 piece of newspaper in the box and it was too big of a box to begin with then it's not the shippers fault. A box is required to have 70 lbs placed on any side and support it, thats about the weight of almost 2 car batteries. I have spent a little time with UPS and have seen a loader fired for tossing a box onto a car, right in front of a supervisor. The union got his job back but that ended the throwing. Like I said, it sucks to have something damaged but who is really at fault? Maybe it was damaged before it was shipped? Do you realize how many companies take damaged products then ship it out with another carrier already damaged in a well packaged container then report a claim?? They eat a few bucks in shipping but get their $300 product replaced because nobody looked in the box when FED-EX came to do a daily pickup, they just place it in the truck. Just my $.02.
Someone suggested a paralegal instead of an attorney. Why? What's the difference? Just wondering what exactly a paralegal does.
If this guy takes UPS to Small Claims Court, does he have to travel to the main headquarters of the city UPS is located in. Man, that would be expensive. Seems like hiring legal representation + travel costs + other expenses = almost the cost of the bike itself. And who to sue? The UPS CEO?
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