netman9718

Where to begin. So today I'm fishing when I hear my phone ding. I looked and seen the new wheelset from Wheelbuilder.com had been at my home however Fedex did not leave the packages. I called my wife as she is home all day. I asked her if she seen the Fedex guy stop by. She tells me that he drove around our circle driveway and drove right past her and did not see her [now we think he did not see her on purpose] and left.
I get home to find they sticky note he had left saying that they would attempt another delivery the next business day. So I ride my bike by the Fedex depot all the time. It is less than 10 miles away from my home.
I call the local Fedex shop and asked about the delivery and was told I needed to speak with customer service. I was promptly transferred. I tell the next person that I would like to drive to the depot and pick up my packages in person. The Fedex guy tells me the depot is closed for the day. What?? So I call back to the local shop and get transferred to anther customer service rep who tells me that I need to wait for the home delievry. I tell them that I will go to the depot and pick them up. I have to work the next several days and will not be home and the last thing I need is the new wheels to go back to California.
Soooo in a round about way I finally get a hold of someone at the depot and they tell me to come on out at or around 6pm and they would happily give me my packages.
I drive out to the depot and spoke to a lady about my packages. I hand her the sticky note from the driver with my shipping number. She leaves. Approx thirty mins later a custodian tells me that they are still looking for my packages. No problem
When the lady comes back she is dragging two boxes that are torn open and looks like a pack of badgers handled the boxes. She is dragging them on the floor. She goes 'here you go' and hands me the electronic device to sign. I said I have a problem with this shipment. I asked her how do I document the condition of the packages? She tells me that she can give me a 1 800 number. I told her that if its just the boxes its no problem however there are really nice bicycle wheels in the boxes and they could be damaged. She said I will need to take this up with the shipper....Wheelbuilder.com
I am shaking my head thinking of what I need to do when she tells me they have several new employees and this type of package was not to be ran down the conveyor belt. I take out my cell phone and snap several pictures of the boxes with the electronic device of Fedex in the picture. The lady leaves and returns with the 'manager'. He asked me 'whats the problem'? I tell him that these are some really nice custom bicycle wheels and I don't think the shipper sent them in this condition. He asked 'did they come across the country'? I said California. He said 'well thats a four day trip'. I asked him how do we document this in case the wheels are damaged. He said 'I don't'.
Then he tells me that I have to sign for them or I could not take them. I said thats fine however I am going to take them home and look at them. If they are fine no big deal. If they are damaged someone needs to take responsibility. He said it will fall back on the shipper for shipping them like this.
When I got home the rims were ding, dented and chipped. There are a couple spots where the rim has been compressed.
I called Wheelbuilder.com about this and they asked for pictures and details of the package and damages. I got that sent to them by email and from speaking with them they are going to remedy the situation.
These 32 spoke DT Swiss custom wheels set may handle some rough miles but they sure could not stand up to FedEx and their badgers.

rpenmanparker 

They carry my wine just fine. I go online and change the delivery address to their nearest store. The packages are there the next day and will be held for about five days. You can't efficiently manage stuff like that on the phone. It is set up to be handled online. Never a broken bottle. Accidents happen considering the volume of goods shipped these days, the carriers do pretty well.

Sy Reene

Wait a sec.. 32 spokes and they were still damaged? not possible.

andr0id

Wheelbuilder packs stuff up very nicely. I've bought a few wheels and rims from them. If they boxes are trashed, that's completely Fedex's fault.

Also the knock as quietly as a mouse, leave a sticker, and run strategy is will known and documented on the internet.

It's amazing Fedex drivers still think they can get away with lying like that.

Peter2290

Yeah I hate Fedex. They toss around packages like crazy. I think it's because Fedex drivers get paid by the number of packages they drop off/stops they make (at least that's what the UPS guy said) so they rush around and practically throw things out of their trucks.

For all the crap UPS also gets I've have MUCH better experience with them. Never had a problem with damaged packages from them or with leaving stuff on my doorstep.

rpenmanparker 

Besides the deliveries I redirect for me to pickup, I get FedEx deliveries all the time both at home and in New Orleans at my mother-in-law's house. If either of us is not home for a delivery requiring adult signature, they call me to arrange a mutually acceptable solution. Perfectly? Every time? No, but I am highly satisfied. Perhaps it shouldn't be this way, but the more they deliver to you, the better they do it.

RNAV

My wife and I LOATHE fedex, and are at the point of refusing to business with companies that only offer fedex shipping. I can't tell you how many times we've tracked packages that have made it to the destination sorting facility days ahead of schedule, get put on the truck for delivery days ahead of schedule, only to not get delivered and returned back to the sorting facility "because the guaranteed delivery date" has not yet been met.

UPS, on the other hand, will deliver packages ASAP, even if it turns out to be ahead of the planned delivery date. And UPS never does any of the soft-knock-leave-a-note-and-run shenanigans that fedex does.

JMH714

Each carriers at each locals is varied experience. I work in receiving area, I saw many boxes coming from FedEx Ground and UPS Ground. Some day, I would see they delivery boxes in excellent condition and sometimes it came damaged. I know one manufacturer that sent us boxes that always came in good condition, but sometimes it came like it was abused by gorilla.

One thing I don't like FedEx Ground is that they stopped print out total cartons on label (i.e. Box 1 of 4). It caused so much problem with our company's procedure.

My recommend is if you see your box damaged from UPS or FedEx, have the driver or local shop report "box damaged" on their scanner before you sign it.

Secret Squirrel

Do you get better service with USPS?
I have multiple shipments that were marked "delivered" on Friday and show up on Monday as "on time" Other days home delivery is marked " business closed, attempted delivery re scheduled" Atempted delivery time stamp is usually when I am next to the mailbox waiting. The next step in the evolution is the "smartpost" where UPS or Fedex gets it to your town on time, they hand it to USPS and it shows up late due to the weekend or a failed delivery attemp. You cant complain.

netman9718

Wheelbuilders.com is the source for FedEx. Like others I have had horrible service with Fedex . I have several examples but I will keep the past out. However as a LEO two days prior to me picking my wheels up one of my fellow deputies was dispatched to a church. The pastor told the Sgt that people from the church had been seeing a FedEx truck numerous times parked by a dumpster behind the church. Upon closer inspection the Pastor found several unopened packages in the dumpster. One package contained a high dollar drone. Other packages had misc items in them. The key part is all were labeled FedEx.
So when I'm picking up my wheels I have this in the back of my mind.
The good part is Wheelbuilder.com is going to rebuild me another set of wheels and get them on the way.
I much prefer UPS.
In regards to the packaging one box still had the bottom stapled as shipped. The staples are heavy duty. Benny from Wheelbuilder told me the staples were very stout and take quite a bit of effort to get them open. With the exception of the one box bottom the other lids had ALL the staples missing.
The wheels looked really nice with the exception of the dents and dings.

jon c. 

I deal with shipping a fair amount at work and I find UPS and Fedex to be about the same. They get it right 98% of the time, but when they don't they aren't very easy to deal with. And most packages arrive in fine shape, but if not, they tend to be badly mangled. I suspect it has to do with boxes being crushed by automated machinery rather than human mishandling. Of course, it's human indifference that loads them and delivers them as if nothing is wrong. And that seems to be SOP.

Smaller shippers and private individuals pay relatively high rates and that makes the problem deliveries seem even more annoying. Large volume customers pay relatively little per shipment and are more inclined to find the error rate tolerable. I avoid delivery issues by having most things (even a bike once) delivered to work where there is always someone ready to sign for the delivery. Unfortunately, not everyone has the luxury.

Retoocs

I had a roommate that worked at UPS unloading the semi trucks. The standard there, same at FedEx, is minimum 1000 boxes per hour. That's about one box every 3 seconds. They threw everything, didn't matter what it was. The ones at the end gets thrown further.

One place I worked at, we always package a box so we could at least sit on it without crushing it. That was our standard to make sure things will get there in one piece.

DrIsotope

Folks ready to complain about FedEx neither ship nor receive very many packages. My inbound/outbound used to average about 1,500 packages a year, and I can give you horror stories from EVERY carrier-- no one is perfect. Ask anyone for their favorite OnTrac story-- they make any other carrier look like gods by comparison. Did FedEx hammer up those boxes? Yeah, they did. But bottom line, if Wheelbuilder.com didn't insure the boxes, the responsibility is theirs.

My custom wheelset was shipped USPS Priority Overnight-- that box was absolutely pristine. For $60+ shipping charge, it damn well better have been.

netman9718

Funny thing about using FedEx...I have had two brand new Yamaha outboard motors shipped to me by FedEx. One a 200hp V6 and the other a F90. Both arrived in perfect condition. I bought a Lincoln PowerMig 300 amp MIG welder with a Python alum nozzle,hoses, steel set up along with several large spools of wire all arrived in perfect condition.
The outboards came from Louisiana and the welder from Oregon.
Why would two bicycle rims weighing nearly nothing get so hammered? The outboards and welder had to be loaded and unloaded with a fork lift and the pallets did not even have a splinter.
Oh well this will give me time to get my gear set ordered and the assembly will be all at once.

zymphad

UPS does the same thing. One summer worked at a packaging store, I always told customers I routinely see UPS and FedEx drivers throw packages in their trucks into it and off it. I told them to package knowing that it will be abused, thrown, dropped, and kicked. Fragile stickers don't work, I always told them, UPS/FedEx don't care what stickers you put on the package, it will be abused same as any other.

I personally like USPS the best. As long as I don't have to go to a counter, the grumpiest rudest people in customer service. But the drivers and warehouse workers always pleasant, irony.

Shimagnolo

I've had a couple Ontrac deliveries w/o problem.
But then it's hard to damage motorcycle tires.

DrIsotope

Around here, OnTrac is a guy in jeans and a t-shirt driving an old Honda Civic. So when he parks in front of the house at 9 o'clock at night and flings a package over the front gate, it's kind of startling. KHS has recently started using OnTrac alongside UPS, so trying to predict what time a shipment will come in is all but impossible. They do manage to hit their estimates at least 90% of the time, and they don't tend to hammer the boxes up too badly.

Then there's the most hit-and-miss delivery service of them all: Amazon Logistics.

scott967

"Fedex Ground" and "Fedex SmartPost" are different operations and had nothing to do with the Air Cargo business. AFAIK, RPS, the company that became Fedex Ground, was built on a model of its trucks/drivers being "independent contractors" and that affects how the drivers operate.

Here in Hawaii we don't really have any "ground" parcel per se. USPS is typically much cheaper than either FDX or UPS. They all deliver about the same, except my mailman always comes to the door, while FDX/UPS typically "drop and run". My Focus bike was sent by USPS and when he delivered it, my mailman asked to see it after I got it set up.

scott s.
.

JMH714

OnTrac is bit creepy... One day, I got an email from them saying that my package have been delivery and they even attached a picture of package at my front door. lol WTF?

2cam16

Yup you pretty much got it right. I worked as a driver for Express from '97-'10 and when we acquired RPS, it sort of brought down Express' service style. But we needed them to battle with UPS ground service. Sure every package delivery service has their sour apples. Drivers that don't care crap about the packages. IMO, only large volume customers or regular shippers of each service can really judge who or who isn't taking care of their packages. I had industrial bulky routes for all those years. Drop and run wasn't an option. lol But the times I had to help out a driver in a residential route, I always made sure that if I left the package, it was in a secure area. Also depends on the neighborhood.

TakingMyTime

It is definitely annoying and disappointing when a shipment goes bad. Unfortunately when you handle the volume that FedEx handles, not everything is going to go perfect. You didn't get the wheels in the condition you were expecting, how about not getting an oil well part that's needed to bring a well back up and running because the part they are waiting for went to the wrong airport? That downed well is costing them $1m a day in lost revenue. It happens to everyone at various times and levels.

Yes, there are some bad apples.

wheelreason

Yeah, yeah, the fancy schmancy wheels are damaged, blah, blah, blah...How was the fishing?

indyfabz

I have shipped my entire bike round trip via FedEx three times in the last three years. No problemos.

DomaneS5

Fedex is better about delivery times here than UPS. I've had mostly good luck with both, but Fedex seems to deliver early or on-time... while UPS occasionally has delays in delivery. Plus, it's funny watching the trip of a package in UPS online. The package will arrive in a location about 2 hours drive, north, away from my local UPS hub. And then it travels to another city about 2 hours, east, away from my hub. And then from that city it finally gets to my hub. I always wonder why they can't cut out certain unnecessary extended routes to save money.

DrIsotope

That's pretty typical of any carrier, really. If something is shipped via the most expedited service, it always seems to end up on a plane. I had an order coming to me from San Diego, which is about 100 miles away. It shipped via FedEx Express Overnight, so it went to Los Angeles, got on a plane, flew to the FedEx superhub in Memphis, changed planes and flew to Ontario, which is about 25 miles from me. The package arrived about 90 minutes before the estimated delivery time, but man did they literally go about it in the most convoluted way possible.