I hate the USPS and am not happy with Amazon either

xcturbo said:

Jerry states that his camera was found and now needs to take some
time off in order to pick it up at the post office. As I've pointed
out before, someone must've scanned (or mis-scanned) it "delivered"
AFTER s/he found out that s/he forgot to deliver the parcel and was
told not to redeliver because it's too far or it's gonna cost the PO
overtime pay. They should've scanned it "attempted," even though
it's still somewhat of a stretch--but at least truthful compared to
them saying it's "delivered."

Jerry did the right thing by contacting the post office directly.
Venting is okay, but remember, nobody's perfect, unless you are
personally willing to pick it up directly from Canon's factory. Next
time you order anything, request the desired shipping method with
this incident in mind and choose, if possible, a more secure option
that requires a signature for peace of mind. More often than not
this will NOT be free.

Click to expand...

FYI, I did not select the free shipping. I paid $10 for the priviledge of going through this run around. Amazon refuses to store a preference for a shipper with your account. The only absolute way to get an order from Amazon and ensure you get a shipper that requires a signature is to go with 2 day or overnight shipping. On this S3 that would have added 10-20% to the cost of the camera.

Next time I will order from someone that lets me explicitly specify the shipper.

--
jerryk.smugmug.com

The S3 is a discontinued model and is not sold by Amazon. Amazon orders for this model are now filled by Beach Camera. Maybe it changed in the last few days....?

Marla said:

Sometimes UPS just leaves a package at the door even though a
signature is required. I don't know why they do this but it has
happened to me a few times.

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For your "convenience" as well as theirs, since they're very busy, although by doing this they're actually NOT doing what they're supposed to do. Some customers actually PREFER the drivers do this without requesting it by posting a note on their front door, and seeing how you've probably never complained to UPS, your regular delivery guy just assumed that it is what you have wanted them to do. Granted, if it were to be stolen, then it wouldn't be very convenient for anybody, now would it?

Marla said:

Now, if the package disappears, then I'm assuming it is the fault of UPS (driver).....correct?

Click to expand...

Assuming they didn't forge a signature? Well, IMHO you're better off dealing with your credit card company in issuing a charge-back than winning an argument with a shipping company.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

You know how there are several fields used to fill out your address on the shipping label? I don't know how much attention the driver pays or if they'll treat it as a "commandment," you can always try the following:

John Q. Smith
DO NOT LEAVE MY PARCEL ON MY PORCH!
REDELIVER NEXT DAY IF NOBODY HOME
123 Fake St.
Somewhere, ST 12345

Or simply leave a note on the door for them to
A) redeliver if not home
B) deliver to a neighbor (pre-arrange this before estimated delivery date)

C) ask the driver to leave package inside side gate or on the back porch (lock your dogs indoor)

D) ask the driver not to deliver (and redeliver), take the parcel back to the plant and leave a note so you can go pick it up
E) get a mailbox at your local non-USPS mailbox rental place

That's all I can think of for now
Pablo

jerryk said:

FYI, I did not select the free shipping. I paid $10 for the
priviledge of going through this run around.

Click to expand...

Not saying that you did, but that if you have a choice DON'T, especially when you're sending this to your workplace or an apartment complex where there's a centralized mailbox location.

jerryk said:

The only absolute way to get an order from Amazon and ensure you get a shipper that requires a signature is to go with 2 day or overnight shipping. On this S3 that would have added 10-20% to the cost of the camera.

Click to expand...

But would've saved you a lot of hassle and needless headache.

jerryk said:

Next time I will order from someone that lets me explicitly specify the shipper.

Click to expand...

Haven't bought ANYTHING from or via Amazon in ages (over four years). I get my cameras online from either Costco Online or Newegg, even though other places are cheaper. Never had a problem with either vendor, and Costco's return policy is very good (though now limited to 90 days on most electronics, including cameras).

Paul

dudleydocker said:

The S3 is a discontinued model and is not sold by Amazon. Amazon
orders for this model are now filled by Beach Camera. Maybe it
changed in the last few days....?

Click to expand...

Unfortunately mine was sold by Amazon.com. I should have bought it from Beach Camera/BuyDig.com (same company). They ship FEDEX by default and are great. Next time I will use them instead of Amazon.com.

--
jerryk.smugmug.com

xcturbo said:

jerryk said:

FYI, I did not select the free shipping. I paid $10 for the
priviledge of going through this run around.

Click to expand...

Not saying that you did, but that if you have a choice DON'T,
especially when you're sending this to your workplace or an apartment
complex where there's a centralized mailbox location.

Click to expand...

As I stated above, this is a new change with Amazon. Previously they had always shipped the packeage to me via UPS. If they would have give me some indication that the package was going to be shipped via USPS I would not have bought from them.

--
jerryk.smugmug.com

I've ordered from 6th Ave. Electronics in NY via Amazon and they ship DHL which is fine. I refuse to buy anything shipped USPS due to similar problems. I do believe it's the vendor who chooses the shipping and not Amazon so I always check out the shipping. No one-click ordering. I mean a book is OK but nothing more than that. I still use Amazon but not blindly. It's just so easy for most stuff.

I've worked in places like that and they do just leave them out. If you have a mailbox, they may do the same if it doesn't fit.

Also, I'm in a rural unincorporated area and we are serviced by subcontractors of the local USPS some of whom, to put in PC terms, do not inspire confidence. Magazines, for example, usually get delivered once a week. I recently had the newest issue of The Atlantic Monthly delivered followed by the previous month's issue the following week. I'd hate to see their backroom.

Maybe it's better where you guys live. UPS any day!

My biggest gripe is when online sites don't make it clear which service they will use. For me, the US Postal Service is best because the mail carrier has the key to my condo building and leaves the package inside. Firms like UPS and Fedex can't get in, so I have to drive 30 minutes to their distribution center to pick it up.

I knew it seemed highly unlikely it was stolen... if i saw amazon box, i still associate that with books (amazon started with books mostly).. I'd hardly risk getting caught over a possible book!

good to hear you'll get it tho!

Every one of the services has a hicup from time to time. I'm amazed at how good the post office is. I mail about a hundred letters a month, and I can't recall a single time when the post office did not deliver the letter. I've sent hundreds of packages by USPS and I can't recall anytime when they didn't deliver the package. I don't dispute the original poster had a problem here. But usually I find people almost do a knee jerk reaction of jumping in to criticize the post office. In reality their service is exceptional. Plus, if I ship a package by Priority Mail, it gets their FASTER and with less expense than UPS or FedEx. Give me the US Post Office anytime.

As for Amazon....it's my favorite store...brick or online, period. It has the best return policy. It has the best on time shipping record in my experience. The one thing they could improve on is opening and processing return packages faster at their Lexington station.

Do yourself a favor and sign up for Amazon Prime. I get stuff 2nd day for free, and next day for $3.99, and they will ship in stock items darn near immediately after you order, allowing time for the warehouse to get the notice. I signed up for the 30 day trial last December, did some Christmas shopping, and in the last 11 months, bought more stuff from Amazon than I have in the last 5 years. Haven't had a bad transaction yet.

It cost me $79 for a year, and I know I've saved much more than that by not paying shipping charges, plus you get the good shipping to boot. You just can't beat it.

--
Dan Murrell
http://www.flickr.com/photos/danmurrelljr/

I ordered some 2 lenses from lensmate which got delivered to India in 10 days ( including holidays). Everything was in shape. Ofcourse the Indian post rules makes a signature mandatory along with the phone number of the person collecting the parcel.

--
Regards,

Debi

Here's a DHL horror story. Look on the bright side: at least the package was delivered! But the negative FAR outweighs the negative...

DHL Overcharges You $750, Doesn't Refund It Because They "Forgot About It"

Read the entire story at:

http://consumerist.com/consumer/complaints/dhl-overcharges-you-750-doesnt-refund-it-because-they-forgot-about-it-323774.php

Pablo

I have a wide angle lens sitting across town in a UPS facility. It arrived last night. No idea when it will be delivered to me.

Kristi

Marla said:

Sometimes UPS just leaves a package at the door even though a
signature is required. I don't know why they do this but it has
happened to me a few times. I'll come home and there is a package
waiting for me that had required a signature - but it's between the 2
doors on the front porch. Now, if the package disappears, then I'm
assuming it is the fault of UPS (driver).....correct?
--

Click to expand...

My understanding (from a UPS driver no less) is that when they leave a package without signature they are taking the chance that the package will be stolen. They take the chance and the reason they do is that it is cheaper to pay for an occasional theft than to get signatures (they would have to hold on to packages until they get signatures - which would mean a lot of packages going back to the hub) for all the residential junk they have to deliver.

I don't think they are supposed to do this with business packages, but they might have a driver's discretion rule for that. I can't remember the last time a driver left a package on my business doorstep. I do remember a time a few years ago when a driver left a package with another business in my building. It was a stereo component that arrived on my birthday and I had taken the day off!

I tried Amazon Prime for a month. It was great and the 30 day use was free. They offered me a free trial (actually my wife's account).

I received a camera (model is illegal here in the Canon forum) and three other related packages - with five items shipped from three locations. (Memory card, card reader, spare battery etc.)

It will be my wife's call if we ever choose to pay the $79 for a year. She is the big Amazon buyer - a librarian.