Bl***y UPS

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Ordered up some bits from Digikey. Only use them when I can't get what I want elsewhere and it's urgent - because although they have a UK website, you have to pay VAT COD.

And it was urgent. Tracking said the parcel was out for delivery today when I checked first thing. At about 10:00 noticed something on the mat - a note saying they'd called and not got a reply. Timed 09:45. At which time I was having a cuppa in the kitchen waiting for them. I can only guess they were in a rush and couldn't be bothered waiting for payment. They certainly didn't ring the bell - they can be heard anywhere in the house.

[Nightjar]

Some carriers only knock, on the rather dubious principle that many doorbells don't work.

Colin Bignell

[F]

Our postal delivery operative knocks and rings the bell. Twice. Nothing to stop carriers doing the same. It hardly takes any additional time or effort and probably less than taking the item back to the van and scanning it back in at the depot.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I have a tight fitting vestibule door and one of the functions of it is to keep out street noise. Which would also include knocking on the front door. Although given I was in the kitchen which is just down the corridor, he can't have knocked very hard.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

My guess is he didn't want to wait to be paid the amount owing for the VAT.

[Nightjar]

You appear to be trying to apply logic to the situation.

Colin Bignell

[Graham.]

I assume that wireless ones don't work. Occasionally I am wrong.

[Scott M]

(on a sidenote, it must be years since I heard instead.)

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Arrived this morning at about the same time. Asked the driver about yesterday and he was adamant he would have rung the bell ('Why wouldn't I as it means coming back again if no reply') - he did today. But the very loud bell is about 6 ft from where I was yesterday when he claims to have done so.

[PeterC]

May I join you in your frustration? Ordered 3 items from Amazon, yesterday. One was the standard delivery, estimated at 14th. Nov. - it arrived today via Yodel! Now, Amazon is f'ing useless at predicting dates (out of 5 deliveries for 7 items(!!) a few weeks ago, none arrived on the date stated. If it weren't for a couple of other items from Amazon due today, I wouldn't have been in. These items are being delivered by...UPS! Tracking says "by end of day". Ringing UPS' 'CS' results in an automated system that can't tell between V and 3; ringing Northampton results in no answer.

What's the point of having a day and no time? DPD can give an hour's span and stick to; USP (expand to suit) can't. W***s!

[Nightjar]

Perhaps your door bell didn't work yesterday :-)

Colin Bignell

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I prefer the conspiracy theory. ;-)

[SteveW]

We've got a proper bell, with an illuminated push and powered from a transformer - we've still got cards throught the door, when my wife has been sitting only six feet from the door, separated from it by a very thin wooden door to the living room.

She did once catch the postie coming back down the other side of the road, only to find he was a stand-in as ours was off ill and he'd simply decided that he couldn't be bothered with the signed for deliveries, left them in the depot and pre-written unable to deliver cards!

SteveW

[Tim Streater]

And you then wonder why the Royal Mail is doing so badly and why there was pressure to privatise it.

[RJH]

As much to do with demoralised, temporary and untrained staff, massive job cuts, and more unpleasantness to come.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Is UPS state owned, then?

FWIW, I cannot fault my postie.

[dennis]

I frequently go to someone where I can press the bell push, feel it click and nothing happens.

Needless to say it works every time when they press the button.

[Bill]

In message , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes

My wife and I call ours "Psycho Postie" but not to his face! He is totally crazy and has a great pathological hatred of his handheld electronic terminal. But he is the most friendly helpful postie we have had for years. He knows where to hide parcels if we are not in and, probably illegally, will even sign, with a squiggle, the signed for ones. We have absolutely no complaints about him and think he is a great advert for the Royal Mail!

I don't have the same faith in any of the private couriers that come here. Especially the one that when I checked their web site and phoned them said that they had attempted delivery and no one was home. We weren't, but they didn't know that as they had been nowhere near the house, thank goodness for CCTV. The driver ended up delivering the parcel in the evening in his own time. He wasn't very happy!! :-)

>

[Bill Wright]

Had several similar incidents. They leave a card at some absurd time like 6.45am but write a time on the card such as 9.05am. I look on the CCTV. I ring up. They bluster, then redeliver in the evening.

Bill

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I'm pretty certain there was no card when I got up that morning. And after going downstairs, spent all the time until the card was found in the kitchen - very close to the doorbell which is in the corridor leading to it. I might well not have heard a knock on the door - but really couldn't miss the bell which is pretty loud. And the same guy rang it the next day.