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Post by dharris on Jun 26, 2017 3:26:05 GMT -8
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Post by peoriaman on Jun 26, 2017 4:01:17 GMT -8
Whatever, man. I can avoid shipping and receiving during those periods.
UPS used to not deliver on Black Friday at all.
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Post by roadkill on Jun 26, 2017 7:37:27 GMT -8
I never use UPS for personal items, I've had great luck with Priority Mail and have no intention of changing.
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Post by dharris on Jun 26, 2017 10:28:34 GMT -8
The week before Christmas and around Black Friday and cyber Monday are not easy to avoid if you shop online.
This increase is going to get baked into everyone's prices.
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Post by peoriaman on Jun 26, 2017 11:54:10 GMT -8
The week before Christmas and around Black Friday and cyber Monday are not easy to avoid if you shop online. No, its REAL easy to avoid those dates. Just shop online on a different day! The internets are open 24/7/365 these days. |
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PeeCee
Junior Member
Posts: 70 
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Post by PeeCee on Jun 26, 2017 13:10:02 GMT -8
The internets are open 24/7/365 these days. "internets" ?? Correction: you mean interwebsAlso acceptable: interline(according to my Mom)   |
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Post by Gary P on Jun 27, 2017 4:24:47 GMT -8
Yes, it is an increase, but it does not appear to be that excessive. And for the next day air shipments: Just to clarify - I do not work for UPS, or any other carrier. Like most folks, I do not like increased pricing, but it's a free market, and we have choices. When I first read about this and looked into what the increase actually was, I didn't think it was a show-stopper. Yes, it's an increase, but not terribly excessive in my opinion. |
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Post by roadkill on Jun 27, 2017 6:26:05 GMT -8
The internets are open 24/7/365 these days. "internets" ?? Correction: you mean interwebsAlso acceptable: interline(according to my Mom) That's "Interwebz", mister  ! |
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Post by dharris on Jun 27, 2017 15:02:36 GMT -8
The week before Christmas and around Black Friday and cyber Monday are not easy to avoid if you shop online. No, its REAL easy to avoid those dates. Just shop online on a different day! The internets are open 24/7/365 these days. Those are the days people shop online. That is like saying save money on Christmas trees by buying in April. In the real world outside of the "internets" that is not how people live. It is price gouging plain and simple. |
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Post by peoriaman on Jun 28, 2017 9:44:31 GMT -8
Get an attorney & file a lawsuit. Between this case and his litigation against Intermountain, Mr. Harris is going to be one busy man this holiday season. |
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Post by dharris on Jun 28, 2017 13:21:12 GMT -8
Those are the days people shop online. That is like saying save money on Christmas trees by buying in April. In the real world outside of the "internets" that is not how people live. It is price gouging plain and simple. No, it's a 27 cent response to increased demand. Don't like it? Here's what you can do: Get an attorney & file a lawsuit. They'll probably wand a deposit, but you can apply the 27 cents you're not spending on shipments. Write your elected officials- be sure to use lots of exclamation points and refer to this thread. Be persistent, they like that. Call the District Attorney and see if what they can do. I'm sure they'll get right on it. Make some signs about injustice, oppression, no peace, etc. Call CNN & see if they will cover it. Don't use UPS. Insane response 😵 |
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Post by scl1234 on Jun 29, 2017 6:19:02 GMT -8
It is price gouging plain and simple. It is supply and demand in a capitalistic economy. Neither of which come anywhere close to "plain and simple". Do you think UPS should simply "eat" the cost of overtime paid to their workforce during these periods of extra-high shipping volume? If you think they should and you've never operated a business that earned a profit, your response is worth less than a handfull of beach sand... peoriaman and omaharoad "get it". |
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Post by canrailfan on Jun 29, 2017 8:52:04 GMT -8
Yes, it is an increase, but it does not appear to be that excessive. And for the next day air shipments: Just to clarify - I do not work for UPS, or any other carrier. Like most folks, I do not like increased pricing, but it's a free market, and we have choices. When I first read about this and looked into what the increase actually was, I didn't think it was a show-stopper. Yes, it's an increase, but not terribly excessive in my opinion. I agree that a business can charge whatever it likes for its products or services. The customer can decide to pay or not. The UPS surcharges of $0.27 or $0.81 don't seem like much and should be all that most of us have to deal with. However, large parcels are being hit with a $24.00 surcharge between Nov. 19th and Dec. 23rd, this won't be a good time to order that paint booth you always wanted. Oversize or overweight shipments will pay a $249.00 surcharge during the same period. Not likely to hurt us modellers but certainly will affect businesses needing to ship large products to customers. There will also be additional surcharges announced Sep. 1st for incoming international shipments. While it's obvious UPS is trying to clear their system of bigger or awkward-to-handle parcels for the prime consumer shopping periods, they do stand to make a lot of money with these surcharges from businesses that may have no choice but to ship large non-consumer products during this period. |
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Post by canrailfan on Jun 29, 2017 12:29:42 GMT -8
"Large parcel" being over 150 lbs. A very small % of all UPS parcels are over 150 lb. Any hobby paint booth will be less than that. UPS is just trying to distribute the increased demand for shipping into time frames where they have excess capacity. This is the same reason people drive in off-peak periods when possible. It beats the alternative, which is reducing the demand for transportation services by queuing (delay). Delays benefit no one. UPS defines a "Large Package" as a "Package with length plus girth [(2 x width) + (2 x height)] combined over 130 inches." These will be surcharged $24.00. Packages with a length of 108 inches or with a combined measurement of 165 inches or weighing over 150 lbs are in the "Over Maximum Limits" category. These get hit with the $249.00 surcharge. I know a paint booth only weighs about 30 lbs but when I ordered one in March it was classed as a Large Package. The shipping carton it was packed in measured about 136 inches by UPS's calculation, the weight wasn't a factor. It's called 'dimensional weight' pricing ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dimensional_weight). Whenever possible I still prefer USPS. |
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Post by tdspeedracer on Jun 29, 2017 14:16:54 GMT -8
Well, I guess I'll have to remember to bring a sack lunch to work on cyber monday to keep my budget in line...
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Post by canrailfan on Jun 29, 2017 19:20:38 GMT -8
I looked on the UPS website and found the page describing the new surcharges. ( www.rates.ups.com/pdfs/peak_surcharges.pdf) Yes, it seems the "Large Package" could weigh up to 150 lbs. but would have the same surcharge as a 30 lb. package of identical measurements! It's easy to understand from this example why they use "dimensional weight" pricing. The Over Maximum Limit Package surcharge definitely states "or" for the length, the calculated dimensions or the weight. Here it appears a package that's 120 inches in length weighing 5 lbs. faces the same surcharge as a package of the same length weighing 160 lbs. This must drive shippers crazy! Oh well, I not planning on buying any heavy items this year anyways. |
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Post by Gary P on Jun 30, 2017 8:49:46 GMT -8
My company uses both UPS and FedEx, among others. We had to convert to dimensional weights a while ago. It may be new, but I think it's understandable and relatively fair. A very light but large box/pallet takes up usable space in the truck, so there is a cost to ship air, (think of feathers)! Why should a small heavy carton cost more than a large light carton? Of course, there are reasonable limitations, and I don't think shippers should get skewered if they are just a little over the 'norm'. The could be more equitable categories instead of just one for oversize, no? I believe the dimensional weights is an attempt at that.
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Post by GP40P-2 on Jun 30, 2017 13:21:36 GMT -8
I will gladly pay a 27 cent surcharge for them not to lose my packages. They have lost 2 (neither were trains !) of the last twenty packages that I have had either come or go via UPS; a 10% loss rate is pathetic. Yet they don't care, just ask them.
As mixed up as it would seem to use "post office" and "reliable" in the same sentence, USPS has not lost ANY in several hundred packages over the past several years.
Jim
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Post by kentuckysouthernrwy on Jun 30, 2017 18:33:29 GMT -8
I've had the same kind of experience Jim describes, but with FedEx. I think they exhibit the same don't care attitude to me he ascribes to UPS. As far as we, the individual occasional recipient, are a bigger nuisance to either company than volume customers.
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Post by spookyac47 on Jul 4, 2017 21:44:23 GMT -8
I personally avoid UPS and FedEx for shipping. I try hard to avoid both when receiving packages if I can arrange it. We have community mailbox clusters with locking compartments. I have never lost a package delivered when it was handled by USPS. UPS and FedEx do the flying dropoff . . . run for the front door and drop it in plain sight for anyone cruising the neighborhood to help themselves to. On rare occasions, they might place it behind the 4 foot wide post on the front entryway . . . so it is at least partially concealed . . . We have had 6 packages disappear after being delivered by UPS or FedEx over the past 5-6 years. Fortunately the contents weren't very expensive . . . With regards to the increased cost, USPS makes the news whenever they announce a 2 cent increase in postage stamps but at the same time, their package shipping rates are increasing significantly but we don't hear a lot about the price increases for USPS Priority Mail packages in the news media . . . or forums . . . |
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Post by Brakie on Jul 5, 2017 2:12:33 GMT -8
For me it's as simple as if the on line shop doesn't ship USPS then its a no sale.
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Post by riogrande on Jul 5, 2017 3:39:36 GMT -8
I personally avoid UPS and FedEx for shipping. I try hard to avoid both when receiving packages if I can arrange it. We have community mailbox clusters with locking compartments. I have never lost a package delivered when it was handled by USPS. UPS and FedEx do the flying dropoff . . . run for the front door and drop it in plain sight for anyone cruising the neighborhood to help themselves to. On rare occasions, they might place it behind the 4 foot wide post on the front entryway . . . so it is at least partially concealed . . . We have had 6 packages disappear after being delivered by UPS or FedEx over the past 5-6 years. Fortunately the contents weren't very expensive . . . I'm in the same boat as spookyac, community mailbox cluster. Wherever possible I try to order items from vendors who use USPS because it's simply cheaper than UPS. There is only one vendor who I use who refuses to us USPS, but his prices are often a bit cheaper than other vendors I use so it can help offset the extra cost of shipping, but I only use them for items I can't find somewhere else. USPS seems to be the safest for delivery for me too - they ring the doorbell so we know a parcel has been delivered where as UPS drops and runs. I don't ship via UPS again cause it's higher cost and inconvenient to get parcel to a delivery point. USPS is closer and more convenient. |
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Post by valenciajim on Jul 5, 2017 4:48:13 GMT -8
I really try to avoid using USPS, simply because my local postman is a lazy idiot. I have been making some aircraft models of DC-2, DC-3 and DC-5 aircraft flown by the airline my father worked for, KNILM. Needless to say, getting KNILM decals is a bit difficult. A few months ago, a rare set of 1/72 scale KNILM decals became available on eBay and I purchased them. When they were delivered the mailman did not see the need to bring them to my doorstep, as required, so he just left the decals and two other packages in a flower bed when I was not home. I did not even see the packages until the next morning--after the sprinklers had soaked them. The decals were destroyed and the other merchandise was damaged. The next day I asked the mailman why he did not deliver them to my doorstep as required. He started screaming at me telling me that I was being unreasonable-he is only required to leave them on my property. If he had to deliver packages to everyone's doorstep, he would never get his job done. When I told him that it was only a few feet farther to my doorstep, he went ballistic.
I went to the post office to file a complaint. After getting the runaround for 45 minutes, I was told that his supervisor had the day off. I finally spoke with his supervisor over the telephone and she said what my mail carrier did was unacceptable and she would "talk to him." Well she did and soon thereafter I stopped getting my mail delivered properly. My mail frequently appears in other neighbors' mailboxes. Sometimes it is delayed for days. The mailman told me he understands I spoke with his supervisor. Implied in his comments was he knows I ratted him out and I am going to pay the price for doing so.
I have since made several other complaints and I still have delivery issues. Packages are still not placed on my doorstep. Recently, several of my packages have been delivered to the same address number on a different street. I am planning on writing a letter to my Congressman complaining. I have come to loathe USPS as they refuse to correct my problem. Nobody cares. I realize that I am dealing with a rogue employee, but the point is that USPS tolerates the continuation of the problem. By the way, never send a letter to the Postmaster of your zip code. The local post office told me that those letters are not read by anyone.
I will gladly pay extra to get service from UPS or FedEx.
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Post by roadkill on Jul 5, 2017 4:56:15 GMT -8
I've had the same kind of experience Jim describes, but with FedEx. I think they exhibit the same don't care attitude to me he ascribes to UPS. As far as we, the individual occasional recipient, are a bigger nuisance to either company than volume customers. I deal with FedWrex a lot here at work... remember the old saying "If you can't say anything nice about someone then don't say anything"  Well... |
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Post by bnsf971 on Jul 5, 2017 5:25:05 GMT -8
USPS has lost/damaged/misdirected/misdelivered roughly 20% of all packages to my house.
I regularly get weekly ads that are expired by more than two weeks--if I get them at all.
I'll happily pay $.27 to make sure a package at least makes it to my porch.
I'm still waiting for a stereo and BLI centipede set to be delivered by USPS from a year ago...
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Post by peoriaman on Jul 5, 2017 6:23:13 GMT -8
...so he just left the decals and two other packages in a flower bed when I was not home. I've had the opposite problem. If for some reason our mailbox was inaccessible, like if we had blocked off the porch for painting, for example, the mailman wouldn't leave the mail at all. Even when we set up a cardboard box at the bottom of the steps - with a sign on it that said "MAIL" - he would not leave it. He'd just walk right by and go to the house next door. Regulations, evidently. The funny part of this story is when I mentioned this once on another forum, a guy there wanted to go to war with me over it. Obviously I stepped on some toes! |
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Post by bnsf971 on Jul 5, 2017 6:43:08 GMT -8
...so he just left the decals and two other packages in a flower bed when I was not home. I've had the opposite problem. If for some reason our mailbox was inaccessible, like if we had blocked off the porch for painting, for example, the mailman wouldn't leave the mail at all. Even when we set up a cardboard box at the bottom of the steps - with a sign on it that said "MAIL" - he would not leave it. He'd just walk right by and go to the house next door. Regulations, evidently. The funny part of this story is when I mentioned this once on another forum, a guy there wanted to go to war with me over it. Obviously I stepped on some toes! Our letter carrier will, when he feels like following the rules, bring the packages to the front porch. He leaves all the other mail in the mailbox at the street. He also says that is the rules. |
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Post by dti406 on Jul 5, 2017 7:22:30 GMT -8
I have never had a package lost or damaged by the USPS delivery. Mail and small packages go in the mailbox, and larger packages are placed on the front stoop, usually behind bushes so they can't be seen from the street, and if my garage door is open at the entrance to the house inside the garage. Although that all changes when we get a substitute carrier. Once when we had an extremely large snowfall and the plows pushed all the snow up around the mailbox, the substitute carrier refused to get out of the vehicle in order to place the mail in the mailbox, I got that from the postmaster, my normal guy would make sure we got the mail.
Now UPS and FedEx, do the throw it on the stoop from 10' away and where it lands is best guess.
Rick JEsionowski
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Post by riogrande on Jul 5, 2017 8:27:28 GMT -8
Sounds like a couple of fairly isolated bad experiences by a couple folks above with the USPS.
I've moved around quite a bit over the past 30 years (Houston TX, Bloomington IN, Rochester & Syracuse NY, and northern Virginia) and generally had good service from USPS mail carriers at all locations. My experience mirrors Rick's (below)
I am in a townhouse so no garage, but post carrier puts parcel behind storm door if possible so it isn't visible from the parking lot and small parcels go in the mailbox which I have to open with a key. So far in the 3 locations in Virginia, parcel delivery has worked well and timely.
They seem to have a reputation for that - some have posted video's taken of parcels being thrown from a distance by UPS or FedEx. Thankfully very few parcels delivered to my house are by them.
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Post by roadkill on Jul 5, 2017 12:42:03 GMT -8
I really try to avoid using USPS, simply because my local postman is a lazy idiot. I have been making some aircraft models of DC-2, DC-3 and DC-5 aircraft flown by the airline my father worked for, KNILM. Needless to say, getting KNILM decals is a bit difficult. A few months ago, a rare set of 1/72 scale KNILM decals became available on eBay and I purchased them. When they were delivered the mailman did not see the need to bring them to my doorstep, as required, so he just left the decals and two other packages in a flower bed when I was not home. I did not even see the packages until the next morning--after the sprinklers had soaked them. The decals were destroyed and the other merchandise was damaged. The next day I asked the mailman why he did not deliver them to my doorstep as required. He started screaming at me telling me that I was being unreasonable-he is only required to leave them on my property. If he had to deliver packages to everyone's doorstep, he would never get his job done. When I told him that it was only a few feet farther to my doorstep, he went ballistic. I went to the post office to file a complaint. After getting the runaround for 45 minutes, I was told that his supervisor had the day off. I finally spoke with his supervisor over the telephone and she said what my mail carrier did was unacceptable and she would "talk to him." Well she did and soon thereafter I stopped getting my mail delivered properly. My mail frequently appears in other neighbors' mailboxes. Sometimes it is delayed for days. The mailman told me he understands I spoke with his supervisor. Implied in his comments was he knows I ratted him out and I am going to pay the price for doing so. I have since made several other complaints and I still have delivery issues. Packages are still not placed on my doorstep. Recently, several of my packages have been delivered to the same address number on a different street. I am planning on writing a letter to my Congressman complaining. I have come to loathe USPS as they refuse to correct my problem. Nobody cares. I realize that I am dealing with a rogue employee, but the point is that USPS tolerates the continuation of the problem. By the way, never send a letter to the Postmaster of your zip code. The local post office told me that those letters are not read by anyone. I will gladly pay extra to get service from UPS or FedEx. I've only had one bad experience with USPS in years, and it was some rare decals too. Bought two sets of Santa Fe Accu-Cals and they came shredded. The envelope must have gotten stuck in a conveyor chain or something. |
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