Where do lost courier packages end up?
Discussion
In the past 3 years I have had 3 relatively large items be lost by the courier companies. Most recently UPS managed to lose a set of 5 alloys wheels and tyres that had been ratchet strapped together.
They were going from Cornwall to Devon (100 miles total) and initially arrived at their depot in Bodmin. They should have been delivered from there (44 miles to final destination) but actually ended up in Tamworth in the Midlands, assuming the tracking was accurate?
UPS have been so slow to reply to emails that it's a joke. They now say they need 15 days to search for my property! They refuse to answer my questions about the collection and subsequent route taken. There's no response to calls and I get the feeling these wheels are now lost forever.
Where does all this stuff end up?
I appreciate they must have thousands of collections / deliveries to handle but is it too much to expect that they don't lose stuff?
They were going from Cornwall to Devon (100 miles total) and initially arrived at their depot in Bodmin. They should have been delivered from there (44 miles to final destination) but actually ended up in Tamworth in the Midlands, assuming the tracking was accurate?
UPS have been so slow to reply to emails that it's a joke. They now say they need 15 days to search for my property! They refuse to answer my questions about the collection and subsequent route taken. There's no response to calls and I get the feeling these wheels are now lost forever.
Where does all this stuff end up?
I appreciate they must have thousands of collections / deliveries to handle but is it too much to expect that they don't lose stuff?
Stolen by staff?
I ordered 2 iPhone 6's when they first came out. As the delivery was convoluted and there was no notification of when they were coming, we were out when UPS attempted delivery and left 2 cards, one for each tracking number. The protocol was that the driver would bring back stuff to depot and they would be available for collection from 18:30hrs the same day. The drivers would bring the stuff in from their vans and scan and hand over to waiting customers. My driver refused to come in, got the desk agent to collect it and I was only handed 1 parcel, the other was presumed lost (stolen).
I ordered 2 iPhone 6's when they first came out. As the delivery was convoluted and there was no notification of when they were coming, we were out when UPS attempted delivery and left 2 cards, one for each tracking number. The protocol was that the driver would bring back stuff to depot and they would be available for collection from 18:30hrs the same day. The drivers would bring the stuff in from their vans and scan and hand over to waiting customers. My driver refused to come in, got the desk agent to collect it and I was only handed 1 parcel, the other was presumed lost (stolen).
1602Mark said:
They were going from Cornwall to Devon (100 miles total) and initially arrived at their depot in Bodmin. They should have been delivered from there (44 miles to final destination) but actually ended up in Tamworth in the Midlands, assuming the tracking was accurate?
Everything will get shipped to a central hub, Tamworth and then distributed from there regardless of the length of the original journey, chances are they got put on the wrong vehicle and are now sat in the corner of a depot somewhere being ignored.Don't all the lost items (or items with supposedly damaged labels) get put in crates and auctioned off weekly. I think I saw a tv program with something like that, they bought one of the pallets and showed that the names and addresses were still perfectly legible. I think it was Joe Lycett perhaps.
in simple terms they dont care enough to sort out decent lost parcel protocols etc as that costs money. cheaper to claim its lost and f
k the customer. the insurance policies etc arent worth the paper they are written on and they deliberately drag out the claims processes as long as possible and make it as hard as possible to claim.
k the customer. the insurance policies etc arent worth the paper they are written on and they deliberately drag out the claims processes as long as possible and make it as hard as possible to claim. The royal mail delivered a parcel to my parents a few months back. Both told the postman they hadn't ordered anything and that parcel wasnt theirs.
He said it had been posted by them and unable to be delivered so was being returned, they said they hadn't posted anything either.
He then hoyed it on the floor and walked off. It's some sort of DJ mixing device when I've looked at it and nothing on it to say where it was meant to be.
He said it had been posted by them and unable to be delivered so was being returned, they said they hadn't posted anything either.
He then hoyed it on the floor and walked off. It's some sort of DJ mixing device when I've looked at it and nothing on it to say where it was meant to be.
Auctions
I worked in express for 10 years and saw many operations staff get sacked for taking goods, this was quite common years ago but better scanning and camera systems of late means internal staff are less likely to steal.
I know a senior manager of 20 + years that was sacked for taking a ride on scooter thing that had been in the warehouse for years awaiting duty payments (pre brexit but China origin) customer said they didn't want it sender said scrap it.
He took it home and told work he scrapped it, son put a pic on Facebook, someone who works there recognised it from the warehouse and reported it, security investigate and he makes the mistake of forging a destruction document, he and his boss at the time got sacked.
Both these guys were 50k plus salaries with great benefits and pensions, the bike was probably worth £200.
They take theft very seriously
I worked in express for 10 years and saw many operations staff get sacked for taking goods, this was quite common years ago but better scanning and camera systems of late means internal staff are less likely to steal.
I know a senior manager of 20 + years that was sacked for taking a ride on scooter thing that had been in the warehouse for years awaiting duty payments (pre brexit but China origin) customer said they didn't want it sender said scrap it.
He took it home and told work he scrapped it, son put a pic on Facebook, someone who works there recognised it from the warehouse and reported it, security investigate and he makes the mistake of forging a destruction document, he and his boss at the time got sacked.
Both these guys were 50k plus salaries with great benefits and pensions, the bike was probably worth £200.
They take theft very seriously
I worked for an auction house that handled "lost packages".
Generally they held on to them for 3 months. Paid the insurance, then sold it off.
We had all sorts.
Blood samples, Mario costumes, 25kg sacks of dried cranberries (not the cremated Dolores variety).
As a result of the holding delay, we ended up with skiis in August etc.
Generally they held on to them for 3 months. Paid the insurance, then sold it off.
We had all sorts.
Blood samples, Mario costumes, 25kg sacks of dried cranberries (not the cremated Dolores variety).
As a result of the holding delay, we ended up with skiis in August etc.
Calamityspice said:
I worked for an auction house that handled "lost packages".
Generally they held on to them for 3 months. Paid the insurance, then sold it off.
We had all sorts.
Blood samples, Mario costumes, 25kg sacks of dried cranberries (not the cremated Dolores variety).
As a result of the holding delay, we ended up with skiis in August etc.
Is the auction ebay or do they use an actual auction? Just wondering where i can look whats up for auction. Could find some random stuff.Generally they held on to them for 3 months. Paid the insurance, then sold it off.
We had all sorts.
Blood samples, Mario costumes, 25kg sacks of dried cranberries (not the cremated Dolores variety).
As a result of the holding delay, we ended up with skiis in August etc.
It’s generally down to cross labelling or no labels.
Hence it can’t be traced.
No shipper address makes it hard to tie
Up.
I worked for a forwarder owned by an integrator and we got an email every day with a couple of dozen lost ones on it.
Nobody ever actively searched for anything.
We even had the loss prevention man working from our office.
All he was bothered about was making sure you had a company jacket on when you took a pool car, and he used to wait down the lanes to check that you did and wasn’t speeding.
I’ve lost a wicker hot air balloon basket, that never ever turned up.
I also had some furniture disappear once.
Eventually it was found in lhr in a corner of the warehouse at lhr.
The warehouseman rang the shipper up at the central London showroom and they didn’t take a note of his number so we could t ring him back.
He called again and they passed the details on.
The warehouseman that found it was a tool
He said this isn’t my job finding lost freight. It was in the ready to destruct pile, and actually said he’s doing me a favour ringing as it’s not his job to do it.
I said oh is that right!!
I tend label and check everything myself now.
Not had a claim for years.
Hence it can’t be traced.
No shipper address makes it hard to tie
Up.
I worked for a forwarder owned by an integrator and we got an email every day with a couple of dozen lost ones on it.
Nobody ever actively searched for anything.
We even had the loss prevention man working from our office.
All he was bothered about was making sure you had a company jacket on when you took a pool car, and he used to wait down the lanes to check that you did and wasn’t speeding.
I’ve lost a wicker hot air balloon basket, that never ever turned up.
I also had some furniture disappear once.
Eventually it was found in lhr in a corner of the warehouse at lhr.
The warehouseman rang the shipper up at the central London showroom and they didn’t take a note of his number so we could t ring him back.
He called again and they passed the details on.
The warehouseman that found it was a tool
He said this isn’t my job finding lost freight. It was in the ready to destruct pile, and actually said he’s doing me a favour ringing as it’s not his job to do it.
I said oh is that right!!
I tend label and check everything myself now.
Not had a claim for years.
lukeharding said:
Don't all the lost items (or items with supposedly damaged labels) get put in crates and auctioned off weekly. I think I saw a tv program with something like that, they bought one of the pallets and showed that the names and addresses were still perfectly legible. I think it was Joe Lycett perhaps.
This.If you watch the Joe Lycett episode on Hermes, you will be horrified to see how many parcels end up at auction houses for disposal.
Most of the parcels in the auction were still sealed and very clearly labelled with the name and address of the intended recipient.
It is completely shocking.
There is also a video doing the rounds at the moment showing various Hermes and DPD drivers caught on CCTV photographing the ‘delivered’ package outside someone’s house or in their porch, before promptly picking it up again and driving off with it. Merely pretending to deliver it.
red_slr said:
The only 2 items amazon have ever lost of mine were an ipad and a laptop.
Coincidence? Maybe. But I have ordered 100s of other orders mostly tat and they always arrive.
I have a work mobile, work are good and ask which one you wantCoincidence? Maybe. But I have ordered 100s of other orders mostly tat and they always arrive.
My colleague and I went for the iPhone 4000 xs orgasm or whatever it was
Mine arrived and I noticed the outer carton didn’t look right, opened it and the phone looked ok. Put it on my shelf to do at weekend. IT man called asking for serial number for whatever, when I went to read it from the box it was t the 4000 xs orgasm model, just the 4000 model
Someone somewhere had been doing the swaperoo trick I’d imagine, took a lot of explaining with the sender but eventually they sent the right one
Funny enough in the last couple of weeks I’ve been doing work in UPS depots, in the corner of each one is a massive pile of parcels all damaged or ripped boxes etc, got chatting to a member of staff who said that’s all the ones that are “lost” along the line, no one wants to sort it so the pile gets bigger and bigger
There was loads of stuff, Emma mattresses, pressure washers, small stuff etc!
Mad!
There was loads of stuff, Emma mattresses, pressure washers, small stuff etc!
Mad!
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