(no subject)

[graculus]

Meanwhile, in other news, I've just emailed Amazon to complain about their use of Parcelnet for deliveries. For anyone outside the UK, Parcelnet are one of those firms that charge large companies for delivery and their local network involves a bunch of people driving their own cars - if you work normal hours, then your chances of being at home when they can deliver are minimal, and there's not even a local depot to go and collect from. I know some people have had horror stories to tell in terms of their dealings with Royal Mail, but where I live you can get deliveries rescheduled for Saturday and they also have the option to go and pick the damn thing up yourself.

They're also unpredictable in other ways - one delivery I had, the Parcelnet guy basically dropped my package over the 6' high back gate and left a card to say what he'd done, while this time round they're insisting on a signature for a package of similar value.

The annoying thing about Amazon is that it's not until they email you to tell you that your order has been despatched that they also let you know which courier service they're using for it. There's also no way of predicting, since I always try and use the free shipping option, what it's going to be as I've had stuff via Royal Mail as well as DHL. If I knew in advance they were planning to use Parcelnet, I'd cancel my order, but by the time I do then it's too late.

E.T.A. - got pretty much the response I expected from Amazon, which is about how they find Parcelnet provides 'an excellent service' (clearly a different Parcelnet than the one I've been dealing with!) but that they appreciate how deliveries need to be convenient as well and clearly this hasn't been the case here blah blah blah. Whatever.

Comments

[wildcard-sej.livejournal.com]

I wonder if it's a regional thing, because I've never had a problem with my Amazon deliveries - they usually seem to come via Parcel Force, and if I'm lucky (most of the time), it'll be the local depot which I can swing by on the way to work in the morning. Only occasionally does it end up at the one down by the docks, which means Saturday morning city traffic...

Amazon.ca, OTOH, comes via DHL - which used to be fine when they opened on Saturdays, but now that they don't any longer, it's almost impossible to retrieve my parcels from them without taking time off work. :(

There are, however, a number of delivery agencies which are utterly atrocious, and I'm getting quite fed up with parcels being abandoned outside the door (within a couple of steps and easy view of passing pedestrians), with neighbours, or returned to sender, without the courtesy of a card to say who they are or what they've done. I'd really like sellers to give a choice of courier when you checkout, because for some of them I'd willingly pay a couple of quid more for 'postage' just to ensure hassle-free delivery.

[graculus.livejournal.com]

Most of my Amazon stuff comes via Royal Mail, which is fine.

I'd second having the choice of couriers, because I'd never choose Parcelnet - other than the row I had over one delivery with DHL (who were taking the piss, in my opinion), I only have problems when they use Parcelnet.

[innocent-lex.livejournal.com]

You'll get a response but it won't make a blind bit of difference. The huge number of people who've complained to Amazon about Parcelnet haven't made a blind bit of difference. I never pick the free delivery option any longer because the hassle is just too much if they decide to send via Parcelnet.

I've got beyond the point where I'll put up with crap service from a business, and have struck various companies off my list for shitty service. Play.com is one of them - no matter how many times I asked them to pack my DVDs properly they kept arriving scratched because of poor packing that made them loose in their cases. I gave up and no longer buy from them. I don't buy from expansys.com because their after-sales support turned out to be shite. I still buy from Amazon because I have alternate methods of delivery, but they don't give a toss about Parcelnet and despite telling various people that they wouldn't use Parcelnet any more, they still do. They're on thin ice on that front, but they haven't gone over the edge for me yet.

[graculus.livejournal.com]

Oh, I got an answer just now, saying how they think the service they get from Parcelnet is excellent, but then I didn't expect anything to be different.

The only way I think it'll change is if people don't respond to Parcelnet's attempts to deliver, so the package gets sent back to Amazon - that way Amazon have to refund you, but they still have to pay for the package Parcelnet couldn't deliver. If enough people did that, refusing to accept Parcelnet as a courier, I bet things would change... ;)

[innocent-lex.livejournal.com]

The service they get from Parcelnet may well be excellent. The service their customers get from Parcelnet is crap. Obviously they don't care about their customers. It's a pretty simple equation.

[graculus.livejournal.com]

They have now offered to waive the postage on my order if I reorder with paid postage, so I guess jumping up and down got me somewhere. ;)

[siluria]

Getting anything from a parcel company is a pain in the backside when you work. I had one company leave a £300 delivery next to the bin because I wasn't in. Royal Mail is best because I work near the depot and it's open til 7, so I can pop in on my time scales not their's, I really wish they'd use them all the time :)

[graculus.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I mean how dare people work to earn the money to buy the stuff to be delivered?

My cunning plan is that if everyone refused to accept deliveries via Parcelnet, then Amazon would find it economically unviable to continue using them as surely they have to pay for deliveries regardless of whether they're successful or not? ;)

[blktauna.livejournal.com]

Don't get between Grac and her WWW

[graculus.livejournal.com]

I've had the email, season 2 is on the way! And fortunately it comes via Royal Mail, otherwise there would be trouble! ;)

[penfold-x.livejournal.com]

I have never heard of a delivery service that doesn't have depot pick-up. What a load!