I have been waiting for an international delivery for a couple of weeks now. Bought off Ebay from the US as the same item was well over twice the price in Australia (A bit for my race car)
Tracking was a little frustrating, anyone familiar with the Ebay global shipping program will now that firstly it is not very fast (but it is relatively cheap) and the tracking information is delayed by so many hours as to be virtually useless. And you also do not get for the most part any tracking numbers that can be used outside of ebay.
Anyway, I have been chasing my part for a week after it seemed as good as lost. I finally managed to get a tracking number today for Fedex handing it over to Australia post (It has taken over an hour on the phone to get a tracking number for Auspost) and I find that despite my asking directly if an item was at the post office for me (Pissant small LPO) they flatly refused to have a look if there was a stray item for me.
To cap it all off (Otherwise it would just be a bit annoying and considered typical of our LPO) they way they told me that they would not even check if there was something unclaimed in my name started with "It is not our responsibility to"
Wouldn't you think in a service industry where you were effectively going to succeed or fail based on your own reputation (it is an LPO so basically a franchise) that the last phrase that would come into your head when a customer (Source of revenue) asks for reasonable help would start with "It is not my responsibility"
And then there was the recent instance of getting three parcels in one day. One had email notifications, the others not.
I went in with the reference and they gave me one of the three (They were stacked in a neat pile of three items for me as I later realised) and it was not the one matching the reference number. Off home I went and there are two cards in the mailbox, one for the one I had the email for and one with two other references. So back into town I went, explaining to the same bloke behind the counter (There are only three of them) that I had just been given one of the three, which had the wrong reference number and "Can I please have the other two" only to have him try to give me only one of them. After rechecking my license photo and address just as carefully as he had done ten minutes prior (I dunno, maybe I grew a beard in that time?)
That is what our PO used to be like. You would walk in and they would be off down the back to grab the parcel you did not even know was there yet.
My wife had a crack at them to the competent staffer there (Who unfortunately only works part time) for flat refusing to try to assist and she just rolled her eyes and gave my wife the sideways look and tip of the head to say "It was him right, he does things like that" (The owner, who was "Serving" another customer)
While it is a STUPID thing to be in the script (Or just at the front of mind) of any customer facing staff, "it is not our responsibility" could at least start a sentence that ends with "But let me see if we can help you"
Rather than that it ended up with a suggestion that I should look up the number (He did not give it to me) and call Australia post if I was unhappy with the parcel service, after pointing out again that the parcel delivery contractor was neither his employee nor his responsibility. All the while he was standing about two meters from my bit.
1 item of mine posted from Sydney to come all the way to Canberra (3hrs drive...). Posted 2 weeks ago...still in Granville apparently.
1 large parcel from Sydney to QLD (to my holding address). Sent last Tuesday...made Toowoomba thursday...still in Toowoomba...and it only needs to go another hour transit... latest estimate was today, but I can see that will be pushed again.
Tired of the ineptitude. Don't even expect ANYTHING any more. Every Express Post item I had sent last week turned up 3 days late...every single one of them. (and yes, they were posted AFTER Labour day here in the ACT).
Apparently, Royal Mail now tells it's customers to expect major delays going to Australia, and rank our package safety along with Italy (which is TERRIBLE)
Posted from WA on the 18 Sep 17, it got to NSW exchange approx 2 days later. Instead of sending it on to the ACT, AusPost thought they would send it back to WA.
So after it went missing for 3 or 4 days, it eventually showed back up where it was sent from for them to send back to NSW. Apparently it's here in the ACT somewhere now!
Pathetic! Especially when you pay a premium for postage. It wasn't cheap to get it sent from WA, I think they should give me my money back! Just hope it is OK after doing two trips between WA and NSW, and wherever else it has been!
I drove to Mildura to pick up my FSQ106ED
I drove to Central Coast to pick up my mirror for the Dob
I drove to Sydney to pick up my TEC Mak
I drove to Frankston to pick up my TSA120
Every Express Post item I had sent last week turned up 3 days late...every single one of them.
At least with these, you can legitimately claim the cost of the satchels back. If they don't meet their express deadline, then they have to recompense you. They won't do it with actual real money, because AusPost, but at least you will have some new satchels.
Take the express tracking numbers and a printout of each tracking log to the counter and ask for a reimbursement form. They will send it all away and you should receive something a week or 2 later.
For really expensive high quality stuff I reckon I would drive to the sellers door as well, even if it was in another State.
You cant tell me that a Tak Sky 90, is going to like bouncing around the Country.
Unless it has Manual Handling stickers on it, a parcel can and does endure up to 1.2m drops through the sorting centres, on their automated sorting conveyors. And Manual Handling stickers are not the easiest things to get out of AusPost, and certainly not over the counter.
The Tak Sky 90 would have already bounced about all over the place
whilst getting from Japan to the vendor's premises, so a bit more [well
packed] bouncing probably wouldn't do any harm.
raymo
Item was delivered to distribution centre about yen mins from my house.
They didn't let me know so eventually I rang up. Yes it's here but it has to go to Brisbane centre for delivery.
Why, I live on the Gold Coast where you are.
Yes but Brisbane is closer.
No it's not .
Well it has to go there.
No it doesn't. Leave it there and I'll come and pick it up and save you the trouble of taking it an hour up the road so it can come right back.
I'm not sure if I can do that.
Do you have the parcel there?
Yes
Put it down and I'll come and get it.
So I went and got it.
Two days later I got a tracking note saying my parcel had been lost in transit.....
Item was delivered to distribution centre about yen mins from my house.
They didn't let me know so eventually I rang up. Yes it's here but it has to go to Brisbane centre for delivery.
Why, I live on the Gold Coast where you are.
Yes but Brisbane is closer.
No it's not .
Well it has to go there.
No it doesn't. Leave it there and I'll come and pick it up and save you the trouble of taking it an hour up the road so it can come right back.
I'm not sure if I can do that.
Do you have the parcel there?
Yes
Put it down and I'll come and get it.
So I went and got it.
Two days later I got a tracking note saying my parcel had been lost in transit.....
Ha Ha ... that's a beaut story .... same thing happens to me to ..... .... it's a joke, isn't it ...!!
Item was delivered to distribution centre about yen mins from my house.
They didn't let me know so eventually I rang up. Yes it's here but it has to go to Brisbane centre for delivery.
Why, I live on the Gold Coast where you are.
Yes but Brisbane is closer.
No it's not .
Well it has to go there.
No it doesn't. Leave it there and I'll come and pick it up and save you the trouble of taking it an hour up the road so it can come right back.
I'm not sure if I can do that.
Do you have the parcel there?
Yes
Put it down and I'll come and get it.
So I went and got it.
Two days later I got a tracking note saying my parcel had been lost in transit.....
That would have to be right up there with the most ridiculously sad stories about incompetence I've ever heard. Sounds like something right off 'Yes Minister'.
.... it's a joke, isn't it ...!!
