This is apropos of nothing topical to this blog, but I gotta vent. My daughter used some of her work money this summer to buy an Apple TV so she could watch her iTunes shows on a screen bigger than her laptop. FedEx truck pulled up with it today, delivery guy jumps off the truck with it, drops it in the street, boots it a little picking it up, then walks over to where I'm standing, watching, and hands it to me like nothing happened. I said, "That's fragile, what you just dropped." And he's all, "Hey, it's under warantee, if it's broken send it back to the company." I got his name and he made like he was reporting the incident on his little handheld, but who knows.
Aside from the fact that if the thing doesn't work, FedEx should pay due to the butterfingered behavior of its delivery guy, sending it back isn't exactly a no-stress option. Pack it back up, wait for FedEx to get it, then wait all over again for a new one? Plus, it's always possible that damage done will take some time to show, by which time returning it may not be so easy. As it is, I can't even see if it's damaged yet because the cables that hook it to the TV come separately and haven't arrived. It looks OK, isn't making any loose-part rattling noises.
Accidents happen, and certainly I have no idea what's happening to these packages when they're out of my sight. They should be packed sufficiently to receive shocks. But at the very least, it seems to me that if you're a delivery person for a company that has a reputation as a premium shipper, and you toss a package on the street right in front of the consumer, it might be a good idea to say you're sorry, and act like this is something that deserves a response from you. Sheesh. Am I being overly sensitive here?
2 comments:
No, I don't think you are being overly sensitive.
You wrote you understand it's been through worse on its journey, and you understand accidents happen. All you wanted was a bit of courtesy, and I think you were owed it. He should also have told you what your options were about potential damage to the TV - you had some other than just sending it back yourself. And no, unless he has some new test-model handheld with a prototype communication system, he wasn't reporting anything about the incident.
I am a FedEx driver. Your package probably did go through worse on its trip to you, although Apple products are sent in a way to indicate they need special handling (and they usually get it). Yeah, packages get dropped, fall off the shelves in the truck, and are packed to withstand it.
You deserved to be treated better. I have dropped packages while I'm delivering them, too. (It actually seems to happen more often if the customer is RIGHT THERE, of course!) I feel like a jerk every time. Some customers are mad, some laugh, some just look at you. All receive an apology. Most accept it graciously, as I think you would have, and ask what to do if the item was fragile. I take a minute to talk to them about it, and try to make sure they are OK with things before I leave.
FedEx drivers are busy, and it can be very stressful to try to get everything done on time properly and safely. The reason we have so much work to do is because we have customers, need them, and should appreciate them. I'm so sorry you had a bad experience, and hope all is well with your TV. Good for your daughter for saving up and getting herself something awesome!
Thank you so much for your comment. You've restored my faith in FedEx. :)
What you describe is exactly what I expected -- an apology, a few words about what could be done about it, an acknowledgment of chagrin. I've found most FedEx drivers to be friendly and professional, so I guess this was just one bad apple.
At any rate, the box works, so it appears no harm was done, other than to my nerves, and they're pretty much a mess this time of year anyway.
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