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Parcelforce Fail Again


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So I've been waiting just over 10 days now for a bass to come from the US. The parcel was trackable using UPS international online tracking and very efficient too. I know exactly when it left the sales point and it's journey by air to the UK. It even told me when it hit customs and after being cleared informed me I should expect a letter requesting import duty payment. That's when good old Royal Mail & Parcelforce took over.
I got a letter on Thursday requesting payment for import duty charges and a 'handling fee' of £8, charges weren't excessive so I was pleased. It stated it wouldn't be delivered until Monday unless I paid a surcharge of £12 for Saturday delivery online as it was quickest. So I paid that as Monday I'm out and about all day. This morning I got up very early (as they often deliver around 8am here) and checked the tracking number online - 'Loaded on the van for delivery' so I waited. I used another tracking app that stated it was 'at the depot awaiting delivery' this was at 2pm. Now on the official website Saturday deliveries are between 7am and 1pm. On my order confirmation email it states between 7am and 2pm. When I rang initially the helpful member of staff checked tracking and said ring back at 3pm, I rang back at 3pm and was told 'looks like the driver hasn't turned up for work so it's not left the depot'. Through gritted teeth I asked the member off staff where I could get my money back and was given another number (unmanned on a Saturday after 1pm). She also informed me that this 'always happened on customs clearance items when paid online and that they were trying to remove the Saturday option from the website'.
So as soon as my parcel got to dear old Blighty the problems began, what a farce. Now of course Ill have to take pot luck that some kindly neighbour will look after it for me when I'm not home on Monday! If of course it manages to get out of the depot.....rant, rave, drool, etc. :(

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Amazing isn`t it, "it always happens", so instead of sorting things so that it doesn`t, they try and remove the Sat option. Still, I suppose seeing as the only option - as far as I know - is Parcelforce receiving it from Customs, they have the monopoly/no competition, so no incentive to help the customer.

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[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1410622541' post='2551371']
Amazing isn`t it, "it always happens", so instead of sorting things so that it doesn`t, they try and remove the Sat option. Still, I suppose seeing as the only option - as far as I know - is Parcelforce receiving it from Customs, they have the monopoly/no competition, so no incentive to help the customer.
[/quote]

Of course it's not a monopoly, OFCOM won't allow that.
If you have stuff sent via USPS then Parcelforce/Royal Mail will deliver in the UK. If you don't want Parcelforce to handle your stuff from the USA don't use USPS. There are plenty of other couriers operating in the UK now.

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It sucks waiting for things only for them to not arrive. It's not much consolation, but when I check the tracking and see it's at the local depot and charges are due, I just drive out, pay them and pick it up there and then. They're usually open til about 7 on a weekday and means I get the item quicker.

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To be honest there was no choice in the matter the seller is a shop and used UPS as standard. When it gets to the UK it's automatically handled via Royal Mail following clearance, there appears not to be a choice in which courier to use from there. Perhaps that will change now they have been sold off. I think Parcelforce is going through a lot of changes now they have been privatised they will need to sort their archaic systems out if they are going to survive in the competitive market. Incidentally having been off work recently following an operation I have taken advantage of UPS home collection and they have been excellent.

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[quote name='ash' timestamp='1410627127' post='2551427']
To be honest there was no choice in the matter the seller is a shop and used UPS as standard. When it gets to the UK it's automatically handled via Royal Mail following clearance, there appears not to be a choice in which courier to use from there. Perhaps that will change now they have been sold off. I think Parcelforce is going through a lot of changes now they have been privatised they will need to sort their archaic systems out if they are going to survive in the competitive market. Incidentally having been off work recently following an operation I have taken advantage of UPS home collection and they have been excellent.
[/quote]

That`s what I thought - sure a courier of choice is available to the sender, but once it`s over here and passed through customs, Royal Mail/Parcelforce get it, no matter what. That to me doesn`t offer any choice at all - after all, if UPS was the one chosen over there, why can`t customs hand it to UPS over here to finish the ride, so to speak.

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[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1410644380' post='2551646']
That`s what I thought - sure a courier of choice is available to the sender, but once it`s over here and passed through customs, Royal Mail/Parcelforce get it, no matter what.
[/quote]


No they don't - what you're saying is just wrong.
I've had international parcels delivered by all manner of couriers, it's only the USPS stuff that automatically gets delivered by Parcelforce.

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I posted something the other week, on a Friday. I was paying extra for special delivery just so it was both insured, tracked and signed for. The girl in the post office said not to bother paying the (considerable) extra for Saturday delivery, because it almost certainly wouldn't be delivered anyway :)

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[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1410653820' post='2551717']
No they don't - what you're saying is just wrong.
I've had international parcels delivered by all manner of couriers, it's only the USPS stuff that automatically gets delivered by Parcelforce.
[/quote]

True :)

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[quote name='Sean' timestamp='1410701407' post='2552055']
USPS = United States Postal Service
UPS = United Parcel Service

Different organisations.
[/quote]

True, might be a bit of confusion going on. But on the bright side :ph34r: Parcel Force are talking about starting Sunday deliveries to be more competitive in the marketplace.

The only time I had a package coming thru customs they wanted enough duty to make the "collectors item" (an SG Junior scratchplate) cost about the same as if I'd bought it here. I told them to just send it back, I wouldn't pay it. Ooooh! They were NOT happy bunnies.!!!

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[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1410653921' post='2551720']
I posted something the other week, on a Friday. I was paying extra for special delivery just so it was both insured, tracked and signed for. The girl in the post office said not to bother paying the (considerable) extra for Saturday delivery, because it almost certainly wouldn't be delivered anyway :)
[/quote]

The girl in your local Post Office is wrong about that.
Saturday Special Deliveries can have sticker placed on them, yellow with the letters SG (Saturday Guarantee) in black, to ensure they are delivered or at least delivery is attempted.

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I use a number of different couriers at woork and they are all going to have to try harder to compete.
Interlink will give you on line tracking so you can see where your parcel is and get a realtime estimate within an hour plus sunday deliveries.
Hermes, for all their faults, I can go half a mile and post my parcel up to 11 oclock at night 7 days a week.
You have to chose your courier depending on your parcel.
The only good thing parcel force has going for them is they willl deliver to your local post office so you dont have to stay in.

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[quote name='beely' timestamp='1410717325' post='2552287']
The girl in your local Post Office is wrong about that.
Saturday Special Deliveries can have sticker placed on them, yellow with the letters SG (Saturday Guarantee) in black, to ensure they are delivered or at least delivery is attempted.
[/quote]

I think she maybe knows what she's talking about from experience ?

Yellow sticker or not, would it actually be sorted and delivered ?

:)

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  • 2 weeks later...

[quote name='Big_Stu' timestamp='1410705810' post='2552126']
True, might be a bit of confusion going on. But on the bright side :ph34r: Parcel Force are talking about starting Sunday deliveries to be more competitive in the marketplace.

The only time I had a package coming thru customs they wanted enough duty to make the "collectors item" (an SG Junior scratchplate) cost about the same as if I'd bought it here. I told them to just send it back, I wouldn't pay it. Ooooh! They were NOT happy bunnies.!!!
[/quote]
The SG Junior scratchplate that you thought was such a massive bargain, after duty was applied, turned out not to be the bargain you thought it would be, so you "told them to just send it back etc etc" did you ever do any homework at school or where you too busy being a HAPPY BUNNIE ! OOOH!

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[quote name='blisters on my fingers' timestamp='1411692837' post='2562045']

The SG Junior scratchplate that you thought was such a massive bargain, after duty was applied, turned out not to be the bargain you thought it would be, so you "told them to just send it back etc etc" did you ever do any homework at school or where you too busy being a HAPPY BUNNIE ! OOOH!
[/quote]

What a strange post - if you're saying that he should have calculated the total cost in advance, I think the point was that the item was unexpectedly hit with an expensive 'collectors item' classification, rather than the standard goods cost.

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[quote name='Roland Rock' timestamp='1411711823' post='2562067']
What a strange post - if you're saying that he should have calculated the total cost in advance, I think the point was that the item was unexpectedly hit with an expensive 'collectors item' classification, rather than the standard goods cost.
[/quote]

Yes, that was the main point, glad to see that it wasn't missed, thank you. Though I also thought the decision by HMRC that a scratch-plate alone could be a "collectors item" was strange too. So it could be, presumably, if you import a cheapie guitar that has an after-market item on it you could be deemed to have to stump up more without realising.

I did enjoy the irony in the newbie's post of having a spelling mistake in a sentence about doing homework.

Edited by Big_Stu
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By the way it finally turned up and I got my money back - but not my wasted time. They were very apologetic in the end - even the chap who brought it commented that it should have been delivered on the Saturday - he even pointed out the yellow SD sticker on the package.

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[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1410653921' post='2551720']
I posted something the other week, on a Friday. I was paying extra for special delivery just so it was both insured, tracked and signed for. The girl in the post office said not to bother paying the (considerable) extra for Saturday delivery, because it almost certainly wouldn't be delivered anyway :)
[/quote]

If you sent it Special Delivery then yes it would have been delivered on that Saturday. Special Delivery items are sorted in a different area to everything else and are recorded at every step of the way and then when they get to the delivery office/on the van then they are handed first and delivered first.

Just so you know :)

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Quite frankly I'm amazed that Parcelforce are still a viable business. I've had two packages recently that were cocked up by them.

One I challenged the handling fees on to no avail...it was 20 days late. I could have handled payment of the customs charges myself but was not given that option. The other package wasn't delivered in time and there was no note left behind to say someone had visited. So I requested a FULL refund (including express shipping fee) from Amazon and wrote a strongly worded letter of complaint. The refund was approved inside two hours and...quelle surprise...the next day a delivery notice appeared through my letter slot. Too little too late though. I had already re-ordered. I abandoned the first package at the post office (where, incidentally, they also wanted a fee to collect.)

DPD have proved to be outstanding. They text you an hour in advance to let you know when they'll be arriving regardless of collecting or delivering. They're my courier of choice.

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