Odd DHL experience :-~ RANT ALERT!

[pren]

Hi guys.

Had a bit of a random few days re: a delivery via DHL.

I'd ordered a Trend Air ace off of ebay. Now I leave for work at 0730 and I'm not back until 1730ish (No burglars here, are there? ) so I used to miss any parcel deliveries, resulting in an early foray to the local RM office.

To get round this, I made a large post box that could accommodate shoe-box sized parcels. Simples.

Anyway, I got home on friday to find two 'Missed Delivery' cards from DHL. Apparently they needed a signature. Fair do's.

The first card I read said: 'Missed delivery - please ring X on .....(local landline)' Time'd 0930. Gave no 'business hours'.

Second card, timed at 1430, simply read 'RING ME!!!!' in large letters and underlined several times. :?

O...k.....

So I ring the number ... no answer, leave a message. Left one, inc my number, asking the guy to deliver the parcel to the village post office, (something most people in my street do as nearly all my neighbours are out in the daytime) as I won't be in until after 1730.

Anyway - I figured: Weekend now, bank holiday to follow; I'll try him again on Tuesday.

I ring the guy this morning at 0715 on the assumption that delivery drivers start early (well, all the one's I deal with at work do at any rate). I get through to him to be greeted with a muffled 'What?'. Politely explain who I am and ask if he'd got my message (I had an MDF bookcase to start on that evening so I needed to get the mask before then)?

I get a 'Mmmff Mummfff pineapple's sake...Ring back after 9!! before the phone goes down. :? :?

Tried ringing him back after 9 - no answer. Ok, must be out on his rounds. Left another message.

I get home this evening to find an peachie message on my answering machine:

'Yeah, this is X from DHL - I'm outside your house. There's no-one in. You woke me up at 7am, which I didn't appreciate, and now your not even here! This is the 3rd time I've tried delivering this thing to you. I should really be taking it back to the depot now, but I'm trying to do you a favour! Ring me before 7 tonight ... NOT 7 IN THE MORNING and I'll see what I can do'.

Hmm....

I ring him back, get through to his wife who goes to get him from the garden.

I tell him who I am and that I'm returning his call (doesn't catch the sarcasm).

'Oh, so you're actually in now, are you?! Right, stay there, I'll be round in 10mins' Hangs up.

20mins later, X arrives on foot. No uniform, no ID, scruffy ...

'You Jones? Right, here *hands parcel over*. Thought I'd never get rid of this thing! Supposed to return it to depot after 3 attempts. Could have put myself in some right trouble keeping it for you! Sign here. Cheers.

Now, I deal with quite a few couriers in my job - DHL are regulars - and they are all very professional and polite. If this guy had been my first contact with DHL, I'd never use them or reccomend them!

Gurr!! :evil:

[/rant]

 

[wizer]

yes DHL sometimes subcontract to self employed 'local' delivery agents. TBH Our local one is a nice guy and I find it convenient to call him and him drop it off 'after hours'. Better than going to pick it up from miles away.

 

[Jenx]

Almost certain to be a 'Subbie' Pren ...

I agree that 'manners maketh man' , but In his own (sweet) way :wink: , I reckon the guy was actually trying to do you a favour.

Takes a bit of 'reading between the lines' , but the 'essence' of his decentness is there, albeit veiled by his own 'being a regular grumpy human' :wink: :lol:

It would have been better to have had some manners, thats very true.. but if he'd played it 'by the book' , it could conceivably gone walkabout for a week or more.

Takes all kinds to turn the world... and sometimes its easy to look a gift horse in the mouth too.... especially when its a slightly rude horse, or you perceive it to be a rude horse..

Honestly, I reckon he did you a good turn :wink: 8)

 

[Doctor]

Sounds like the guy did you a favour, I think you have to remember 07.15 is not normal business hours.

 

[pren]

Hey.

I agree that he did me a favour in holding the parcel longer than he should. I think the local depot is a 15-20min drive away, so he saved me a trip.

The guy was just a bit of an buttocks. :roll: :lol:

Hey ho.

Cheers,
Bryn

 

[Hitch]

Ahhh, DHL!

Id never ever ever never ever use them again.
Sent me on a wild goose chase from one end of Devon to the other for no reason once, to collect a parcel... turns out it was in the Plymouth depot all along :roll:

And i wont go as far as to mention the damaged parcels....

 

[Woodmagnet]

Should have signed for it Bryn then kicked
him in nut's. :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Night Train]

I've had a DHL delivery that kept saying I was out when I was in so having made an appointment I stood on my drive way and waited for him. His van arrived, he ignored me and went next door, no reply and went back to his van where he phoned me to say he tried but I wasn't in.

Turned out he was reading the number of one of the flats painted on a wheelie bin outside next door rather then looking at the door number of my house! :roll:

Another time a delivery chap gave my then wife's bank cards to a chap standing outside another house on the street to sign for as she wasn't in! :roll: :roll: Good thing he was honest and wrote a note on it before dropping it in our letter box.

 

[Waka]

My last experience with DHL was a threatening letter regarding an unpaid bill and threatening me with the heavy boys I wouldn't really have minded but I'd not used them for about 3 years.

When I phoned up to sort this out all I got was that the letter shouldn't have come to me. Now some people would have worried and paid this bill.

I'll never use them.