Do NOT ship packages to students using UPS

misterbill · 09-04-2009, 07:09 PM

I am having REALLY bad experiences with UPS delivery to my son at Russell dorm. 2 weeks ago, they managed to damage a package from Amazon to the point where it had to be thrown out. Now I've had them not be able to deliver a package I sent him, two days in a row. I find it really hard to believe that they had no one to leave a package with at 6:15pm when they finally got around to delivering (which is a really stupid time, given that the kids are at dinner then).

Now, apparently when they attempt to deliver the package for the 3rd time on Tuesday, they will take it to the campus mailroom, at which point who knows how long it will take to get to him. And the brownies I put in the package will be stale. Go know that what should have taken a single day for delivery (from NY) would take almost a full week to arrive. BTW, the UD ResLife page actually tells you that they had an arrangement with UPS to deliver to the main receiving on the 3rd attempt, but they don't bother to tell you that the odds of it getting delivered the first two times are slim. What I find rather strange is that they did deliver two packages before he arrived, and we found one in front of his RA's room when we arrived.

BTW I called UPS to complain and the first time they screwed up and my local UPS office call me. Then after that guy told me I had to call back and told me to register a "concern" (after telling me that he had heard of similar problems down there), I got a woman at the 800 # who told me that the driver did absolutely nothing wrong and I should not expect the driver to leave it if my son is not there, and refused to have the local depot call me. She did tell me that my son could go pick up the package but given that he has no car that's pretty much impossible. Don't the dorms have people who can accept packages when the kids are not there? I know they have package rooms that are open at night.

Needless to say, I am REALLY upset. I guess I have to start sending stuff via the USPS instead (although that's not going to help when ordering from Amazon and the like).

misterbill · 09-04-2009, 07:42 PM

So now that I have calmed down a bit, it appears that the correct way to do things is to ignore the advice given on the Reslife page, and to put the UD name in the address ,so it will go to the university's mail room on the first attempt and then be delivered to the dorm. Or use USPS.