Fedex- Honest mistake (twice now) or fraud?

Parent Cafe
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<p>No luck finding the phone #s of the terminals from the last time I went through this. All I seem to have kept was the corrected weight and bill after their re-weigh (less than a pound) and the printout of their “original” weight (over 5 lbs!). So maybe I should be “happy” that this time they only multiplied by a little over 3x the actual weight, when last time it was 5X the correct weight :rolleyes:</p>

<p>*** edit** - Bluebayou-
They implied last time that maybe there was something wrong with the scales at that terminal. Does this pass the smell test to you?</p>

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<p>We used the USPS, ‘if it fits, it ships’, online. I guestimated the wait as required for online postage, but the weight is immaterial to the shipping box size. Didn’t have to weight in line to drop and run.
Oregon to NYC Island in 2 days. Better than advertised and package arrived before USPS could update their tracking.</p>

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<p>jym:</p>

<p>yeah, “stuff” happens. We ship a lot of stuff Fedex Ground and every so often I call and they refund an incorrect charge. But usually its a double charge for the same item.</p>

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<p>I have never noticed an extra charge when shipping at Kinko’s (now called FedEx Office). Other posters are correct in that both UPS and FedEx use the higher of the tare weight or the actual weight in calculating the shipping cost.</p>

<p>If it is a small package, USPS Priority Mail flat rate boxes are the way to go. Since my school has a USPS office on campus, we have to rent our mailboxes from them and FedEx/UPS/DHL/TNT packages are not accepted unless we use the package delivery center. It takes only 2-3 days (usually 2) to get across the country, so I can get baked goods from home while they’re still fresh.</p>

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<p>FedEx Ground is really, really cheap for what it does though–that box I sent my daughter weighed a little over 9 pounds and measured 18 by 18 by 18 inches (which is very large incidentally–you would not think so) and it cost me about $15 to send. It was delivered in the promised two days AND the delivery guy even called her on her cell phone to see where he could have it signed for since no one was home and I had (accurately) stated a considerably higher value than the $100 base, which automatically triggers a signing upon delivery. The USPS boxes are not as large as that so I would not have been able to take advantage of their flat rate offer; also, while I know they can be a good deal our particular post office is unreliable and unpleasant and I would have very little faith in them at this end no matter what they might do at my deughter’s. I always worry about the USPS delays in tracking, as well.</p>

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<p>I was surprised to learn recently that some FedEx routes are actually done by franchisees, not the corporation. (If you Google “FedEx route” you can see some listings of routes for sale.)
Maybe you are being served by a franchisee who is less than honest? If so, the corporation would be interested in learning about your experiences.</p>

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<p>Now THAT’S ^^^^ fascinating, megnmo! How do I figure out if this route is franchized??</p>

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<p>Mattmom if you can send a box FedEx ground and it arrives in 2 days – I’m guessing you are in the same shipping/receiving zone. The only time I find UPS ground or FedEx ground to be cheaper than USPS priority is when the package in traveling less than 250 miles. You don’t have to use the fixed rate boxes to ship USPS priority. You can still pre-pay online and have free pickup. I have found the online tracking to be slow.</p>

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<p>Update-
Called fedex this morning and they tried to reach someone in QA at the terminal in NOLA. No answer. They wouldn’t give me the direct # (said it was a “private number”) but, BUT— I then found my numbers from last time this happened (Sept) and tried to call directly myself. No answer.
Will try again soon.</p>

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<p>Yay-- I got a hold of a very nice guy name Cedric in the pickup and delivery office (they are all in a very good mood in New Orleans after the Sun football game!!). He will pull the package and “SWAK” it (Scan and weigh it) . He gave me his extension and took my cellphone #. I was able to describe the box (because the college gives us 2 x 4" neon orange stickers to put on packages that have the students last name and mailbox number) so its easy to spot. I will await a call back from him with a scan and reweigh update. It means the package won’t be delivered til tomorrow but that is totally fine by me. There is nothing important in there. Just some stuff DS left home after winter break that he couldn’t fit in his carry on-- plus the obligatory little bit of junk food that I always enclose. He said he’d make a few calls too and see if we can get to the bottom of this problem …</p>

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<p>TutuTaxi, actually I am not in the same zone–if I were it would be overnight on FedEx Ground! (I know that both from the rate map and from using it regularly for sending/receiving freelance work within the “local” zone). In fact from my zip code the two-day service extends over much of the East Coast from at least central New england to the mid-South; my daughter lives about 600 miles away from me. I think the extent of two-day ground service over surprisingly long distances is probably a function of having a good network of interstate highways and to make that schedule possible on a regular basis and dense enough population coverage to make it profitable.</p>

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<p>Where do you find the map of the 2 day service zone, mattmom?</p>

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<p>Here is the link:</p>

<p><a href=“FedEx | System Down”>FedEx | System Down;

<p>My recollection is that when you go to the shipping menu on the FedEx site and go to the interactive grid that provides a detailed estimate of cost based on package weight and dimensions and sending and receiving zip code, there is some way to follow a link to ground service zones. This time I found it by going to the site and just searching for ground delivery to save time. The map changes based on the sending zip code that you type in above the little map. (The weird thing is that the ground service is cheaper as well as faster than the three-day Express supersaver for my purposes.) Good luck!</p>

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<p>Thanks, mattmom!!
Have you ever send envelopes, rather than boxes, via ground? We often have to send insurance appeals and documentation (dont get me started on a United Healthcare Insurance rant!!) and send them in the express envelopes. If it was more cost effective for us, is there a way to send them via ground? Do they accept our own envelopes, and if so, how do we do measurements of an envelope? I fear we’d have this weight/billing problem over and over, and that certainly isn’t worth the hassle.</p>

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<p>Sorry–I have used Jiffy bags to send books and manuscripts via both UPS and FedEx ground but not regular business-size or 8 x 11 flat envelopes. Might be worth looking into. I would worry about thin envelopes getting lost because of being so much smaller than most other ground materials, but I worry about lots of things.</p>

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<p>Most, if not all, FedEx Ground drivers are private contractors who own their own trucks. The customer service phone operators don’t work for FedEx either…they are contracted out also…and it would be a mistake to think they always know what they are talking about. You’re not supposed to use the “Express” packaging for “Ground” shipments. While the FedEx Office (formerly Kinko’s) people are indeed FedEx employees, they are pulled in so many directions, and are expected to master complex procedures in numerous operational areas, so they aren’t always up on the enormous volume of shipping policies.</p>

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<p>Wow. Learning a lot about the fedex business. Maybe I should support our local Big Brown co (UPS).</p>

<p>Update, and** good news:** thank heavens I found the phone #s to the terminal in St. Rose, LA. Called Cedric back to get a status (he gave me his direct extension) and he told me he had my package sitting next to him, waiting for the PM outbound manager to re- SWAK it (Scan, Weigh And Key) and would call me back. I asked to speak to his supervisor to thank him and tell him how helpful he (Cedric) had been. Manager (Ernesto) gets onthe phone, clearly, by the tone of his voice, expecting a complaint. When I told him I wanted to thank him for having such wonderful employees (and that he needed to keep them), he replied “What?? The Saints win on Sunday and today I get a compliment on my staff. Life is complete. I have died and gone to heaven!” So we chat a bit about what has been happening (and fortunately I also had the names of the people in the QA office at his facility that I spoke to last time and sung their praises too). He, like Schmaltz in the post above, told me that ALL fedex ground routes are contracted, but that he gueses there is a problem with the scale at the terminal receiving my packages.</p>

<p>I faxed him a copy of my packing slip, the FedexOffice receipt, current tracking info (showing the incorrect weight on it) and a list of the date, names and locations of all the people I’ve spoken to in the past 2 days to get this resolved. He (the Pkg & Delivery mgr) gave me his full name, direct extension and fax # (obviously), was walking over to Cedric’s desk to look at the package and weigh it himself, he planned to make a bunch of calls and would get back to me later today or tomorow when he knows more. YAY!! He agrees that I should not have to go through all this rigamaroll every time I send a pkg.</p>

<p>I have found that a little kindness goes a long way. I offered to speak on his behalf to his supervisor as well if that would be of help to him, as good customer service is getting to be rare and needs to be acknowledged. </p>

<p>So, so far the only downside is that this is time consuming, and my s’s package will be delivered tomorrow instead of today (big deal). Stay tuned!</p>

<p>And mattmom-
What are jiffy bags? Do you mean those plastic bubblewrap bags? I agree with you, I would be afraid to send anything in a regular white or manila envelope, especially with important papers. The envelope could get lost or ripped. Definitely not worth trying to save a few pennies, even though we are already dealing with reduced and lost revenue from the @*&#$^%) healthcare insurance companies, and every penny counts.</p>

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<p>Just got a call back from ernesto (mgr in NOLA) he spoke to his counterpart at hte terminal here (gave me his name, #, email as well as his supervisors) and told me they would be contactingthe HUB maintenance mgr to ck the scales, and that they’d be contacting me back with an update. He said if I wasnt satisfied we could esclalte it further. While all I personally want is the correct weight and bill for my one little package, I do not wnat to go through this every time I ship, and if this is happening to me, it could be happening to everyone who uses a prepaid account and has their pkgs weighed at that terminal. That would be a HUGE issue. So, back to my original question in my thread title-- waddya think? Honest mistake with the scale (which Ernesto said is measured and recalibrated daily) or systemwide fraud-- or something in between, if that is possible. Maybe someone is sitting on the scale when everything is scanned, LOL. The pkgs are scanned electonically, not manually.</p>

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<p>Wow-- been doing some reading on the web. Apparently this “reweigh and overcharge” scam for customers who use a Fedex account is a HUGE problem! Here’s one example (and its HUGE and outrageous!) Read this warning from a big company that sells on ebay [eBay</a> Guides - FRAUD SHIPPING WARNING FedUp with FedEx](<a href=“http://reviews.ebay.com/FRAUD-SHIPPING-WARNING-FedUp-with-FedEx_W0QQugidZ10000000003818356]eBay”>http://reviews.ebay.com/FRAUD-SHIPPING-WARNING-FedUp-with-FedEx_W0QQugidZ10000000003818356) ther are lots of smaller customers like myself who have been victims of this as well. If you use Fedex and have an account where you get billed on a credit card, check your weights against the weight they claim your package is.</p>

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<p>Sounds like systematic fraud to me. I used to use UPS exclusively for my shipping–like you, I prepaid, printed out the label, affixed it to the box, and dropped it off. First, UPS took away my account because I apparently didn’t have enough volume regularly, which means that each package is charged individually instead of getting a weekly itemized invoice. This is much less convenient for record-keeping. Then I discovered that the USPS will deliver Priority Mail packages to the other side of the country in no more than 3 days for a fee that is usually the same or less than UPS Ground, while UPS will take up to 7 days. For lighter packages, the USPS service costs half as much as UPS. And the USPS online software for label creation is actually MUCH more convenient to use, especially if you are mailing a number of packages of the same size to multiple locations. </p>

<p>I now ship almost everything by the USPS Priority Mail service instead, using my own packaging. If you can use their packaging, it’s even cheaper. And they deliver on Saturdays!</p>