FedEx not always efficient.

[LifeinAsia]

On Saturday, I needed to give some documents to my parents for processing on Monday. It's a 40-minute drive each way, but had a lot going on, so decided to just overnight it wit FedEx. When I paid for it, the cashier joked that she lives near there and could have just dropped it off on her way home.

I checked tracking this morning to make sure it's going to be delivered on time. The last tracking status has it in Memphis, TN, on Sunday- just a mere 1,800 miles away!

Seriously?

[bwnbwn]

O boy that is good. Should have stayed at that location to go out Monday but was put on a plane to their central processing to be sent back Sunday to go out Monday were you paid for the delivery.
Nice one.

[lucy24]

Heh. I thought they'd stopped doing that. You may remember that when FedEx first came out, a key part of their setup was to route everything via a single hub in, uhm, was it Lexington, Kentucky? Something like that. Presumably including things going to the other end of the same town.

Where I live, you have to be careful to put local mail in the local box, or it risks being auto-routed via the nearest major city. Which is 300 miles away.

[LifeinAsia]

Nope- they didn't stop doing that. Talked to a supervisor there who confirmed that EVERYTHING goes through Memphis or Indiana. And because of the increased Christmas volume (gee, who would have predicted that?), the outgoing planes were full and the shipment got bumped. It *might* go out tonight.

Had I known it was going to go through Memphis, I seriously would have just hand delivered it!

[bwnbwn]

well bright side. Ya can claim a refund and or get a free ship from this. I would have thought about the Holiday stampede before the ship, and paid my parents a visit. Never know when a meteor is gonna hit.
merry Christmas to ya. :)

[LifeinAsia]

paid my parents a visit

Going up tomorrow anyway.

Ya can claim a refund

That's debatable. The check is related to a financial transaction that could trigger quite a bit in taxes if not completed by year end. But the actual "cost" wouldn't be known until doing my 2014 taxes in early 2015- I doubt they'd honor a claim made that long after the fact.

[bwnbwn]

Ahh the ole IRS thingy. Lest (I hope you made a copy) and can get it done with the visit, then you can claim a refund. telly ya parents a stranger from Texas said Merry Christmas....:)

[LifeinAsia]

I hope you made a copy

No-go: there's a check involved. :(

[bwnbwn]

Your screwed! But maybe it MIGHT be delivered on Sat. but I wouldn't be holding by breath on this happening, although you could throw a really good melt down and see it this is a possibility.

[LifeinAsia]

Sat. delivery is worthless if no one is there to accept delivery. Most likely the building will be locked tight so they couldn't even get in to slide under the office door.

I've now officially spent more time on the phone (trying to track down exactly where the package is) than it would have taken to hand deliver it myself... Even with a Priority Trace on it, no one knows exactly where it is, although they seem to feel it's left Memphis and that I should call back in 2 hours after their system updates.

Again, everyone toes the "ALL air shipments must go through Memphis or Indianapolis" company line. And again, no one there can explain why it even got near an airplane when the distance to the nearest airport is further away than the destination itself!

[LifeinAsia]

Final tracking report: actually delivered 25.5 hours after originally scheduled. Overall, spent about twice as much time on the phone and dealing with the situation than if I had just hand delivered it myself.

Moral of the story: When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight, do it yourself!

[lawman]

FedEx and the United States Post Office have conspired to delay my packages.

[lucy24]

no one there can explain why it even got near an airplane when the distance to the nearest airport is further away than the destination itself!

I think the idea is that there are only two tracks: from origin to hub, and from hub to destination, with no jumping of tracks permitted.

FedEx and the United States Post Office conspired in an attempt to force you to visit your parents :)

[LifeinAsia]

No conspiracy- the trip (for Christmas) was planned way before. I was just trying to avoid an extra trip out there.

[creeking]

the post office has express delivery. if you give them an address, they will tell you if it can get there tomorrow.

[LifeinAsia]

if you give them an address, they will tell you if it can get there tomorrow.

Telling and doing can be 2 completely different things.

FedEx also told me it would be delivered by 10:00 on the 23rd. Until it wasn't.

Had it not been for the long lines at the Post Office during this time of the year, I probably would have leaned more towards USPS. (In the future, I certainly will regardless.)