Please Don't Use Fed Ex

[akabryanhall]

For the love of god, stop using fed ex. Especially after reading what happened to Mike recently, this will be the second package in a row delivered to me from Fedex that was "Delayed" due to weather conditions. I checked the weather in memphis last night, they have drought conditions and fire warnings.
It's only delayed two hours but what the heck is so special about a 10:30 guarantee if you can just say it was delayed due to weather?
They are obviously short staffed or something.

 

[turbo21]

At least the 2 hour delay isnt too bad. Its just not fedex, its seems like customer service in any type of business has gone down hill. I have too many examples to list. Hopefully your package makes it ok

bob

 

[btkrausen]

I've heard that FedEx is going to stop shipping live aquaria from person to person, and only ship for businesses that are certified. I heard the start date for that is April 1st.

 

[mdb_talon]

Well i am not usually one to defend fedex, but they have legitimate reasons for delays if your flight is going through the midwest. The fire warning you saw were caused by extremely high winds that frequently cause aborted landings and often crosswind runways to be shut down, reducing the flights that can arrive and takeoff.

I am all for bashing fedes when deserved, but a two hour delay caused by an airport that was under red flag warnings does not seem so bad.

 

[turbo21]

I looked on the web to see if i could find anything about that, couldnt find anything could you provide a link or isnt it published anywhere yet

thanks

Bob

 

[Speg]

At least the 2 hour delay isnt too bad. Its just not fedex, its seems like customer service in any type of business has gone down hill. I have too many examples to list. Hopefully your package makes it ok

bob

Customer service everywhere is really really really bad. It's like this businesses think that they're doing YOU a favor.

 

[Electrobes]

I've had bad experiences from all carriers, it's bound to happen. Shame to hear about them hosing y'all.. truth be told I think Fedex has been a little better than UPS, but only because UPS is mainly offered when I buy things.

 

[akabryanhall]

Well i am not usually one to defend fedex, but they have legitimate reasons for delays if your flight is going through the midwest. The fire warning you saw were caused by extremely high winds that frequently cause aborted landings and often crosswind runways to be shut down, reducing the flights that can arrive and takeoff.

I am all for bashing fedes when deserved, but a two hour delay caused by an airport that was under red flag warnings does not seem so bad.

Maybe you're right, that would be a valid reason. I guess my point is that their guarantee is basically worthless. There is no way for us to ever dispute a weather delay so they'll just keep saying there was one.

 

[akabryanhall]

I've never ever had problems with Fedex until recently and now I've seen 5 complaints (Just from R2R alone) since the beginning of the year. Something weird must be going on there recently.

 

[zoous]

typo

I read about Sexy Corals awful situation with FedEx but I think it depends where you live. Usually when I get a package from FedEx it's Early!!! Not 10:30AM but 9:40AM.

 

[Wy Renegade]

Maybe you're right, that would be a valid reason. I guess my point is that their guarantee is basically worthless. There is no way for us to ever dispute a weather delay so they'll just keep saying there was one.

Actually USPS, UPS, and Fed-Ex do not guarantee any live materials (as they all officially will not ship corals or fish), so basically your only hope is for reimbursement on shipping costs anyway, and I've had all three play the weather card in the past, so I agree that none of them are any better than the others.

 

[akabryanhall]

Come to think of it, maybe I'm just seeing more complaints about fedex more people use them, that being said, I'm still po'd

 

[akabryanhall]

A couple of questions for you guys,
1. What does the "Guarantee delivery by 10:30" actually do for a any package if its not delivered by 10:30? Shipping Reimbursement?
2. If they don't officially ship corals or fish, shipping boxes that say "Handle with care, Live Fish" is a blatant disregard for their own policy. I have told people at the usps office exactly what I'm shipping and they never bat an eye about it. Are we sure that they don't allow shipping fish or corals?

 

[Pufferpunk]

Guaraneee delivered by 10:30, is a guarantee, whether it be a fire, broken down plane or any other act of God. You should at least get the shipping cost back from them.

 

[turbo21]

UPS isnt much better. My wife watched the ups guy throw my box of crap from champion. He used one hand and threw it from 5 feet away onto the front porch. I guess the giant fragile stickers all over it didnt mean anything

bob

 

[KLR]

That sucks...Fedex has been messing up alot lately. Btw UPS does not consider corals a live animal...well my locals ups's dont...

 

[EliteReefs]

all they are guaranting is that if you pay the extra they will make very attempt to get the package there by the said time. but they pad that buy saying if something out of thier control stops that theres nothing they can do about it.

they will refund shipping cost but ONLY the difference between priority and standard which in most cases is just a fraction of the shipping cost.

as for shipping corals or fish you can ship them but you can only ship liquid in certain types of containers and approved shipments. a plastic bag is not one of those containers unless you have it inspected and approved. they will mark your account for this type of package and your good to go. so doing it your not going to get in trouble really but it leaves them an out to be able to say. "we told you so"

this is direct from the terms and conditions on the site

Live Animals and Ornamental Marine Life (Including Live Fish)
FedEx Express does not accept live-animal shipments as part of its regular-scheduled service and does not transport household pets such as dogs, cats, birds and hamsters. FedEx Express may accept certain shipments of live animals such as horses, livestock and zoo animals (to and from zoo locations only) on an exception basis if approved and coordinated by the FedEx Live Animal Desk (call 1.800.405.9052).

If approved by FedEx, we may accept non-venomous reptiles, amphibians, live/tropical fish and beneficial insects on an exception basis under the following conditions:



Shipments must be from a business to a business (from a breeder to a pet store, for example).
The shipper must have its packaging tested and pre-approved by FedEx Packaging Design and Development for the type of animal being shipped. Call 1.800.633.7019 for assistance. It is the responsibility of the shipper to adequately package shipments for all temperature extremes and handling conditions.
Contact your FedEx account executive for details and additional requirements.

 

[fab1971]

I've never had a problem with fed ex or ups. Post office on the other hand has been terrible for me. The main trick is checking the weather before you ship or get anything shipped to you. If there are any storms in either area, just wait. If the weather is too cold or too hot, don't ship. You can't predict mechanical failure but for the most part, you can forsee weather issues from the forcasts. Fed ex is still the most reliable of the three, regardless of the past few threads, imo.

 

[Wy Renegade]

Guaraneee delivered by 10:30, is a guarantee, whether it be a fire, broken down plane or any other act of God. You should at least get the shipping cost back from them.

Actually, not if you read the fine print, they are excluded from Acts of God, which is what weather falls into, hence weather delays, earthquakes, etc. are not reimbursable.

as for shipping corals or fish you can ship them but you can only ship liquid in certain types of containers and approved shipments. a plastic bag is not one of those containers unless you have it inspected and approved. they will mark your account for this type of package and your good to go. so doing it your not going to get in trouble really but it leaves them an out to be able to say. "we told you so"

this is direct from the terms and conditions on the site

Live Animals and Ornamental Marine Life (Including Live Fish)
FedEx Express does not accept live-animal shipments as part of its regular-scheduled service and does not transport household pets such as dogs, cats, birds and hamsters. FedEx Express may accept certain shipments of live animals such as horses, livestock and zoo animals (to and from zoo locations only) on an exception basis if approved and coordinated by the FedEx Live Animal Desk (call 1.800.405.9052).

If approved by FedEx, we may accept non-venomous reptiles, amphibians, live/tropical fish and beneficial insects on an exception basis under the following conditions:



Shipments must be from a business to a business (from a breeder to a pet store, for example).
The shipper must have its packaging tested and pre-approved by FedEx Packaging Design and Development for the type of animal being shipped. Call 1.800.633.7019 for assistance. It is the responsibility of the shipper to adequately package shipments for all temperature extremes and handling conditions.
Contact your FedEx account executive for details and additional requirements.

Most local places will accept them, but they will not guarantee them in any way shape or form, unless you meet the above requirements. This is true of all three of the shipping companies.

 

[tangboy]

when I ship corals, I don't even use FedEx or UPS, I just drop them corals into a used ziplock baggie, stick it it any box I can find, slap as few stamps as possible on the box with a hastly scribbled name and address, then stick it in the mailbox with the little red flag up the night before I want it mailed out :)