UPS rescheduled overnight delivery

[Lavey29]

I think we all know What Brown Can Do For You. I will not buy any live animals ever from any vendor that ships UPS. They are the worst. My fed ex lady told me when she sees "live animals " listed on the box she makes that her first stop in the morning always.

Sorry for your experience OP.

 

[Aaron Stone]

Okay, I am going to play Devil's Advocate (for some of you it seems literally the Devil).

I always find it a little amusing that people get mad at UPS/Fed Ex/Nasty-Shipping-Company Of The Day when something like this happens. The plane was late, not UPS's fault, but you expect a company that handles MILLIONS of packages per day to deviate from their standard operating procedures for your ONE package. Roll a truck, just for YOU. Seems a little entitled don't you think?

Yeah, it sucks, and I am sorry it happened and I can empathize with your frustration. But if you ship something you have to know that this can happen. That's what the insurance is for. You take that risk. If you don't want to take that risk, roll on down to the LFS and make your purchases there.

 

[exnisstech]

Okay, I am going to play Devil's Advocate (for some of you it seems literally the Devil).

I always find it a little amusing that people get mad at UPS/Fed Ex/Nasty-Shipping-Company Of The Day when something like this happens. The plane was late, not UPS's fault, but you expect a company that handles MILLIONS of packages per day to deviate from their standard operating procedures for your ONE package. Roll a truck, just for YOU. Seems a little entitled don't you think?

Yeah, it sucks, and I am sorry it happened and I can empathize with your frustration. But if you ship something you have to know that this can happen. That's what the insurance is for. You take that risk. If you don't want to take that risk, roll on down to the LFS and make your purchases there.

While I agree i don't think insurance covers death of live animals but I could be wrong.

Yep looks like no insurance to cover livestock

 

[DrkNMighty]

The plane was late, not UPS's fault

The plane is likely owned and operated by UPS so unless there was some kind of overall airport delay, it would be their fault.

but you expect a company that handles MILLIONS of packages per day to deviate from their standard operating procedures for your ONE package

No, I think what most people are expecting is that if a company, UPS in this example, is willing to take on live goods as a product they ship then they should have that accounted for in their operating procedures to minimize loss of those items.

 

[Aaron Stone]

While I agree i don't think insurance covers death of live animals but I could be wrong.

You might be right, but then it's between the seller and the shipper.

Always look for a good arrive alive guarantee

 

[Aaron Stone]

The plane is likely owned and operated by UPS so unless there was some kind of overall airport delay, it would be their fault.


No, I think what most people are expecting is that if a company, UPS in this example, is willing to take on live goods as a product they ship then they should have that accounted for i

The key to your statement is minimize, not eliminate.

 

[Anna K]

I'm gonna jump into this thread from an outside perspective since I send out exotics almost on a weekly basis.

UPS is a lower standard in shipping. I had ordered fish from Dr. Reef back at the beginning of February (I believe) and placed my order, just to find out 10 minutes later he used UPS and not FedEx. I wanted to cancel my order, but my husband told me to leave it be and that it would be fine since it's only a state away...

In the exotics world, you can't ship UPS for a reason (well you can as of 2024 again). You have to ship them via FedEx, and about 95% of the community ships priority overnight to a hub. We don't even like shipping to houses due to issues that can arise. Now some species can go two day transit to save money, but I won't buy anything from a vendor whether its snakes, fish, or coral if I can't get the animal within 24 hours via priority overnight and with FedEx.

 

[RoanokeReef]

While I agree i don't think insurance covers death of live animals but I could be wrong.

Yep looks like no insurance to cover livestock

Just an FYI Dr Reef offers insurance -

NOTE: In case of shipping mishap/delays, if you have added insurance we will cover your livestock according to the purchased insurance price but if there is no insurance then you will have to file a claim with ups yourself and wait for them to pay you back for the loss.​

 

[DrkNMighty]

The key to your statement is minimize, not eliminate.

Correct, and one way to minimize would be to prioritize delivery of goods labeled as “live”. If something is live but ends up delayed they should give the option for local pickup, assuming it’s delayed in the destination city like I believe it was for OP. They should also aim to have those deliveries at the front of the delivery route where possible. Not saying either of these options would have solved the problem for OP, but if they are willing to take money to offer this service they should try and accommodate or not offer the service.
Either way, this is 100% why I try to avoid having live goods shipped regardless of the carrier.

 

[BryanM]

Last week, I received shipping confirmation from Dr. Reef that my $900+ order was scheduled for delivery today. I was so excited I could hardly sleep, but to my disappointment, I woke up to a UPS notification saying the delivery had been rescheduled for the next day. I don’t understand these companies—there’s no bad weather, and the package isn’t traveling far.

I even paid for insurance, hoping it would make them prioritize my shipment. I expect most of the fish will survive, but what should have been an easy transition is now an uphill battle to get them back to full health. From what I’ve read on this forum, shipping time makes a big difference in survival rates, both short- and mid-term.

It’s frustrating that even when you do everything right in this hobby, something still throws you a curveball. Makes me wonder if I should stick to buying locally, even though my LFS isn’t great. Sorry for the rant, but you always lend me an ear and I needed to vent a bit this frustration. Thank you.

Most of us have had these horror stories. It sucks. I do try to pay for overnight+morning delivery, and even that has failed me once.

 

[exnisstech]

Just an FYI Dr Reef offers insurance -

NOTE: In case of shipping mishap/delays, if you have added insurance we will cover your livestock according to the purchased insurance price but if there is no insurance then you will have to file a claim with ups yourself and wait for them to pay you back for the loss.​

I did not know this. Thanks

 

[mook1178]

The plane is likely owned and operated by UPS so unless there was some kind of overall airport delay, it would be their fault.

beyond the pilot just deciding to say *** it, I am not taking off, It was largely out of UPS control why the plane was late. Mechanical issues happen at takeoff inspection, that is why they do them. Traffic jams on the runway. late planes landing, storms around the airport,etc.

i would only expect a statement like this from someone who has never flown before.

 

[RoanokeReef]

I did not know this. Thanks

Not sure if its new, I only recently just did my first order that's getting delivered tomorrow.

 

[DrkNMighty]

Traffic jams on the runway. late planes landing, storms around the airport,etc.

These would all fall under “overall airport delay” which I mentioned as a possible cause.

Mechanical issues happen at takeoff inspection

Which again is managed by UPS, so unless they are using a 3rd party to service their planes it would be on them to keep them well maintained to limit possible delays.

Either way this is detracting from the overall topic. Hopefully Dr. Reef gets OP squared away and sorry they are having to deal with this. It sucks.

 

[Aaron Stone]

These would all fall under “overall airport delay” which I mentioned as a possible cause.


Which again is managed by UPS, so unless they are using a 3rd party to service their planes it would be on them to keep them well maintained to limit possible delays.

Either way this is detracting from the overall topic. Hopefully Dr. Reef gets OP squared away and sorry they are having to deal with this. It sucks.

I think you are right, the bottom line is: It Sucks!

 

[Lavey29]

Okay, I am going to play Devil's Advocate (for some of you it seems literally the Devil).

I always find it a little amusing that people get mad at UPS/Fed Ex/Nasty-Shipping-Company Of The Day when something like this happens. The plane was late, not UPS's fault, but you expect a company that handles MILLIONS of packages per day to deviate from their standard operating procedures for your ONE package. Roll a truck, just for YOU. Seems a little entitled don't you think?

Yeah, it sucks, and I am sorry it happened and I can empathize with your frustration. But if you ship something you have to know that this can happen. That's what the insurance is for. You take that risk. If you don't want to take that risk, roll on down to the LFS and make your purchases there.

If it was an infrequent occurrence due to unforseen circumstances that is not unexpected but I have had so many personal bad experiences with UPS shipping being late, damaged, lost, etc... and then have their customer service blow you off. It is clearly evident to me that it is a very mismanaged large business operation. Their problems are wide spread and often. In other words, they suck big time and the OP dead fish is just another example.

 

[Aaron Stone]

If a late plane does not qualify as unforeseen circumstances I am not sure what does.

 

[Malcontent]

I always find it a little amusing that people get mad at UPS/Fed Ex/Nasty-Shipping-Company Of The Day when something like this happens. The plane was late, not UPS's fault, but you expect a company that handles MILLIONS of packages per day to deviate from their standard operating procedures for your ONE package. Roll a truck, just for YOU. Seems a little entitled don't you think?

One time I overslept and didn't hear the doorbell. I called UPS and they arranged for the driver to meet me at a nearby gas station where I got my package.

 

[mook1178]

Absolutely that sucks.

But again anything other than the pilot deciding not to take off, is going to be considered unforeseen circumstance.

I am really just trying to say that these have to be expected and accepted outcomes when shipping. Delays happen, it sucks when it is live animals that we pay so much for, but there is nothing anyone could have done. If there was something that UPS could have done to make the plane take off on time, they would have.

I blame this more on the vendor with the bags losing the water. That is 100% on the vendor and not UPS. I am not trying to say the vendor is horrible and should not be used, but if you want to blame someone, blame the vendor. Chances are the bags leaked out before the delay and the outcome would be the same.

 

[mckennamichael407]

...