UPS Shuffle

Well, it could have been worse. They could have routed it through Fusilier Sask.

I don't seem to recall Kirriemuir in my travels. Did it have a grain elevator recently (as in 5 to seven years ago)? I tried to photograph all the elevators in Alberta before they started to take them all down but Kirriemuir doesn't ring a bell. I did manage to get over a hundred examples in my quest before moving to Texas.

Never use UPS. When will people learn? UPS is the worst shipper in the world.

I Think it's 13 miles west of the Saskatchewan border on Alberta's hi-way 12.

ahahaha, thanks for the morning chuckle. I'll have to send this one along to a buddy in Shreveport who works for UPS.

If you think UPS within Canada is a problem, wait til someone ships something via UPS up from the States, and you get hit with a hefty bill ($40-$50) for UPS acting as your Customs Agent.

UPS is worse than Canada Post. 'nuff said.

"UPS is worse than Canada Post. 'nuff said."

Actually, it isn't (which tells you a lot).

I use fedex when necessary.

but it doesnt always work, when living in st catharines I explicitly and repeatedly told them to SHIP VIA BUFFALO so I could go to the customs myself and didnt have to pay the $50 gouge 'customs broker' crap.

well that was ignored and it came via detroit and I had to ante up the 50 bucks.

Funny, cause UPS is considered one of the best carriers within the US.

Ever care to look that maybe Canadian regulations and (heaven forbid) subsidies and tariffs have hamstrung UPS?

Nah. Gotta foam at the mouth about softwood and mad cow.

"Ever care to look that maybe Canadian regulations and (heaven forbid) subsidies and tariffs have hamstrung UPS?"

Government tarrifs and subsidies have made it impossible for a UPS employee to pick up the phone and call a customer to say, "hey, we can't ship to this address -- can you give us a new one?"

When in doubt blame the gov't; so typical. Canadian companies are making money with the regulations. Subsidies? Pffffft! Crappy excuse for inflexible business plan.

Funny, I've generally had quite good luck with UPS. Better than the USPS as a rule (although USPS has improved).

Maybe just direct UPS to www.google.ca/maps and this link:

http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=Kirriemuir+ab&ie=UTF8&om=1

Should be able to find it then.....

not so mr esmay:

I ordered a cold war documentary once "beyond trinity" from the distributor in L.A.

sent by normal courier, they tack on the 'brokerage fee' crap but get it lickety split time. maybe.

USPS it shows up in jolly good ready time with a few bucks worth of stamps, SANS the 'brokerage fee' crap.

what is that 'brokerage fee' anyway? what the * do they do other that swing an ink stamp at it?

I've had a considerable number of helmets shipped over the border for painting. Getting stung with a broker free on an item I haven't purchased is pretty irritating.

I now insist all my parcels go through good old US Mail parcel post, and ship them back Canada Post. It comes to my post office, I sign for it and it's over. The couriers refuse to tell you when you can expect them at arrive with a delivery a rural address - so, I don't give them my business at all.

As an American who moved to Canada 2 yrs ago when I got married, I've seen this on both sides of the border. UPS in the U.S. is so good and reliable, you'd practically have your local driver watch your kid if you ran out for a minute. Every UPS driver I ever met (and I got to know several, working in retail and offices) was chipper, friendly, and super-helpful. You knew they were in a hurry to make their rounds but, at the same time, they were there to help *you* while they were doing your delivery. There was a driver strike back in 1997 and most public sympathy was with the drivers - very unusual for the States. Up here, UPS is HORRIBLE! The broker fees (especially on gifts!!!), the delays, the "well, it's in transit, we're just not sure right now . . .", the inconvenience if you're not there to get it, the driver apathy - it's terrible. I don't know what the problem is, but it's like two different companies with the same name. FedEx here is only marginally better. I tell all my family to send things in the mail ONLY. At first I found Canada Post scary, but AS LONG AS YOU SEND IT REGISTERED MAIL whatever you send will get where it's going to. (If it's not registered, all bets are off - Canada Post "lost" a bunch of thank-you notes I wrote for my wedding presents and two different packages that were sent to me from the States - I know they were sent b/c the shippers e-mailed scans of the mailing rec'ts, unfortunately they were not *registered*.) Canada Post makes me long for the efficiency and customer service of the USPS - and Americans will know that's saying something (they don't even have Saturday delivery up here!!!).

"It's like a satanic game of parcel ping-pong."

You forgot to ask for "The Jesus Price" prior to finalizing the transaction. It's a code we morality-based folks use to get priority pricing and service over the heathens. I'm not supposed to tell you this, but it looks like you got screwed pretty bad on this deal. Hope this helps, and God bless.