So I have been getting the run around for a little bit with UPS. Prepaid online, dropped box off at UPS Store Monday 8/12/19. Got a drop off scan at 3:14 p.m. when the UPS Store took hold of the item. No tracking update after that. It was supposed to be delivered 8/16/19. No luck, called UPS on Saturday when I saw that the tracking number had not moved since the initial scan. UPS first told me I need to wait 8 business days before the package is considered lost. So I waited 3 more days and nothing. Called back UPS and was then told to contact the UPS Store because they are franchised and not affiliated with the UPS warehouse. Called UPS Store, they are saying it went out on the truck 8/12. Get a hold of UPS today, they are saying its lost and to fill out claim information. No flag for Alcohol, not destroyed, but lost in the abyss somewhere. Kinda bummed out about the beer, I had been gathering all the treehouse rares for a great trade partner of mine, for the last month or so had King Julius', Cachet, Gggreennn's, Very Green's, Perfect Storm's, C73 etc. 30 plus pound box. So First question, has this happened to anyone before? 2nd a.and b. Could this box actually be lost and still turn up, its been 2 weeks as of today? Or more likely, has it been discovered and someone helped themselves to the beer. 3, If this has happened to someone else, How did you go about opening a claim. I had 160 worth of beer in there, that I always label as organic cleaning supplies. So I opened a claim stating that, but I have no way to prove it, because... well because its a lie. How much proof is actually required here once they go digging. Was kinda hoping it was flagged for beer and I could plead ignorance and get the beer back, but that is seeming more unlikely. Plus I feel like UPS would have called me if it was discovered as alcohol and made a notation on the tracking info.
If UPS cannot produce the package and you've paid for the insurance you'll eventually get whatever amount you claimed for the insurance.
Sorry to hear about your missing box Walter, I had a similar issue with FedEx a while ago also with a regular tade partner. I'm pretty sure that was a mixed box of Trill stouts with Trill & Tree House cans. When I fill out my FedEx labels, I always value the box at $100. FedEx will go up to $100 for no added charge. Anything more than $100 will cost more to ship. When speaking to customer service, they were adamant I told them exactly what the contents were. All I told them was that it was "a personalized wedding gift." I ended up talking to customer service on 3 or 4 seperate occasions and each time they kept trying to get info on the contents. I just stuck with my story then finally out of nowhere, I received a check for the $100 + shipping cost. I know this isn't exactly what you wanted to hear, but that is my experience with a situation that has some some parallels with yours Good luck
Thanks for the sentiment Dave, This morning I immediately was thinking theft, but at the end of the day these companies do ship millions of boxes and a few hundred probably go missing each and every day. I guess the nefarious nature of trading beer had me immediately thinking worst case scenario with little to no recourse. But I've read some older threads on the site after searching, and have seen others with similar situations that all worked themselves out. Sometimes packages do get lost, and two weeks is not out of the realm of being found and delivered, although my buddy might not be too keen on month old IPA's that sat in a warehouse for going on 3 weeks so I'd almost rather they stay missing at this point. But i'll update with the resolution once there is one. I guess their is a lesson to be learned in here somewhere. Don't send anything you can't afford to replace, and maybe not sending boxes as valuable (although it adds up quick when trading for the bottles). I think valuing for $100 in these boxes (which is the Same for UPS/Fedex about not up charging for $100 or less) and not packing anything more is a good rule of thumb moving forward. Thankfully it was just some $5 IPA's. Although rare, TreeHouse has been dropping the rares much more frequently. Just have to start a new collection for my Bottle Logic buddy. Sorry Mike!
@Vidblain had something close happen, but not the same. He dropped a fedex package off at a Walgreen’s, and it never moved. After (I think?) a week, and after much harassing, he finally got them to LOOK IN THE STORE, and found that it had been set in an odd corner during loading, somehow missed, and completely forgotten. It was eventually shipped safe and sound.
@WTCrane I have worked in a large fedex warehouse in Anaheim and boxes get lost/misplaced all the time. The whole system is automated conveyer belts and things can get misdirected. The place I worked had a large caged area on one side of the warehouse that was where you were supposed to take any box that ended up somewhere it wasn't supposed to. There were a few managers who were supposed to use random downtime to go through the pile of misplaced packages one by one and sort out where they were actually supposed to be going and how to get them there. This job was sort of the free time filler so it didn't always happen quickly and there would often be hundreds of packages just stacked in there waiting for someone to get to them. It's fairly likely that the box will turn up at some point and just show up on the recipients porch, unfortunately there is no way to know when.
This is completely consistent with my experience as well. Sent a package of HOTD goodies to a trade partner in Pittsburgh one time that went missing. The driver swore he left the box on the porch, and encouraged my trade partner to go talk to his neighbors and check similar addresses nearby him. Roughly a month later, I filed a missing item claim and received a check for the value of the claimed contents (fruit infused olive oil and balsamic vinegar). A couple weeks after that, my trading partner contacted me and told me to check the tracking number. Sure enough, online tracking showed the box had just left a distribution center near Chicago, and my partner got his box safe and sound a couple days later. Fortunately, the beers were all high abv., BA strong ales, and so the added shipping time did them no harm.
Sounds like you don't need any proof. The employee who stole all the beer isn't going to say "nuh uh, there wasn't cleaning supplies, it was beer!" They will keep quiet because they are a giant piece of shit who stole your beer. I would never go to that store again because I'm sure the guy who took it has done it plenty of times.
I've had similar experiences with FEDEX, UPS & USPS where packages are missing for a few weeks and eventually appear magically. So it's possible it'll turn up. Even if there is a busted bottle or can, there's a high chance they'll deliver the rest from my experience with all 3 carriers. Seems very few really care about shipping beer. (except a craft beer trader, lol) As bombproof your package is, there's always the 0.00001 chance the box will be lost. Whether you ship a book, diamonds or beer.
Why exactly are you so convinced that someone stole it, as opposed to the most likely case that it is actually...lost?
Agreed with this, theft is pretty rare and the carriers all rage it very seriously. The warehouse I worked in had cameras everywhere and everyone was searched leaving the main floor. To get the shipping contacts for companies like Nike or Apple they have to ensure a minimal of lost packages, and employee theft is the easiest thing to cut down on
The latest: Check Claim Status: Package Search Complete - Package Not Found Claim status was approved, I received an email (3 page PDF) from UPS with some paperwork to fill out and submit for my claim. Mailing it back today, will see how this portion goes and see the turn around time on it.
After 3 months since ship date, this claim has finally paid. It was a process, and you really have to stay on them. They move things through so slowly, and each step of the way they requested more paper work. After each item was received it took another week for the review, only for them to request something else. I initially sent them all the documents via mail. Those showed up because the claim went from In progress, to approved : under review. But the claim went from under review, back to in progress after about a week and they sent me a request for more info. Initially it was the receipt for what was in the box. I labeled the box cleaning supplies before it was ever sent, and work in property management so I just submitted a receipt that lined up with the value of the beer I had in the box, with cleaning supplies we had ordered for a site we manage. I can see were this can get tricky for ups, because it was obviously not in the box, but I had to force their hand at compensation some how. But lets face it, what us mail traders are doing, is not on the up and up, and neither was this. But I was honest, and fair in my request. Everything lined up with what I put for value, and items prior to ever shipping. Next they requested a shipping manifest (which was included in the initial mailing) But all those papers seem to have went missing. Thankfully I do all my boxes prepaid online. So I just put in the tracking number and printed the manifest and submitted the manifest. Then they asked for a shipping receipt, again, it was included in the initial mailing, (thats gonna be a common theme here) But it was also available online, because I can just print up all my receipts for everything I prepaid for online associated with my ups account. So I did just that. I get another request, again saying paperwork incomplete, so it was for the product value receipt again. So I say ok, i'm done sending stuff to them. I don't have a scanner so I just started taking pictures of all the documents on my phone and emailing myself the pictures and cropping to size and attaching them electronically to the claim. I looked at the claim on 11/5 and it had been closed, insufficient information. I finally had enough, had been on the phone with to many reps over the 2 months, and I requested a supervisor and would not get off the phone until they confirmed they had every piece of info they would need for this claim. They started with the manifest, and I just said "Sir, I created this shipment online, you can see that very clearly in the tracking number on your website. The manifest is right there in front of you. Would you like me to take a picture of my computer screen and attach it to the claim for you. I attached a receipt for the box contents to the claim, that can be viewed on your website. I attached the shipping receipt to the claim, also available right on your website, and it can be pulled up in my shipment history" Finally they guy apologized and said, your right, we do have these documents. We have all the information required to process this claim. The claim was finally processed and I can put this episode behind me. Ive mailed out several boxes since then, no issues with any of them. Although now, I declare maximum value without getting up charged of 100 on all of them even if I have a 20 dollar 4pk in there, I have been labeling maple syrup (and I saved my HFS receipt from last time up) 2 bottles came to $95.40 so thats gonna be my new value receipt. I'm very cautious how much I send now, no more 30+ pound boxes from me. I try to keep it under 20 pounds, and more so under 15 to be safe, and will send multiple boxes if necessary to cover a trade. I try to limit boxes to under 100 in value, and i'll gladly fleece them for the full $100 and back it up with the HFS receipt if it happens again. Word of advice, if your gonna risk mail trading. Declare value when putting a box together, and label contents with a receipt you have that can back up your claim. Good luck to all in this wonderful hobby of trying awesome beers from across this great country.
