GeniB

Yesterday I was so mad I wrote a whole page 'rant' about my ongoing problems with couriers..However I posted it on 'take it outside'

Bevs very kindly removed it

See this is how furious it can make you. You don't see straight So here it is again

I 'thought' I had it sorted with the considerable help and patience of this excellent forum. I now have all controllable personal stuff posted to a local grocery store,which works very well
I also had zero problem with Amazon as they used a courier who could find it's way out of a paper bag...UNTIL yesterday . I had received a 'weird' email from Amazon saying address was incorrect? Huh? I should know my own address,and they had had it in their records for 5 yrs. I ignored it as a glitch.
I then got an unsigned email with a tiny ,almost unreadable heading in Portuguese. Once deciphered it appeared to come from the notoriously bad company SEUR..Indeed that was the case as it was followed by two more rather more colourful one's asking me to 'change my address' ? Umm why?

Oh yes..that's because they ARE the ones who can't find their way out of a paper bag..PANIC. The parcel was books to give as Birthday gifts in a few days.

I spent half an hour patiently translating the email. Then a further 10 mins filling in the form as a 'new customer' I zapped it off and it came back. 'password' incorrect. Tried three more times.. password and email address now incorrect
I then went online to find their address and phone no.Called them...repeatedly.. no answer.

Judging by the mess in the study I think I threw the phone at the wall,followed by the laptop,my coffee and maybe the dog(just kidding... I wouldn't throw my dog..) My OH had to leave the premises though!!

Many hours later after a good walk, some big deep ocean filled breaths,and the odd drink .I tried again
No problem at all!!!!! what?. The whole site came up in English. The form was filled in seconds. All my details accepted.? Um... am I sure I am in the right house?Was there an eclipse I missed?

Well of course it wasn't all plain sailing was it. I saw that they intended to deliver on the day we were meeting friends for lunch. So I changed it .Then realised they had a box for morning or afternoon delivery, so changed it back (yes before confirming) to deliver in the morning before we left.

Once I had confirmed.a message came up thanking me for email and that they had 'noted' the changes I had made on the delivery date.?

As there was still no box to put a phone no in ,and the camara has given our street a name now..and I am guessing they still don't have GPS. What are the chances this parcel will actually arrive? Pray for me.

Sunseeker1st

Hi Geni

I sympathise wholeheartedly with you. I constantly order through Amazon and have had a few issues with couriers. We don't have an address, just a hamlet name so for nearly 20 years have had a PO box. A few years ago I added my telephone number as the second line address on Amazon .... the first being the apartado which some companies will not entertain ... but instead prefer couriers!!! Aggghhhh!!! As you say, most cannot find their way out of a paper bag, especially GLS. Haven't had so much problem with SEUR or MRW.

It's weird, Royal Mail Standard will deliver to a PO box unless the order is 2k+ or signed for, then they send it via courier so we have to wait for a call and meet a van at some arranged venue!. I now write suppliers before I order and specifically ask their delivery method and will not order if it is courier. I am waiting on an answer now but guess I won't hear till Tuesday, the UK shutting down for Easter!

Fulfilled by Amazon orders always go to the box ... steam cleaners, vacuum cleaners, clothes airers, whatever.

I wish you luck in receiving your books in a timely manner and wish you a Happy Easter holiday.

macliam

You have a street name? - and a house number? Lucky you!!

Having said which, Seur couldn't even find my location and went to Odemira rather than Ourique (I'm sure the matching first letter was random, nothing more). Strange that, eh - given that the post codes are nothing like each other and it's in a different district! Then they got to Ourique, but couldn't find the locality for my postbox...... which is odd, since it's on the main IC1. So they had no chance of finding my house -and since they didn't bother to read the instructions they didn't know to drop it off at the taverna opposite my postbox...... In the end, Amazon sent a second item on next-day delivery (took 2 days) which used a different courier. No problem.

The good thing was, 2 days after this replacement arrived, I got a call from the taverna to say a package had arrived..... the original item. Seur didn't call or email at all. Amazon said to keep the item (probably as their chances of getting it back via Seur were negligible!)

Good Luck!!

GeniB

Thanks all... I still don't get it... Why do big companies put up with this awful service.. (let alone us poor clients) Surely they must be snowed under with complaints.

I am not holding my breath..but miracles do happen.. It is Easter after all.

barlaventoexpert

Always make sure they have your mobile number & tell them to call you if they can't find you.

Usually works for us! I amy have to go & find the courier at the car park in the local school but much much more reliable!

liveaboard

They don't use GPS, but that's largely because standard GPS units depend on address databases that Portugal doesn't have.
I think the real problem is low driver pay; they don't stay in the job for long enough to learn where their customers are. It seems I never see the same driver twice.

They could use a GPS system where they would mark customers locations and share over their internal network; within a year every location would be in their system and any new driver would be able to get to us without wasting time.
They just don't do that sort of thing in Portugal; everyone knows address based GPS doesn't work here and the gizmo costs as much as a spare tire.

GeniB

That would be ok.. If it worked.. We have requested that they use our mobile no on several occasions...The most notorious one when I ordered roses from David Austin..They lay wilting in DHL's warehouse because the driver refused to call us first.He almost got away with it a second time ,only i was waiting in my front garden for the delivery all morning. He rang the gate bell and was virtually climbing in his cab one second later.. no sign of calling my phone. He was mad at being caught out.. and said he 'didn't have to call clients' I suggested that his company might like to explain that to David Austin..

Rosemary

I know that you are all talking about SEUR deliveries in Portugal and how difficult it is there with maybe no addresses and difficulties with GPS but I want to put in my pennyworth. I live in a town house in a little town in Spain, so no problem as I have an address, no problem finding my house using GPS either. SEUR has delivered to me several times, yet I had huge difficulties with a couple of deliveries due to them farming it out to another operator, Amazon and I exchanged numerous e-mails to no avail. I did end up with the item a week later at no cost at all but my complaints against SEUR went unheeded. So if I see their name down as the delivery agent I presume the worst, in fact I am reluctant to order anything for myself nowadays.

So it is not just in Portugal that it is a problem with that company.

Rosemary

mfesharne

As bad as it is now, I think the policy of issuing new addresses is going to make things even worse.

We live in a loop road with just 4 houses in the entire road & one half of it has one name & the other end (mine is the only house in that half) has another name......... and my house number is 102 because it's 102 metres from the nearest road junction. - That numbering system means some roads could have 4 houses all with the same number!

Whatever fidiot bureaucrat dreampt that one up needs shooting let alone sacking!

Google maps are going to have a breakdown. lol!

macliam

Ah numbering schemes! It's not just here! My house in Suffolk was built in 2000, as phase3 of a redevelopment project. My road is a crescent (more or less) with the entry in the middle and divided halfway by the garages of the properties there..

All the properties on the left-hand side were developed on phase2, and all given odd numbers from the entry road. Then they developed my side, with even numbers starting at the entry road..... except they built an extra house before the natural "division".

So, my neighbours are numbers 6 and 10, numbers 7 & 9 are over 100 metres away in the other "half" ...... but the "extra" house was numbered 11 and lies (obviously! beween numbers 9 and 10) AND in the "evens" half of the road!!

Strangely, new postmen get a bit confused!!

peterfc

Hi All

I import Spices and if a company has a problem with my choice of courier i won't do business with them. I insist that i use UPS or no business, i have an agreement with a local cafe close to where i live and they let me have my deliveries sent there.

OK i know you want your deliveries sent to your house and yes you have the time to sit around all day waiting but my way saves me so much time i just turn up to suit me and collect my parcel like i did today.

Peter

GeniB

Well Peter .. If you had read my previous posts on this subject you would know that I do everything you do ..now. However there are certain companies that you simple have no control over ..In fact as I just found out ,cannot even contact to complain to.. Like Amazon. I have had zero problem with them for 5 yrs. Everything sent to either the post office or delivered to my home.

However for some unknown reason they have chosen SEUR this time around. The notoriously unreliable courier company... I have tried to complain to both companies without success.

And NO my package didn't arrive this morning..Despite a note on the gate to say where to put it once the time agreed to had been passed. There was no delivery when we returned this afternoon. A message on my computer apologised for missing me.. (what an absolute lie) and made yet another time for delivery.. 8pm this evening.. Did it arrive? You bet it didn't.

Rosemary

When I had a problem with SEUR Amazon told me that they have no control over who ends up as the delivery agent, it depends on which companies are there at the time. I had asked that they send the item by the post office and that was their response.

Rosemary

peterfc

Hi Genie

Yes I read all the posts but at the end of the day on Amazon you can change your delivery address. That's a lot better than waiting in all day for a delivery that the driver may not want to find your address.

I couldn't run my business if I was not in control of all aspects from order to delivery. I have three delivery places. In the UK I get multi items sent to one of two Addresses and then send a courier to collect and deliver to me. Amazon have these addresses depending where I want Amazon to deliver my parcel I just tell Amazon and they deliver to the address I want.

Who is in control of your deliver you are them.

Peter

GeniB

Yep that's the conclusion I have come to .. Blow the client's requirements
I have just about decided not to use Amazon again. but to get my books straight from a bookshop in the UK.