Customers wanting to open packages before signing.

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

Imagine going to an Electronics Store, and wanting to rip open the item to check for damage before you pay.
Opening the package before signing might be the same?
Or did I come up with a bad comparison?

Sort of.

Opening a box that it is in pristine condition just to verify that the contents are OK is unacceptable.

Opening a box that looks like we used it to play hackysack to verify that the contents are OK is acceptable.

 

[soberups]

Put yourself in their shoes for a moment-----would you sign for an obviously damaged package without at least asking to open it to make sure the contents are OK?

I do allow and even offer to open obviously damaged packages for inspection and will note the damage in the remarks column.

I would follow the correct procedure for dealing with damages, which gives 2 options; either refuse the delivery outright, or accept it and notify the shipper of any damage after I have signed for and opened it. Making the UPS driver stand there and wait while I open and inspect everything in the package is not part of that procedure.

 

[soberups]

There is always the third option of you not being a dick to your customers.

So lets say the package contains a computer, and its a little beat up.

Are we supposed to stand there while the customer unpacks it, boots it up, installs all the software, and make sure it runs all of the programs before signing?

What about large, assembly-required items like lawn mowers or barbecues? Do we stand there while the customer unpacks the entire thing and makes sure that every single nut and bolt and washer is accounted for?

It has nothing to do with being a dick and everything to do with following the correct procedure for dealing with damages.

 

[ZQXC]

Opening a box that looks like we used it to play hackysack to verify that the contents are OK is acceptable.

My training says I don't even make an attempt on that type of package; bring it back to the bldg. to be inspected, reboxed, and sent out the following day.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

So lets say the package contains a computer, and its a little beat up.

Are we supposed to stand there while the customer unpacks it, boots it up, installs all the software, and make sure it runs all of the programs before signing?

What about large, assembly-required items like lawn mowers or barbecues? Do we stand there while the customer unpacks the entire thing and makes sure that every single nut and bolt and washer is accounted for?

It has nothing to do with being a dick and everything to do with following the correct procedure for dealing with damages.

You go out of your way to make friends with every dog in a three county area yet you won't let one of your human customers open up and inspect a package that we beat the crap out of? I'm not talking about plugging it in an seeing if it works---I am talking about giving it a once over to make sure it's not broken and then giving them our local number if there is indeed something wrong with it after they had more time to inspect it.

 

[soberups]

You go out of your way to make friends with every dog in a three county area yet you won't let one of your human customers open up and inspect a package that we beat the crap out of? I'm not talking about plugging it in an seeing if it works---I am talking about giving it a once over to make sure it's not broken and then giving them our local number if there is indeed something wrong with it after they had more time to inspect it.

Once I let them open it, I have no control over how long I will be standing there or what lengths they will wish to go to in order to inspect the package. Furthermore, we may not have been the ones who beat the crap out of it, it may very well be the fault of a shipper who recycled a used cardboard box out of the dumpster and didn't bother to tape or pack the item correctly. Those are determinations that need to be made by a damage control clerk, not a customer. If the box truly looks that beat up I wont attempt delivery in the first place, I will bring it back and let a clerk inspect and rewrap it.

 

[Brownslave688]

Holy cow this isn't rocket science. Once the customer opens the package it's theirs. Period.


The only time allow anyone to looks inside is if there's a huge hole ripped in and the contents are already falling out.

 

[TooTechie]

Why would you sheet them as missed if they are found before we leave the building?

I am talking about damages found on road. The last DIAD training I had on that topic said to sheet them as missed. It didn't mention anything about giving them the option (to falsify).

The diad training for handling of apparent damage was sheet missed and note poss dmg if found before leaving the building and if found on road let the customer decide if they want to accept it or not. I didnt say I agree with it, just what the diad training was.

 

[toonertoo]

The diad training for handling of apparent damage was sheet missed and note poss dmg if found before leaving the building and if found on road let the customer decide if they want to accept it or not. I didnt say I agree with it, just what the diad training was.

And then the center messages you to try and deliver, if they dont want to accept it, just mark it refused, not damaged. Enough to make your head spin.
I have had a couple businesses when they took over as new owners, tell me "their" procedures have changed and I will have to wait, until we inspect, because they have been sending the wrong things. I politely hand them my cms phone number, tell them they got a better chance of seeing God, than me taking back a bunch of open boxes because the shipper was wrong. The problem is with your shipper, not me. And there is zero possibility I will be told to stand here and wait while you confirm the contents of 40 boxes.

 

[clean hairy]

Fake a phone call to your Boss explaining what is going on.
Inform the Customer you are instructed to follow policy.
May not be a very good idea, though.

 

[soberups]

Fake a phone call to your Boss explaining what is going on.
Inform the Customer you are instructed to follow policy.
May not be a very good idea, though.

No, its not a very good idea. Its dishonest, as well as pointless. UPS policy for decades has been that customers are not allowed to open packages until they sign for them. Sign for it or refuse it, those are the only 2 options. It isn't up for debate, I'm not going to argue about it, and I don't need my boss to tell that to the customer. They are free to call the 1-800 number and complain about it if they want to, I have other customers waiting for me and I have to be moving along.

 

[soberups]

And then the center messages you to try and deliver, if they dont want to accept it, just mark it refused, not damaged. Enough to make your head spin.
I have had a couple businesses when they took over as new owners, tell me "their" procedures have changed and I will have to wait, until we inspect, because they have been sending the wrong things. I politely hand them my cms phone number, tell them they got a better chance of seeing God, than me taking back a bunch of open boxes because the shipper was wrong. The problem is with your shipper, not me. And there is zero possibility I will be told to stand here and wait while you confirm the contents of 40 boxes.

I had a lady start up a home EBay business on my route a few years back. The first day I delivered to her, she announced to me that (a) "I am running a business here so I am going to have to be your first stop of the day from now on" and (b) "before I accept packages I will be opening and inspecting them with you as my "official witness" so that you can document anything that is broken or missing."

Lets just say she was less than thrilled when I politely informed her that her expectations were going to have to be adjusted.

 

[clean hairy]

The labels that I have seen on boxes put there by the shipper.
"Inspect contents before accepting."
That makes it quite interesting.

 

[box_beeyotch]

Any reasonable or good customer wouldn't ask to open a box that clearly has no indicative damage. If it's crushed to death, I always explain that's how it looked when I put on the truck and I give them the option of checking over the contents. Most people are reasonable enough to know your in a bit of a hurry and won't hold you up. There's nothing wrong with taking a few extra seconds to help a customer out. Regardless of what management says and Orion and all the BS, customer service is most important in my eyes. Without these customers, I may not be fortunate enough to have the job that I do.

 

[wayfair]

guy called me an asswhole for not letting me give him package to inspect.
Told him that he should try that at a ice cream store and ask to lick product before you get it ..... really try it

 

[TooTechie]

guy called me an asswhole for not letting me give him package to inspect.
Told him that he should try that at a ice cream store and ask to lick product before you get it ..... really try it

Actually probably not the best analogy

 

[rod]

My training says I don't even make an attempt on that type of package; bring it back to the bldg. to be inspected, reboxed, and sent out the following day.

Usually re-wrapped stuff looked worse than the original damaged box. You ended up with a crushed/torn box with a half a roll of tape wrapped around and around it.

 

[TooTechie]

Lets just say she was less than thrilled when I politely informed her that her expectations were going to have to be adjusted.

Exactly. If she was nice to me I'd tell her the part of town I start in the morning and recommend a neighborhood to which she could move if she wants an early delivery

 

[ZQXC]

Usually re-wrapped stuff looked worse than the original damaged box. You ended up with a crushed/torn box with a half a roll of tape wrapped around and around it.

Brand new box, Rod. Clerk takes care of it at night, goes back out the next day.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

The labels that I have seen on boxes put there by the shipper.
"Inspect contents before accepting."
That makes it quite interesting.

Shippers also use our "Signature Required" stickers without paying extra for signature service.