Shipping w/UPS is not cheap

UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)

Well-Known Member
I had to ship a pkg to my brother and I tried to stay loyal to the company but for me to ship a 1 lb pkg from upstate NY to southern CT ground shipper release was nearly $12, with almost $5 in surcharges. I went to USPS.com and it was only $4.60 Priority Mail. This was not a time sensitive pkg so I went with Priority Mail, which is 2-3 days Post Office to Post Office. I have to admit I was shocked at how expensive we are!! I always knew that the PO was cheaper than us on pkgs less than 2 lbs but I didn't think it was that dramatic. As I said, I tried to stay loyal, but I was able to send the pkg there for what we charged just for the surcharges (rural and residential). Has anyone else had a similar experience?
 

IDoLessWorkThanMost

Well-Known Member
I had to ship a pkg to my brother and I tried to stay loyal to the company but for me to ship a 1 lb pkg from upstate NY to southern CT ground shipper release was nearly $12, with almost $5 in surcharges. I went to USPS.com and it was only $4.60 Priority Mail. This was not a time sensitive pkg so I went with Priority Mail, which is 2-3 days Post Office to Post Office. I have to admit I was shocked at how expensive we are!! I always knew that the PO was cheaper than us on pkgs less than 2 lbs but I didn't think it was that dramatic. As I said, I tried to stay loyal, but I was able to send the pkg there for what we charged just for the surcharges (rural and residential). Has anyone else had a similar experience?

The surcharge is you must have shipped it at a UPS store? ! Hard to imagine that price at a customer counter. :biting:

At the counter I'm at, ship a 1 pound package, lets say 8x8x8 to CT from Boston is about 6.50$, bottom line, limited surchages etc. Most surcharges are dimensional, and the USPS will actually charge higher surcharges for dimensional up in this neck of the woods. I.E. 24x24x24 1 pound box is billed as 50 lbs, so maybe you got hit there?


Worst part about the UPS store BTW, (OT here), they charge 1$ per drop off! RS, ARS, prepaid 4x6 label ETC. Customers can just drop them at the counter or in a drop box for nada. Robbery!

Simiarly, they can charge their own rates - though they are given UPS rates. What a ripoff those leeches are (in most cases, maybe not all?) I have seen quotes of $3,000 for international shipping at a UPS store that at the Counter totalled around $800.


Last bit of information, UPS ground rates are going up 6.0% and Air rates 18% starting March 4th, 2008. Cost of Fuel increase...where are our raises increased though? :sick:
 

mountaingoat

Well-Known Member
I'm going to have go to with IDoLessWorkThanMost on the charges. From a UPS store, it could have been more than normal. I ship small packages (3-6lbs) from my house all over the county with eBay, and I rarely pay more than $9. It's UPS Ground, and it's a pleasure to ship with the company that I "own." Maybe some of the accessorials were over the edge expensive.
 

UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)

Well-Known Member
I previewed the shipment at home on ups.com where I have an account. The surcharges were rural surcharge and residential surcharge. The actual freight would have been $6 and some change with the surcharges nearly $5 for a total of $11.60.

I deliver and pickup from an MBE and we actually pay them to accept ARS/RS pkgs but they don't charge for people dropping them off. More than 1/2 of my daily P/U is prepaid stuff that has been dropped off.
 

outamyway

Well-Known Member
You think ground is expensive? You should have tried Early AM!

I have stuff shipped to me all the time, just cheaper to buy stuff online even with shipping included. The most I have payed for shipping is $30.00 for a 24 pound package from Tennessee.

Truth be told I'm more worried about the handling of a package than the price of the shipping.
 

BigBrownSanta

Well-Known Member
Last year I had to ship 2 packages to my wife who was on vacation with her family in WA. One package was sent NDA and one was sent ground. The total for shipping through UPS was roughly $150 at the customer counter...

Her round trip plane ticket was $178.
 

HEFFERNAN

Huge Member
UpstateNYUPSer

I agree with you that it was more expensive than shipping from the post office
But shipping from where you live to CT is guaranteed next day delivery which doesn't sound so bad for the price
But like you said, it wasn't a package that had to be there overnight so you made the right choice

I've bought and sold stuff on ebay, and found that the post office deliveries hardly ever are damaged, (must be from the lack of conveyor belts) :happy-very:
 

barnyard

KTM rider
According to the account reps that I have talked to, we (meaning UPS) get the vast majority of our claims from single package shippers, internet shippers and customer counter shipments. Because of the high rate of claims, they are priced accordingly. It is also my understanding that a large shipper, with few claims (because they do a good job of packing) will get discounts up to 40% off retail.

A basic business premise is that you will make 80% of your profits from 20% of your customers. While I would imagine that single package shippers are regarded as a "necessary evil."

I have also been shown pricing where we are competitive with LTL when using hwt shipments, because of the lower fuel surcharge that we have (compared to typical LTL carriers.)

It really bums me out when someone posts about our high prices and horrible service and destroyed packages. I really hate delivering packages that have traveled within my own state, in one day and the boxes are smashed.

TB
 

barnyard

KTM rider
I should also add, that I do a bit of Ebaying and ship everything UPS and expect everything that I buy will be shipped UPS. I was a UPS shipper before I started working for UPS and I was very happy with the service I received. I also found that the tracking is the most up-to-date of all the couriers. During my time as a shipper, UPS lost one package, I could see right where it was lost, as could the rep. She helped me file a claim and everything was paid.

I was also able to catch a receiver that thought they could get away with saying that they never received my shipment (this was 12+ years ago). I went online was able to tell him that his wife signed for it the day before.

I do run into my share of people online that have had really, really, bad service from UPS.

TB
 

dannyboy

From the promised LAND
As a small business owner, i ship out regularly. And if I can, it is with UPS. We have our share of problems, but so do many other companies.

The postal service is a tough one to compare to. They do some things very well, at a much less cost. Delivering small orders of plants, they typically do it for about 1/3 of what UPS charges, and on 50-150 boxes a day, that is some serious money.

I can also fly fish from Houston TX to here, three boxes, 120 pounds total for about $95 and they get here within 24 hours. I can get a shipment from china to Ohare, 45 boxes, 2200 pounds, for about $3100. all within 36 hours, including customs clearance.

As to the cost, shipping is not cheap anymore. In many cases, shipping costs more than the item is really worth.

UPS has to charge what it does to continue paying as well as it does, pure and simple. But if not very careful, they can price themselves right out of business.

d
 

Overpaid Union Thug

Well-Known Member
I have a friend that works at a UPS Store and he did price comparisons one day and said that UPS was cheaper for anything over 3lbs. Anything less was cheaper with the USPS. UPS's tracking is much better and there's always the possibility that the lazy USPS drivers won't even try and deliver the packages anyway and you'll have to get in your own car/truck and drive down to the post office the next day and pick it up. I thought the purpose of paying the shipping charges was to make sure they deliver it....not for us to have to go pick it up from them?!?!?! I'll stick with UPS (or even FedEx) over the pathetic USPS any day.
 

scratch

Least Best Moderator
Staff member
No, we are not cheap. I have shipped a laptop across town and it cost me about seven bucks for shipping, but the insurance was an extra thirteen. Fedex charged the repair shop $25 to ship it back, but it took two days by air for it to go 40 miles. I get charged 7 bucks to ship a one pound box to my son at college 140 miles away. The fuel and rural surcharges really hit on his stuff.
 

rebel

Well-Known Member
If you use the ASD form and do not have a shipping number, you will pay more for shipping. You can try the internet shipping and pay by credit card and that is the same price as over the counter. That price is a lot less.
 

dannyboy

From the promised LAND
The fuel and rural surcharges really hit on his stuff.
Which is what the postal service is advertising it never does. Those nasty little surcharges that can be much more than the actual shipping.

Kinda funny, I had to send a sample FEDX early am to DC. Took it to the FDX terminal, and shipped it over the counter. Paid for it by credit card. Then about 30 days later I get a bill for the surcharges they added AFTER I paid for it there. Was another 45 bucks.

So a lot of people are getting blindsided when using UPS or FDX. I expect the Gooberment will get involved eventually.

d
 

STLFeeder

Need LS7 powered PKG car
I alwasy ship with UPS, I will only buy from companies that ship UPS. If I order something, and I ask for UPS shipping, and pay for UPS shipping and then they ship it with someone else to save money, I always refuse it. It pisses me off when companies advertise and charge to ship UPS and then ship with someone else so they make more.
 

Overpaid Union Thug

Well-Known Member
I alwasy ship with UPS, I will only buy from companies that ship UPS. If I order something, and I ask for UPS shipping, and pay for UPS shipping and then they ship it with someone else to save money, I always refuse it. It pisses me off when companies advertise and charge to ship UPS and then ship with someone else so they make more.

Same here. Its so much more convenient to use UPS since I can intercept my packages on preload (when I'm laid off from driving) or before we start driving I can ask the guy that delivers my area to give me the PAL Number and go pull my package off his truck. And another good reason I mentioned before....if the USPS gets their hands on my stuff I usually end up having to go pick it up from them. I don't like FedEx because if they attempt my apartment and I'm not home it's hard for me to make it to their station in time to pickup because they close so early.
 

feeder53

ADKtrails
For shipping UPS is more expensive than the post office, But I run a small IT business and the vendors I do business with have free UPS shipping and I like the fact that I do not have to be home to receive the package with ups. Fedex insists that I sign and therefore moust travel 35 miles each way to get my packages and by the way I have not seen any difference in the condition of the package or the content. There is 1 IT company that does not use UPS and I do not purchase from them for the fact that I would have to be there to except the package.
 
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