Can You Trust FedEX with Your Nerdy Shipments?

Do not trust FedEx with your deliveries. I had shipped out a NES coffee table to someone who bought one, and upon receiving it, they ignored the “This side up” stickers and delivered it on it’s side. They also had stacked a large and very heavy box on top of it, tweaking the table inside. There were minor damages, some splitting and chipped paint. I had him ship the damaged table back to me and I got to work making him a new one.

A few weeks later I completed a brand spanking new table and shipped it off to him.

This time I was not messing around. I painted in HUGE letters on every side of the crate “THIS SIDE UP,” and “FRAGILE.”

And guess what? Here is a picture of the lousy FedEx guy unloading the improperly stored crate from his truck.

Luckily the table was not damaged. Probably because I was forced to overbuild this one beyond all necessity.

A few days pass. I return home from school and I see that the original damaged table had made it back to my house for repairs.

But what’s this? You mean you morons could not even fake that you shipped it correctly? For God’s sake, even if you shipped it with the wrong side up, at least fake it and put it facing the right way up at the delivery site!

The crate was in complete shambles, barely even holding itself together. The heads of some screws were even broken off! This is a testament to how brutally they have treated this crate. It honestly looks as if they put it on it’s side, and rolled it end over end up my driveway.

More stories (and nerdy ideas and creations) from Cyborgelt

• Android Dreamcast boot screen “I decided I wanted to do the Dreamcast boot screen and searched around to find one to download. I couldn’t find one so I decided to make my own.”

• Threetendo “I just finished three more Nintentables.”

• Photo Books “Semi interactive wall art photo books.”

Sadly, the contents were in even worse shape than the crate itself. The NES table was destroyed, damaged so badly that it is not even worth repairing.

THREE TIMES they shipped my packages on the wrong side. Prior to shipping I had even called the corporate office to verify that they will not have any trouble shipping a package with the weight and dimensions of these crates. They reassured me that it is no problem.

So now I am stuck in insurance limbo. They had told me that they will have a truck come out and pick up the damaged remains of what once was my coffee table on Monday.

I just had to provide the original item, original foam encasement packing material, and original packaging. It was impossible for me to crate it back up in the condition it was upon receiving it. The crate is better now than it was when I got it.

They had me specify where the table will be located so they can pick it up. It was sitting in plain view from the street on my driveway. They documented it’s location. They then asked me for a contact number in case the driver cannot find it. I supplied them with my number.

So then Monday comes around. I sat around all day and no FedEx truck came to pick it up. So I called them and told them I had to leave the house, and the package is there for them whenever they need it. I came home late that night to find it still there.

The next morning I went out and could not be home.

When I returned home mid day, I find a door tag on my door saying, “This is our second time out to pick up this package and we missed you.”

Strange. I never even got a “First missed pickup door tag.” Did the first driver see the crate and just say, “Fuck that, I’m not moving that big hunk of junk”?

So then I called them and told them there is no way they could have missed this package twice. They said they would send out another truck the same day, with barely any apology.

I sit around the house waiting for the truck to come, but it never arrives. At 7 o’clock I head out to the gym, only to come back and still seeing my sad little crate sitting on my driveway.

Is this how your delivery company should treat their customers? Did I cut off a FedEx truck on the freeway and now they have beef with me?

Down with FedEx.

Matthew Borgelt, general dabbler in all things nerd. He has an ever-growing interest in retro recreations, photography, technology and gaming. If it beeps and has pixels, he am a fan.

Republished with permission.