🚛🚚🚙🛺 DELIVERIES 🚛🚚🛺🚙

© Mel’s Customised Candles Melbourne, Australia, 2021

Disclaimer: As usual, what is written below is my own personal opinion, and may vary from yours. It doesn’t mean to say that either is correct or incorrect, that’s what makes us all Humans.

Update: December 21st, 2021. Recently, I placed an online order, with instructions for delivery, tomorrow, Wednesday December 22nd, 2021. However, I received notification of part of my order, being delivered yesterday, which arrived and sat in the hot sun until late afternoon. I’ve just received notification, that the rest of my order will be delivered today. I checked the label on yesterday’s box, yes, it says delivery 22nd. Why do people not listen to my requests. I’m supposed to follow instructions, yet others don’t with me. I have sent a complaint to my supplier about this.

I’m writing this blog today, because I’m furious at the treatment given by a large delivery company towards a friend of mine.

I will talk more about that shortly.

In the 1980’s, I worked as a delivery driver and courier/messenger.

This was pre-electronic days; everything was by paper.

When I had deliveries, I would attempt to deliver, only if I could not access a property or the recipient not home, would I leave a card advising the recipient to contact our customer service department.

Sometimes the recipient would call very quickly, and I would redeliver the following day, sometimes, it may take a couple of days, before a notification would be received.

FYI: Not all vehicles were equipped with 2-way radios, mine was not equipped.

My pick up run, would include making a phone call back to my radio operator, as sometimes there may be ad-hoc picks or he may leave a message for me to call him.

Some of these messages would be about redelivery to recipients, which I would attempt if it was safe to do so.

Another FYI: My run stretched from Sydney CBD: George Street, from King Street to ?????, plus the old QANTAS Building and Westpac Plaza Building, Queen Victoria Building, University of Sydney, Surry Hills, Newtown. I sometimes had part of Bridge, Pitt, O’Connell, Bligh and Hunter Streets. Sometimes, I would be put in the Eastern Suburbs: East Sydney, Woolloomooloo, Kings Cross/Potts Point, Point Piper, Darling Point, Rose Bay, Vaucluse, South Head, Waverley, Bondi Beach, Bondi Junction, Bronte, Tamarama, Randwick.

Pickups: Randwick, Surry Hills, UoS.

Over the years, I have ordered products online and whilst most of the time, they have been delivered as promised, sometimes I have received a card to pick up my order from the Post Office.

In 2020, where I resided, the driver had to drive down the hill to where the houses were, however, sometimes they were plain lazy and would just leave a card in the mail box.

I had to breach a lockdown order to walk to the post office to pick up several orders. When I complained, I did not receive a response, which angered me very much.

In 2020, I moved to a new house, and again placed an order. The day it was arriving, I received a text message, saying it was being delivered. I was able to track the status, but found it had been attempted 30 minutes before I received the message. As I was not home, the order was taken to a business hub, NOT Post Office. This Business Hub was over 5 kilometres from my home. At the time there was a travelling radius of 5 k’s. I was super scared as it was not classified as essential, then I had to struggle back with the order, as it was bulky and heavy. I have a 45-60 minute walk home from the Train/Bus Station.

I spoke to the driver about this, and even he was mystified as to why he was told to leave the items at the Business Hub.

September 2021, I ordered a new TV set. When this arrived, the driver had it on its side, not the correct way up. The following week, Melbourne experienced an Earthquake. Several weeks later my TV cracked up, thankfully it was replaced, almost a month later.

The day the TV was delivered, I was not home, nor was I given the chance to request a delivery day. The TV was left at the front door on its side.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to complain about this to the company but did to a great Government Department.

Now, back to my original mention about my friend:

My Friend placed an order for an upcoming Birthday. Express Delivery was requested and paid for. They stayed home from work to accept delivery.

N.B. They were not paid for staying home.

Late in the day, they received a notification, saying “Bad Address,” but I feel the driver was just lazy.

They were home all day and listening out for the driver.

A back and forth call ping pong then occurred.

At the time of writing, I have heard the driver has, maybe, delivered the package.

I would like to make this suggestion to all Delivery Companies Worldwide:

Provide advance notification to recipients about their delivery and allow the chance to offer a redelivery location or preferred day/time.

My Friends rescheduled the delivery Friday morning. Had this arrived as requested, they could have run personal errands.

By offering these options, it would make the drivers more efficient as at least 90% of deliveries would be made and would save multiple trips to recipients.

I also suggest, checking to see if there are multiple packages to the same address, again, this is more time efficient.

During Lockdowns, I was unfortunate to not be classed as an essential worker, therefore stuck at home.

1 week, there was 1 delivery per day, from the same driver, to the house. I feel this was a ridiculous use of resources and he should have only delivered once that week.

Honestly, delivery runs should be better structured, especially for Residential Recipients.

Thank You to my Amazing Canadian Friends