Dont ever ship with DHL!

“Has anyone ever had problems with them? They just lost a shipment of mine worth around $1000. I am so pissed right now. They are supposedly bringing in a loss prevention person to find it, but what happens if they dont? What do I need to do then?”

“raise hell is what you're supposed to do! they'd pay me when I was done with em.”

“DHL is Airborne Express, which had such a bad reputation they had to buy an international shipper and adopt their name to stay in business.”

“I thought they were supposed to be one of the fastest growing companies around? Just a fluke?

Em I hope they find your stuff! (and fast)”

“I have had an item shipped by them before. They lost it. Luckily the gear store shipped me new gear by UPS no charge.

I will never use them for anything unless I want it to get lost.”

“I was afraid of that, was it insured? Even if it wasn't this is clearly DHL's fault. they suck ass, the only shipping company I've ever had any problem with and I've had a problem every time! (only recieving, I've never shipped with them and won't)”

“So what can I do if they totally lost it?”

“I've never had any problems with them shipping or receiving, but I've only used them a handful of times at work.”

“If they lost it they need to pay for it, have you contacted the seller to let them know about the situation? If you haven't do that now.

You might also call 1-800-225-5345 and start raising hell.
last edited: 5/24/05 10:46:26 AM”

“I hate those bastards. I've had nothing but problems with them and they have extremely bad customer service”

“If it's anything like ups, who lost a $300 bottle of scotch I sent to someone, (I pictured a teamster flying along the highway swigging from a 30-year-old single malt), the sender issues a search, they take a couple of weeks to try to find it, then if nothing the sender puts in a claim for the cash and refunds you or sends you another.

Pisses me off that someone holds your cash for two weeks when they are the ones that lost it.”

“I'd have the seller call them also, if he/she does a lot of shipping with DHL he/she probably has a business account so he/she can say "I have a tracking number, you lost it, and you need to fix this now."
last edited: 5/24/05 10:49:07 AM”

“Guess I'll quit going to Walmart. They lost a roll of my pictures.”

“Awhile back some pencil pusher at Campmor decided to start using DHL instead of UPS, without informing their long time customers of the switch. Naturally, we (I've dealt with Campmor for over 10 years) assumed our merchandise would be coming via UPS.

Well, DHL lost it. Some nonsense about delivering it to the local US Post Office, as one of several local DHL shipments, and the USPS would actually make the delivery to individual addresses. So now we have TWO incompetent organizations involved.

Neither DHL nor USPS would admit fault, and even though I pleaded with Campmor to resend if they couldn't quickly locate the shipment, they refused because not enough time had gone by. They DID finally re-ship but way too late for the backpacking trip I needed it for.

DHL uses freelancers, driving their own private cars, to make deliveries in less populated areas like mine. These people are seemingly accountable to no one--and routinely:

1) Fail to make their deliveries

2) Deliver to the wrong address

3) Fail to complete established tracking documentation

Yeah, if you have the opportunity, tell any company shipping you merchandise SPECIFICALLY NOT TO USE DHL OR AIRBORNE (DHL is owned by Airborne, which is just as bad).”

“Quick DHL story, once got the wrong package delivered to me, took it back to their office and they gave me the right package. Their explanation? Both packages had the same shipping number (Which I verified when both were in front of me) The same f---ing shipping number? Whose designed their databases? A monkey?”

“I just emailed the seller. Unfortunately I bought this on ebay and not from a "company." They cant just replace it. What a pain in the ass!”

“Is the shipper going to file a claim though?
last edited: 5/24/05 11:02:35 AM”

“Oh, and the toll free number/customer service wouldnt give out the number for the Nashville location. They said they were not allowed to. WTF? Well, I got their address and am gonna go down there and raise some hell. I am not too good at raising hell (I am such a pushover), but this is a lot of money we are talking here!!!”

“bummer Em.”

“I'd be raising hell with a customer service manager at that number, the local office is probably full of monkeys who DKS.”

“Holy crap!
When did Airborne buy DHL?
DHL was the single best international shipper I ever used. Airborne the single worst shipper I ever used.

Great, another great company down the tubes.”

“Ah, March of '03.”

“Bison, you wanna raise hell for me? :)

I havent heard back from the seller yet.”

“I'd love too, but since it wasn't shipped to me, they won't even speak to me (I could fake being you but my Emily impersonation just isn't that good :) ). Let me know what the seller says. He/she should contact them immediately!”

“em, you could have told the seller not to ship via DHL. I have done that before, no biggie for the seller they just take it to a different dropoff site”

“I didnt know it was going to be such a problem. I have never dealt with them before.”

“I wish I had thought to ask about the shipping but I've never had anything from ebay shipped DHL, it's always been UPS or USPS.”

“Well, I've learned something from reading this thread. (If I played the market, I might short DHL or Airborne or whatever the stock is).”

“Airborne/Dhl is actually a collective of franchises that run under the national corporate name. so, you are not dealing with one nat'l/intern'l company like UPS is, but rather several franchises-depending on how far your package is (hopefully) going. Its kind of like ordering your pizza from one Dominoes, then expecting another Dominoes franchise to actually make it, a third to bake it,and a fourth to actually deliver it to you. no thanks.”

“man, that stinks!! :(
hope you can work it out.”

“Sounds like the s--t we went through with Fedex recently. I've only had problems once with UPS, and that was immediately after their strike(1997.) Several wedding gifts arrived in little tiny pieces. I wasn't able to replace most of it.”

“Embear - keep us posted. I hope it works out.”

“I had a package (of asparagus roots) shipped to me from Ohio this spring.

DHL was supposed to deliver it to my post office who would make the actual delivery.

The tracking system worked pretty well. I was able to watch in complete frustration as my package made its way to my local post office, all the way back to Ohio and finally to me after about 2 1/2 weeks.

Sounds like a pattern developing here.”

“come on Bison, it's not yoru fault your parents named you "emily"

Em...that sucks. I used to have problems with them too back in TN, it's been a while since I delt with them thou. thank god i guess.

Hope you find your package.
did the seller insure it? Isn't it normally his responsiblity if the package was lost? I mean you have no guarantee that it ever was send out to you right? or do you?

Yes, i haven't read each and every post.
last edited: 5/24/05 5:05:34 PM”

“Good luck! I agree with Gem about the seller being responsible.”

“Ok, so I went to the Nashville warehouse today and they told me that it was probably stolen. WTF? So, the shipper has to file a claim, then they do a police report, then they reimburse the shipper, who will have to reimburse me. What a pain. It will probably be at least a month before all this gets done. At least the computer was insured and eventually I will get my money back or another computer.

Ok. Thats enough complaining for one day. I will stop now. Thanks for listening......”

“WTF? It isn't lost.....it is being used by a DHL employee.

Get the story straight, dammit.”

“LOL...at least you are getting your money back! sucks thou. i hope the shipper won't let u wait too long. i always thought if the package is insured they won't just drop it off in front of your door....

yeah... i honestly don't think they know what they are talking about...but as long as you get your money back.”

“DickHead Losers”

“Great, I guess it's back to standing in line at the post office. I've had Christmas packages disapear at UPS, and a fellow employee had 2 seperate shipments of very expensive cigars get "lost" at UPS. I haven't had any problems when the package get ships to and from a business with UPS but I never use them for home delivery.”

“DHL thinks what the world needs now is good service
by : Theresa Howard

NEW YORK -- In a do-it-yourself world driven by technology, customer service with a human touch has all but disappeared.

In fact, as businesses look to cut costs by replacing people with automated service, customers often end up being asked to do much more of the work in their transactions. Shoppers swipe their own credit cards and pump gas. They scan, pack and pay at self-service checkouts at supermarkets and retail giants such as Home Depot and Lowe's.

Companies say self-service speeds transactions and can boost spending. A study by IHL Consulting Group, a firm that tracks retail and retail technology trends, says that self-service shopping will account for $161 billion in sales in 2005 and $450 billion by 2008.

Many consumers, however, have become disenchanted with do-it-yourself service and its promised benefits -- and some companies are listening to the gripes.

"We're on a cycle of focus on customer service, and industries are trying to differentiate themselves through quality of service," says Ann Thomas, a consultant at Performance Research Associates, a customer service firm in Bloomington, Minn. "That would say people are frustrated with the level of service today in many industries."

Delivery and logistics company DHL is looking to distinguish itself in its highly competitive business by courting consumers fed up with poor service. New ads portray extreme examples of bad service to highlight its own focus on treating customers better. The theme: "Customer service is back at DHL."

In the ads by Ogilvy & Mather in New York, the Burt Bacharach hit What the World Needs Now Is Love plays in the background as vignettes of abominable service unfold on the screen. The images include a gas attendant sitting inside a warm station as a woman pumps her own gas in the pouring rain, a bus driver who closes the doors and pulls away from the stop just as a rider is about to board, a waitress who nearly spills hot coffee on a diner and a woman who struggles with a big package at a home-improvement store as an associate walks past her.

The ads are a follow-up to the first big U.S. ad campaign DHL did last year. That campaign put DHL alongside top rivals UPS and FedEx in comparative ads that were meant to make shippers aware that there's another brand to consider when shipping overnight. The newest campaign attempts to tell consumers why to use DHL.

"The next big phase of the advertising work had to be about why you would choose DHL over the competition," says Karen Jones, head of DHL advertising, brand and promotions. "We really tried to vet out what makes us different."

Though UPS and FedEx are known for solid service, too, overnight-shipping expert David Blanchard says the angle could work with customers on the fringe with their existing carriers.

"DHL is going head-to-head with FedEx and UPS," says Blanchard, editor of industry publication Logistics Today. "DHL just wants to get people thinking that if they've had problems in the past, or if they think those companies are charging too much, there's an alternative."

The ads struck a chord with many consumers, according to results from Ad Track, USA TODAY's weekly survey. Of those familiar with the campaign, 24% like the ads "a lot" vs. the Ad Track average of 21%. Just 3% dislike the ads "a lot" vs. the average of 13%.

The ads were particularly well-liked by women: 30% gave it the top rating vs. 19% of men.

That's no surprise to Jones, who says that shipping decisions tend to be made by administrative assistants, who are often women, or by business owners, also often women.

"The fastest-growing segment of companies are women-owned businesses," she says.

Those facts have resulted in the DHL ads airing in some seemingly unlikely places, such as on the Food Network, and highly visible places, such as the new TV season premieres, Jones says.

"We definitely wanted programs where we could get the most eyeballs."”

““So what can I do if they totally lost it?”
embear
10:42:31 AM
5/24/05

Call them and totally lose it!!”

“So the idiots at DHL lost a computer reel with our financial info on it. I have been on the phone with their service folks and am absolutely furious. I kept getting the run around about a tracking number, as I explained I am not the shipper. Just the victim here. Well, I was informed without a tracking number they cant help. Absolute incompetence.



PLEASE DONT SHIP DHL!!!!!!!!”

“UPS won't do anything if you're not the shipper either though.”

“Y2, I think his point is more in that they lost a package that had his financial info on it, rather than he can't get info out of their CS depart. See the Identity Theft thread.”