Which courier(s)?

[lastminute]

Ill health issues force me to gradually dispose of most of my workshop equipment
Need to choose a reliable courier(s) and who to avoid!
Thanks for any advice

Gerry

 

[Yojevol]

It's luck of the draw. There are lots of horror stories against the likes of Evri and Yodel but I've used both of them a lot without any problem. On the other hand I had a bad experience with Royal Mail recently. Their software was the problem not the guys doing the job. I was asked to use DHL recently by my customer (he was paying, after all) and their performance was impressive but they do cost a bit more.
Brian

 

[lastminute]

Thanks Brian!

 

[Sideways]

For smaller parcels valued in the ££ hundreds, royal mail special delivery.
That is the only RM service where they can't leave something unattended on the doorstep, but have to leave a card and take it back to the depot. Tracking is good and the insurance is affordable.
Ordinary RM services, especially so called tracked 24 and 48 are no better than the cheapies and their tracking is a joke.

DPD is good but insurance cost is about 10% of high value items. Crazy !
Within the normal cover they are my preferred carrier.

Fedex and UPS can both be impressively useless. Avoid.

Evri can be fine if the delivery driver is good. Mine is, but I once used Evri for a rural delivery and the buyer caught them leaving the parcel 1/2 mile away ! Ask your buyers who they would recommend but make your own decision.

If it's a machine on a pallet, it will pass through multiple companies. You have no control over that. Bolt it down well, don't skimp on the industrial wrapping film and take many photos.
Have the seller photograph it before unwrapping just in case.
I only once encountered a buyer who dropped a machine getting it off the pallet, broke it and tried to blame the carrier / asked for a refund. His "explanation" didn't stand up to scrutiny so no.

Most folk are honest but do what you can to protect yourself against the shysters. Photos throughout the packaging process and make a photo record of weights. I pack very thoroughly and this works for me. I don't put a 10kg vice loose in an oversize box with 2 whisps of bubble pack like one shop I bought from recently....

 

[stuart little]

It's luck of the draw. There are lots of horror stories against the likes of Evri and Yodel but I've used both of them a lot without any problem. On the other hand I had a bad experience with Royal Mail recently. Their software was the problem not the guys doing the job. I was asked to use DHL recently by my customer (he was paying, after all) and their performance was impressive but they do cost a bit more.
Brian

Evri are pretty good on their delivery here, BUT there's still glitches in their system somewhere. I ordered from an Amazon seller, 10 seed potatoes on 29 May, they were delivered on 9 June - growing well! It took at least 5 days from collection in Manchester to reach a depot, the rest of the time between Rugby depot & Avon distribution to local delivery guy.

 

[stuart little]

For smaller parcels valued in the ££ hundreds, royal mail special delivery.
That is the only RM service where they can't leave something unattended on the doorstep, but have to leave a card and take it back to the depot. Tracking is good and the insurance is affordable.
Ordinary RM services, especially so called tracked 24 and 48 are no better than the cheapies and their tracking is a joke.

DPD is good but insurance cost is about 10% of high value items. Crazy !
Within the normal cover they are my preferred carrier.

Fedex and UPS can both be impressively useless. Avoid.

Evri can be fine if the delivery driver is good. Mine is, but I once used Evri for a rural delivery and the buyer caught them leaving the parcel 1/2 mile away ! Ask your buyers who they would recommend but make your own decision.

If it's a machine on a pallet, it will pass through multiple companies. You have no control over that. Bolt it down well, don't skimp on the industrial wrapping film and take many photos.
Have the seller photograph it before unwrapping just in case.
I only once encountered a buyer who dropped a machine getting it off the pallet, broke it and tried to blame the carrier / asked for a refund. His "explanation" didn't stand up to scrutiny so no.

Most folk are honest but do what you can to protect yourself against the shysters. Photos throughout the packaging process and make a photo record of weights. I pack very thoroughly and this works for me. I don't put a 10kg vice loose in an oversize box with 2 whisps of bubble pack like one shop I bought from recently....

What Royal Mail are not telling us, is that there is no difference in 1st & 2nd class, apart from price. There is only one delivery/day, so what they have for a day's delivery, whether it 24 or 48 goes out that day. The number of times I've had items bought on the 'bay' that were posted RM 48, & delivered next day pretty much confirms this. This info I trawled from the 'Independant'. (on MSN)

 

[Owd Jockey]

I used to use Hermes, now rebranded Evri. That was until I sent a large wooden bowl I had turned, down to my sister in Dorset. The package arrived damaged and the bowl had a big chunk of wood broken off. I checked out some Youtube reviews and videos on Evri (Herpes) and was shocked. I then decided to make a claim, knowing that I was only due £20 anyway. The claim was dismissed "......since the parcel packaging did not follow our guidelines," . They did not specify which particular guideline I had breached. I knew the size and weight was ok and I had really wrapped the package well, with multiple layers of bubble wrap and 2" thick foam.
I did not let the matter rest and responded with this:-

"Thank you for coming back to me.

Unfortunately, you have failed to mention the specifics as to why or how this package contravened your packaging guidelines. As stated in my claim the package was wrapped in multiple levels of bubble-wrap and 2" thick foam, it is difficult to understand what further measures I could have taken to protect this item. I had taken all reasonable precautions to protect the package.

Needless to say, I will not be using your company to transmit my shop items in the future and I will share my experiences re: this situation on my YouTube channel with other crafters. It has also been brought to my attention the reputation of your company. I have read a series of newspaper investigations and seen video footage of how your staff handle parcels, It is both shocking and damming . The millions spent on rebranding should have been better spent on improving customer service and package handling care"

I did not expect a reply, but surprisingly they sent me £20 + the postage I paid.

As Sideways comments, it basically comes down to the driver/handler as to whether they have any respect for someone else's property or just have no pride or responsibility in the job they do, or just don't give a 'flying-****' about anything.

 

[Bingy man]

I’ve had good and bad experiences with most of the main companies ( Evri r m tnt and dpd - dpd let you know the day before delivery and the next day you get a 1 hour time slot ( of their choice) but they do at least keep to that hour. As above you takes your chances and hope for the best.

 

[whereistheceilidh]

Another check is who can you get hold of if there is a problem.... & there will be if you are sending a lot of loads. Evri seem to hid behind a wall pierced only by computer bots responses Royal Mail are tricky but you can get there ....& they do compensate well for the few disasters. It also does depend on the individuals at either end of the pick & drop but some of the processes in between seem to be very fragile. Again this seems true of Evri delivering to the Highlands & Islands. The wrong island for Evri is not unknown. Good luck!

 

[thetyreman]

I've not found one yet I fully trust, but my luck has been good with parcel force and royal mail so far, had bad luck with DPD via parcel2go and UPS, hermes is also good around here but haven't used evri yet since the change.

 

[Sachakins]

Royal mail doing a bit of stuff for me at the moment, print at home postage paid label, and they are still collecting your parcels from your doorstep for free.
If you can't print at home, they'll even print label and bring it with them. Pick ups for smaller stuff, normally collected by your local postie on his letter delivery rounds.

 

[Spectric]

Ill health issues force me to gradually dispose of most of my workshop equipment
Need to choose a reliable courier(s) and who to avoid!
Thanks for any advice

Have you tried selling more local so people could collect in person ? Maybe a garage sale / workshop clearance as I an sure there must be a fair number of woodworkers in Yorkshire and selling in person means you get to meet the new owner and maybe make some new freinds.

 

[Jameshow]

Have you tried selling more local so people could collect in person ? Maybe a garage sale / workshop clearance as I an sure there must be a fair number of woodworkers in Yorkshire and selling in person means you get to meet the new owner and maybe make some new freinds.

I do a run south (Bradford - Dorset ) regularly to visit parents. So I could take anything that central? I have some slabs to take for a shed base so taking my big van.

 

[glenfield2]

The oft maligned Evri works well for me sending small packages - a nearby village store has a scanner/printer for labels from the QR code which saves a lot of aggro as I don’t own a printer. The post office in our local Co-op is by contrast open random hours and has a constant queue.
The PO is also a PITB for deliveries. If there’s no one in at our house stuff gets send back to the depot ten miles away which is literally only open 9-10 am! No wonder they’re losing business.