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Post by Deleted on Dec 9, 2016 4:11:39 GMT -5
I recently ordered a set of Aveo (US made) strobes from aeroshop.eu in Lithuania. They despatched them by DHL and I've been tracking their progress for the past few days.
So far, presumably having been shipped by diverse means from the US to Lithuania (I dread to think what route they might have taken), having started in Vilnius, Lithuania, they've proceeded via Warsaw and Katowice in Poland and are now enjoying a short break in Linz in Austria. I'm following their progress with interest as ultimately they'll be coming to me via Bordeaux in France, so it looks as though they might be making a few more stops in intervening countries before, hopefully, being delivered to me by end of day on Monday 12th.
The mind boggles!
Roger
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Post by sgtmajor on Dec 9, 2016 11:41:28 GMT -5
I know what you mean Roger. Many years ago I found a leather brief case (attache') I liked, however, it was made in Turin, Italy. I ordered it and they sent me a tracking number. I literally followed it's journey across Europe to the U.K., and then into New York and on to my home in California. Pretty amazing actually!
Cheers!!
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Post by bhk on Dec 9, 2016 19:41:07 GMT -5
Ditto, but in reverse with several watches I sold over the last couple of years to people in Europe and the UK. The UK items went straight to London (Heathrow, I assume) and then the next location given was the town of the addressee. The European ones went to Frankfurt (by QANTAS, I assume, who are the designated carriers for AustraliaPost but of course that means nothing!) and then the next appearances were at the respective capitals of the two countries, Budapest in Hungary and Brussels in Belgium. Then the post offices of the respective towns. Amazing when we can follow the journey across the world of a little parcel.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 12, 2016 18:21:29 GMT -5
Estimated delivery date was today (Monday 12th) by end of day, which was obviously going to be missed as during Saturday night it was showing as having departed Linz, Austria and this morning arriving at Lyon, France. Now Lyon is in the Rhone Alps in eastern France and I live in the Dordogne in the south-west, so unless they were prepared to make some kind of special delivery by express transport, a delivery today would have been impossible, as proved to be the case.
So the tour continues because as of 21.50 local time this evening (Monday 12th), my parcel is shown as departing Lyon. The question is, 'for where?' According to the DHL web site, they have no suitable distribution facility between the Rhone Alps and the Dordogne and the closest depot in the Aquitaine as a whole is Bordeaux on the Atlantic coast. And that's a fair old trek from my house, so I can't see how they will be able to get it to me tomorrow either unless they can perform some kind of logistics miracle.
All I can now do is wait and see, but this seems to be a case of where providing tracking information is leading to increased customer frustration rather than the opposite.
PS in the meantime, a garden item ordered from Amazon France just before the week-end arrived with delivery FOC by Post today as promised...
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Post by sgtmajor on Dec 12, 2016 22:27:57 GMT -5
Ahh...yes...Technology!! It can be a wonderful or a dreaded thing. (smile)
Cheers!!
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Post by bhk on Dec 13, 2016 4:07:23 GMT -5
The saga of Roger's goodies makes Santa's one-night global trip seem like a walk down the garden path!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 13, 2016 5:27:44 GMT -5
Gentlemen, this morning's update. The parcel did indeed arrive at Bordeaux at 05.36 am this morning, was processed at 06.11 and was transferred to a delivery facility at 06.51 where it was booked in at 9.50. It was then subsequently transferred to a 'delivery courier' at 10.24 for delivery 'by end of day'.
My experience of life in France is that this is where the process can break down. On two occasions, DPD/Chronopost (another delivery firm who I consider pretty useless - my parcel is being handled this time by DHL who I've always found to be top class) has received my parcels into their depot at Brive which is only 40 or so miles away. And there they have remained, visible in their tracking system but never being delivered.
My theory is that they sub-contract delivery out to independent operators who look at delivery distance and cost and find an excuse to return the parcel to the depot at the end of the day, never having made the trip, probably citing a mechanical problem or something like that. I recently ordered some fabric from Manchester, England to cover the top of the Savannah's instrument panel with. After 3 weeks or so I queried the supplier who gave me the DPD tracking number and sure enough, there it was at the DPD depot at Brive as had been a garden roller ordered from Germany several months previously.
When I contacted DPD they said that there was a 'problem' with the address, which was illegible, but that yes, my telephone number was visible and as their tracking system showed that the parcel was due to be delivered to Plazac, they could have found their way to the area and phoned. So I said that I could save them the trouble and give them precise directions at that time. However, they said that they couldn't do that as they were only allowed to receive information from the sender! So total BS.
I contacted the seller in Manchester and he said that he'd send a new parcel using a different courier, which arrived in 3 days as I recall.
I'm now waiting with fingers crossed to see if the DHL man (or woman) taps on my door by end of day today. I've got to drop my son off at Bergerac airport this afternoon and it would be just my luck for them to arrive while I'm out and return the parcel to Bordeaux because there was nobody here to provide a signature! Imagine if it was then returned to the sender in Vilnius... AAaaaaaaagghhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!
Back for quick update before leaving for airport. DHL delivered parcel just after midday - so kudos to them. Top firm. But what an itinerary. It turns out from a label on the strobes that they were manufactured in the Czech Republic. Funny thing is that the main advertising for them is on US web sites.
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