On my last two orders from Midway USA, I shipped UPS with a scheduled Friday delivery. That way I could play with the stuff (load ammo, mount scopes, go to the range, etc.) on the Sat./Sun. after my order arrived.

On both of these last orders, UPS missed the scheduled Friday delivery and delivered on Monday. Both times they claimed a "late train" was the cause.

Not a huge deal, but just frustrating when it does not get there when it was scheduled to.

Tim

I suppose if the package arrives unharmed that could be a satisfactory experience but then that's what you pay for so no great credit should be thrust upon them for that. Good question though, perhaps add has anyone had a satisfactory experience getting a insurance claim handled fairly and properly, especially if it involved a firearm.

I've had a myriad bad experiences with UPS. Scvrew ups happen, but what is unforgivable is poor treatment of the customer when a mistake is pointed out.

I do not ship anything through UPS unless there is absolutely no other choice.

Both of your description ranges, ie high end occurence and low end, seem to set the tone pretty much to the extreme limits of the poll and nothing in the middle. "I always have a bad experience with UPS" and "I usually have a bad experience" are not far apart. Nor are "I have a bad experience once in a great while" or "I have never had a bad experience with UPS".

I see nothing that depicts my experiences with them. Other than my feelings towards them.

Jim
A lot of the time the driver is a idiot (our UPS delivery driver at work is a classic example of idiot, a couple of the surounding busness have instructed the local terminal to not allow him to deliver their packages).
On the other hand, I had a UPS RED package go astray (live salt water fish) and the local branch manager (West Branch, MI) put on a few hundred miles picking it up (Grand Rapids, MI) and personaly delivering it to my house (30 miles in the other direction) that day.

Chic, It seems to me that the parameters I set from high end to low end and everything in between just about covers it. I'm sure that you being a full time smith has given you far more experience with UPS than most and I know where you stand and I respect your opinion. I was just wondering how the majority of opinion runs. I think tailgunner just about sums it up. They have some hands that are idiots and some that go the extra mile. Personally I have never had a bad experience with any of them with the exception of FedeX one time. I had to ship some bills to Missoula, MT and they didn't make it on time and as a result my pay was a week late. But the timing was marginal when I sent them so I can't really fault FedeX. I think with the hundreds of thousands of parcels they move, they all do a pretty fair job of it. Maybe the next time I use them I'll have a horror story but so far so good. So far the poll is turning out pretty much the way I expected. The only claim I ever had with UPS was on a Leupold scope that was damaged in transit and that was resolved to my complete satisfaction. Jim

All:

I just heard on the news a couple of days ago about a hunter from, I think Michigan, who sued FedEx (again, I THINK it was FE, it may have been UPS) for shipping his package by ground instead of the next-day air that he requested. His "package" was his elk meat from a successful hunt out west. He won a $3800 settlement. Hopefully, someone else will have heard about this too and get the damn facts straight..... :-)

Anyway, I've had several computers, scopes, sets of tires delivered by Big Brown without a hitch (I am now knocking on the closest wood, my head)....but then how bad can you hurt a set of 33X12.50X16.5 BFGoodriches? I know the local delivery guy, he looks out for me, but what about the other 50 employees that may handle my package? Maybe I've just been lucky.... Chic, your experiences sure have created a pucker on this end.

MKane160

Jim,
I remember the damaged scope deal, but that was 30 years ago, I don't think it would be that easy these days.
I once received a Harry Lawson stock that had a big dent in it, UPS was the carrier. I didn't file a claim, I returned it because I wasn't pleased with the fence post grain.
Yesterday, I received a package(USPS) and didn't know it was here until I got a tracking message from the shipper. The mailman put it in the garage and failed to leave notification on the door.
Then there is the barrel that you received from MRC, minus the outer box, a result of rough handling, UPS again. I'm thinking if you receive a package that's not damaged and on time, you can consider yourself lucky, regardless of who the carrier is.
Stepchild

I had ordered 500 rounds of .30-06 Korean surplus and the damned box had a hole in it, luckily the driver had noticed and found all the rounds rolling around in his truck. Had all 500 rounds in the box by the time it got to me.