Couriers

SteveGV

I'm sure there's plenty of horror stories about couriers handling/damaging guitars (and apologies if this has been done to death on here). A lot of it will be down to individual heavy handed drivers but which companies are good and bad in your experiences?

I like the idea of DPD with their upto date predict service but in reality as a courier they're shocking.

Phil_aka_Pip

Don't. Just don't. Take/fetch it yourself.

RaymondLin

They are all pretty consistent in my area except there is one notablely bad one...Yodel.

Please do not use them.

I do like DPD and their live tracking and hour window.

I've had 2 guitars handled via Parcel Force and it was fine. One via UPS also fine. By fine I mean the box arrived with no big holes or dents and guitar in 1 piece.

Bogwhoppit

I think they all screw up at some point. Until real data is collected from all couriers across the whole of the UK, its all going to be personal experience.

I've had issues with UPS - who are often cited as the best. In contrast, Parcel Force who arguably have the worst reputation, I've never had any issues with.

stickyfiddle

Honestly, I've never had issue with TNT or UPS. And TNT are really expensive, which is no doubt why they're not complete shit. Thankfully whenever I have used them, they've missed their deadline by 10 minutes and I've had a refund. This may be another reason they're expensive, if 10% of their customers get refunds...

I've had significant issues with Parcel Farce, DPD, Hermes, Yodel (oh god, Yodel...), and City Link (there's a reason they call them Shitty Link..)

Maynehead

I've sent 5 or 6 guitars with CityLink and they've been great, unfortunately that is no longer possible, so I'm in the same boat.

I guess I'd just default to Parcel Force/Royal Mail. I certainly wouldn't trust MyHermes or Yodel...

IanSavage

I'd avoid Hermes, never had an item broken or damaged except with them.

robinbowes

I shipped a flightcase with Interparcel in 2012 and they managed to knacker it. They bent a castor and damaged two catches. They then tried to wriggle out of paying for damaging it by saying "it wasn't wrapped". I got £50 back.

R.

crunchman

DPD were dreadful with a washing machine part I ordered a few weeks ago.

You ask them to deliver to a neighbour (twice) and they do not.  They just shove a card through your letterbox.

When I phoned them I got lied to (twice).

To crown it all they use one of those 0845 numbers so it costs you to phone them.

Chalky

I have a Parcelforce main depot down the road so if I drop it off there early evening its on a long distance truck around 8pm and the buyer gets it next day. Have used them maybe 20 times without a problem.

xGizmo

If they use a "Man with a Van" steer clear,those guys only get payed about 45p per item so they really don't give a shit about your package and will offten leave stuff in bins/green house's/under trees ect ect and then scribble some bullshit so they can say "someone" signed for it.....

I wouldn't send a guitar via parcel farce because if you look in there T&C you'll see that they only cover Guitars/Musical Instruments for a MAX of £100,btw they will take your money for extra cover but will never pay out more than £100.....shysters

Also be very careful when sending via 3rd parties like parcel monkey,parcel to go ect ect as they also have T&C's for items,so even if you've used a Courier that does cover guitars doesn't mean a 3rd party will pay if its on the "Prohibitive Items" list and a few of them will only carry guitars on a non compensation basis (parcel monkey)

Myself i only send stuff via UPS with Parcel2go,because my local UPS driver is a really nice guy and they've only fucked up once in 20 or so parcel ive sent with them,the fuck up was being late by a day and parcel2go refunded the del cost without any question or nonsense....but hey that's just me im sure many ppl here will tell you UPS are Satan's spawn only walking the earth to spread chaos and destruction.

dindude

Easier to say which ones are acceptable. DPD with their timings are usually great. UPS are reliable. That's it.

Edit: John Lewis are awesome, timed evenings, Saturday's for no extra. Any chance you can use them

GuitarMonkey

I like UPS too. Or local driver is a gent.

The company has proper liveried vans fitted with storage to protect the parcels and the drivers wear uniforms.

Everything inspires confidence.

Parker

UPS

Sassafras

No problems with UPS, yet.

meltedbuzzbox

I have no issue with DPD. I generally find them to be pretty spot on. 

Same with UPS and dare I even say it Parcelforce. 

I had TNT play basketball or skittles or something retarded with an amplifier. 

Hermes are generally a ball ache all round 

I think regardless of the courier accidents do happen so you should package your items on the assumption they will experience world war three.

GuitarZero

DPD are dodgy.  I had a phone sent to my son from vodafone.   He called me on the delivery date to say that it had been logged on the system as 'can't find address', later on it was logged as 'delivered' despite the fact that nobody had delivered it.

I called DPD who said they can't speak to the driver as he is from an agency and they didn't have his details but would speak to him in the morning.  Anyway it turns out he delivered it to the wrong block of flats despite the name and number of the flats being on the front in massive letters and numbers.  It wasn't DPD who found this out, my son just took it upon himself to go and find it.  The woman who had it said she gets so many parcels usually that she didn't bother look at who it was addressed to before signing for it.  She also didn't bother taking it to the correct address either...

ICBM

Never use a courier to send anything you can't afford to write off if it goes wrong, regardless of whether you think it's insured.

Some are better than others but it all comes down to pot luck in the end, even with the good ones.

ennspek

I used to work with DPD and bearing in mind the number of deliveries they did for us I thought they were good. Yodel on the other hand were the polar opposite. Absolute awful.

Flink_Poyd

I bump into a fair few TNT drivers and to say their mind is on other things is an understatement. Another looming takeover and possibly redundancy is their favourite topic at the minute, they're in for a tough year

rlw

DHL work fine  for me - guitars, cameras, paperwork.  No problem.