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View Full Version : Need help fighting a shipping charge...



sharkbite1979
12-10-2005, 07:24 AM
Back in August, we sold our panther rims and tires.

I went thru DAYS of research, how to ship the rims safely, cost effectively, etc. DHL had the best price but the buyer could not figure out where he wanted the rims delivered - where he would be at the time of delivery (understandable) so he asked if we could have them held at his local DHL.

I had put in many calls to DHL for pricing on these wheels as well as how to go about shipping them and that the buyer wanted them held at DHL. She (some lady from DHL customer service) said that the best thing to do would be to check "bill receiver" and let him pay the bill when they get picked up.

Well, somehow they got shipped overnight and instead of costing around $200 ($50+ each wheel) the bill was $1200+ and instead of holding the wheels, DHL let the buyer take the wheels and billed ME....said they don't allow them to bill the receiver if they are held at DHL. When the buyer asked about the shipping charges when he picked up the wheels, DHL told him "it was all taken care of" and allowed him to take the wheels without questioning!!

Needless to say i was FURIOUS!! I figured that the buyer was trying to screw me, sent him a bit of a nasty PM, and I was honestly wrong...he's been a stand up guy so far and has been willing to help the situation however he can.

Here's the details:

1) I did exactly what DHL's OWN customer service TOLD me to do after explaining the situation extensively. I even discussed shipping from my office vs home vs shipping to his office vs his home vs having him pick them up in the DHL office.

2) Now DHL is saying, well, don't know what to tell ya, sorry my employee told ya that but "they don't allow them to bill the receiver if they are held at DHL."

3) I called and put in a dispute and so far they have lowered the bill to $681.17, although i can't seem to get a human on the phone to discuss it further.

4) Since they picked them up from my office, they are frickin sending the bills to my business!! Under OUR BUSINESS'S name! (Stupid me, i put the company name in the company box...all my fault)

5) Box #4 on the shipping waybill thing is "Service Type" and it has 4 options Next Day 10:30, Next Day 12:00, Next Day 3:00, 2nd Day 5:00...in small writing it says "one box must be checked. Assume noon unless noted."

I did not check any boxes.

6) I asked the lady that picked them up to help me make sure everything was filled out properly, she even looked over the waybill and had NO comments. I even had the conversation while she and a couple of the guys from my office were helping her load the wheels that they were to be shipped NORMAL shipping, NOT expedited shipping and it still did not ring a bell to her.

7) After I got back into my office, after she had left and i mean she was still leaving the driveway, I called DHL for 2 reasons. #1, i had not put the buyers phone number on the waybill - he needed to be called when they arrived. #2, I asked about the whole next day vs. 2nd day vs. non-expedited shipping and explained that i had received a quote over the phone from DHL for $50+ and wanted to MAKE SURE they understood that it was NOT to be expedited.

Does anyone have any ideas, suggestions, etc?

Thanks in advance.

Sixpipes
12-10-2005, 10:52 AM
That's a tough one. I got freight charges increased by Yellow Freight on a shipment to Oregon last year because the service type was incorrect on a transmission I sold. The Yellow Freight people are the ones that coded the freight bill incorrectly yet they wanted to upcharge me $400+ dollars even after giving me a discount. I ended up splitting the freight bill with the guy that received the transmission, but the freight company did not budge even though the mistake was theirs. :cool:

mikelemoine
12-10-2005, 03:18 PM
Hey Sharkbite, sorry to hear of your troubles. If you are a business shipper with an account, call and ask to speak with your local sales rep. They have more power than the 800# reps to resolve issues. Even if you aren't, it might be worth a try. Also, I'd suggest showing them what date the wheels were picked up by the recipient. If they did not pick them up the next day, hopefully that will show DHL you were not trying to scam them for overnight services. If that doesn't work, call and demand to speak to the President. You will never get ahold of him/her but you will get escalated to a higher level and if you are persistent enough they will eventually give in to get rid of you! I run a call center and this is how it typically works, if a customer gets to a VP or Executive Office level we end up giving something away! Naturally, we try not to let anyone get that high, so you will have to be persistent. IMO saving hundreds of dollars is probably worth the trouble! Hope this helps and good luck. Mike

microsuck
12-14-2005, 09:18 AM
Well, coming from a legal perspective, youre best bet would be to just not pay it and then dispute the charge to your account. Their screw up is the fact that 1. They overnighted them, 2. They failed to collect from the buyer. And YES, they do have a COD plan, I have had to pay to pickup engines before.

The good news is that you arent actually out of pocket the $.

And from the buyers perspective, I probably wouldent pay you either. It would smell like a scam to me. Astronimical shipping charges, trying to collect after the fact, etc. Good luck, I hope that helps some.

microsuck
12-14-2005, 09:20 AM
Oh, and remind them about there commercials about "Customer Service", where the guy takes his shoes off to not be squeaky in the library. Then be sure to tell them they are full of sh!T.
Andrew

sharkbite1979
12-14-2005, 10:34 AM
Oh, and remind them about there commercials about "Customer Service", where the guy takes his shoes off to not be squeaky in the library. Then be sure to tell them they are full of sh!T.
Andrew

yeah, i saw one of their "customer service" commericals before i went to bed last night...bastards!