To wonder if ParcelForce don't actually carry the parcels with them?

[TheQueenOfWands]

Package was due yesterday. I was in.

Heard the letter box flapping with the regular post and noticed a ParcelForce card saying they'd 'attempted' to deliver at 9.30am. I was in. Our letter box is loud. Our door knocker is loud. To post the card through the letter box they must have done it really carefully, deliberately not making any noise.

They crossed the card indicating they'd try again today.

I got up earlyish, and have been sitting about 5 metres from the front door so I wouldn't miss it. No noise. Just drinking tea and MNing. No music or anything.

DP just left for work. Yup. There's a card. 9.30am. I heard nothing.

I just wish I'd had the curtains open so I could've seen him tiptoeing up the drive and stealthily posting his card.

Seriously, why bother? Why not just say they don't want to deliver it?

Yep. Once I saw the card land on the mat, so I raced up the road to catch the delivery driver. I cheerily presented my card and myself thinking “of course he can just hand it to me now” and I got SPAT AT and verbally abused.

When I complained they didn’t care and said that lots of posties write up the cards before going on their round and don’t bring the parcels with them.

Ooooh that's very annoying.

I had an amazon 'attempted delivery' yesterday. Nah you didn't mate. I stayed within these four walls all day and have the cabin fever to prove it.

I wish they would stop taking the parcels. As I work from home I am the only one reliably in all day on our road. I get everyone's bloody post. Sometimes my hall looks like a sorting office. Every now and again I lose my rag and refuse to take in parcels but the delivery guys know I am a soft touch and will calm down in a few days and be back to saying "of course, just pop it in the hall" with a long suffering smile!

I once had an amazon delivery where I saw them post the card through the door, hey didn't knock (addressed to my address), so I ran down the stairs and opened the door to get the parcel, asked for my parcel and the delivery guy said "thats actually for this house" which was a completely different number (think im 38 and this number was 476 type different - very different) on a completely different street (no similarities) so basically just an entirely different house. Why did he wite my address on the card then? Why post a random you've missed a delivery through my door?

Parcel force did this to me. The parcel was something newborn related that I (at the time) considered vitally important. I called the number and insisted they came back. An hour later a very grumpy delivery guy arrived with my parcel.
I'm torn between sympathy and anger with delivery companies. It seems they're not given anywhere near enough time to do the job properly but it doesn't stop me feeling frustrated when I'm the one stuck woth the disadvantages of the job not being done properly

I've just called them, they are going to try to bring it back today. So hopefully I'll soon be getting my grumpy delivery. If it was warmer I'd sit out on my doorstep.

Apparently this is 'very unusual' and I'd need to prove he didn't knock.

I'm also going to get an extra charge as I asked it to be redelivered on Saturday ( this was before I rang).

This is from IKEA. I've bought loads of stuff from there without issue. It's usually delivered by a lovely and polite Captain Jack Sparrow lookalike in white van. Can't imagine why IKEA have started using these clowns.

Been there, I work from home regularly and I can see the front path from my desk. I actually opened the door as he was pushing the card through. Gave him a fright, and he had to admit that he didn't actually have the parcel, bearing in mind he was in a van, so no excuse.

I had paid for next day delivery, I complained to the company, they said I had to take it up with the post office, pointed out my contract was with them, they had chosen to use PO, got my money back....

But seriously, our local Hermes & Yodel people are great, leave package in sense-able places, clear notes etc.

Oh how irritating OP

The parcel was something newborn related that I (at the time) considered vitally important

I remember this feeling very well! I once got DD (about 14 at the time) to take the morning off school to make sure there was someone to receive a delivery I can't believe I did that now. In my defence it was because I was in hospital having DS2 and DS1 was only 17mo. I think I projected all my anxieties onto that bloody parcel

I've put a note on my door saying, 'ParcelForce, please knock.' Maybe they just need that little nudge?

Maybe they don't have doorknockers in ParcelForceLand where they all live?

Complain to IKEA. Your contract is with them to deliver the items properly. The only way they'll ever change to anyone else is if customers make it clear they won't accept such shitty treatment.

I ordered an item for £1k from Amazon, and the apparently 'white glove' delivery drivers they used were absolutely appalling, rude, refused to do what they were paid to do (set up the item) so I told them they could take it back, cancelled my order and re ordered from a different company who were brilliant. And emailed amazon to let them know why I'd done it. A grand is small fry for amazon I know but they wouldn't have known why they lost that business otherwise!

We've had a card from them this morning, no knock, or ring of the doorbell, even if we hadn't heard them the dogs would have and they haven't bothered at all. Tried to call, on hold for 20 minutes, finally got through to a human and got cut off. So very very annoying.

Was it a television?

I ordered a television from Amazon and the delivery driver told me I need to help him get it from the back of the van with him. Fecking 51incher, was bloody heavy.

My parents once ordered an item which was to be assembled and the delivery guys didn't even have any tools.

Why do we put up with it? Is it a British thing??

I have almost daily deliveries from Parcelforce.

Never once had a problem.

Great service.

Nope it was a digital piano! With 'white glove service' delivery. The one who delivered from a different company when I eventually got it was on his own and had to lug a full sized piano up to the top floor flat. He seemed annoyed I didn't have a lift but he did it. He asked me for help but I had a bad back from moving in lugging my own stuff up the stairs so I had to say no. Not much of a delivery service if you can't do it without customers helping!

I didn't put up with it and I'm bloody glad! I wouldn't have said anything for a cheap item but I thought amazon would want to know they lost a grand's worth of business. I know of course they don't actually care and neither does the min wage person answering the emails but I felt justified in passing it on in case there were other complaints on file!

My mum used to work for weight watchers who's stock deliveries were done with parcelforce-don't know if they still are-and on more than one occasion we came home to find the entire delivery 25-35 boxes stacked up against the front door on a busy road in the city we lived in. Safe to say she was not impressed

Delivery drivers always leave packages in our porch, never even TRY to knock on the door! It’s fine because it’s mostly relatively low cost items but I do worry about ordering more expensive things for exactly that reason.

.. we call the parcelfarce here ..

twitter might get them going

One of our neighbours was trying to locate her parcel which the online tracker had said was signed for by a neighbour. The signature was just a squiggle and the location was down as the distribution centre! So they hadn't attempted delivery but had signed so it showed as being delivered within the 48 hours!

My ParcelForce delivery guy is the grumpiest man I have ever met. He insists on keeping his finger on the bell until I answer the door. Very annoying with a napping toddler and newborn. The last time he did this, I flipped and he got my full wrath. I’ve had one parcel since....I was in all day when a neighbour popped over with a parcel in the evening that he’d asked her to take in for me...without knocking or ringing! I think I scared him off!

I don't have Twitter.

Totally intend on getting my £7.50 delivery fee back from IKEA though. Would be less kerfuffle to just go there at this rate..!

I had this.

I went after the postie and said “I’m in - can I have my parcel please?”

The postie said “I haven’t got it. I don’t bring your parcels because you’re never in.”

All delivery companies seem to be at it in some form or another amazon have been crap lately as are parcelforce yodel and all the rest!!! I honestly think they all take on too much work and promise to much with delivery dates that they can't possible meet! If they post a card/can show on gps a driver was in the street it's impossible to prove they had no intention of delivering anything!! Complain to the place you brought it only thing today!

May favourite excuses are the ones the give to the tracking system think online so far I have had UPS 'we were unable to gain accesses to your property due to the security gates!' I wish my terraced house was big enough and far enough away from people to need security gates! Also didn't explain the card that they could get through my door!!

And dhl 'We were unable to find you property' again they had put a card through the door!!

OP your TV story reminded me of an incident that happened with me a couple of years ago. I am disabled (use walking sticks) and live in a second floor flat (30 stairs). I CAN manage the stairs,but only if I'm not carrying more than a small,light bag,and it takes me about 5 minutes to get up the stairs. I certainly cannot carry tons of heavy shopping up. So I had done an online supermarket delivery with one of the big supermarkets. The delivery driver knocks and says,yes you've guessed it, ' You'll have to help me with the stuff up all these stairs'. I was . I told him I couldn't because of my disability,any help I could give would be pointless as I am so slow and can only carry one item at a time. He said he would have to take it all back then. I said fine,do that,I would phone the helpline and ask if I was being unreasonable saying I couldn't help,as the reason I'd booked it in the first place was because I struggle with the stairs. He changed his tune then and grudgingly agreed to do it. But I still phoned afterwards and they said HE was in the wrong,and would be spoken to about it.

I was once in my hallway a few feet from my front door when I saw the Royal Mail "you were out" card drop through the letterbox. I opened the door and he didn't have the parcel. I guess it's annoying for the post people to lug stuff around when people are out during the day, but it's pretty annoying when you are in.

An Amazon one. My son was desperately waiting for an Amazon delivery (Lego) and we were watching out of the front window. We saw a van parked outside our house and wondered if that was the delivery. He then drove off and I got an email instantly saying that they'd attempted a delivery. Luckily I had to go and pick up my other child from down the road and I found the van parked about 200m away. I asked for the parcel and he had it and was very apologetic. Very annoying.

I stopped online shopping with joules because of UK Mail who are total crap