I want to share feedback regarding a recent experience that was extremely frustrating and, in my opinion, highlights a failure in customer service and process.
A UPS store accidentally placed the wrong shipping label on a package and sent it to my home. This was not a mistake made by me, my father who sent the package, or the intended recipient, it was a mistake made by the UPS Store.
As a result:
My daughter experienced the disappointment of believing she had received two birthday packages from her grandfather, only to discover one of them was not actually for her.
I spent considerable time coordinating with my father through numerous text messages while your store repeatedly attempted to recover the package.
Because I work in Boston and do not live near the package location full-time, I had to wait until I was back home and then make a special trip on a Saturday morning to bring the package to your store.
I spent my own personal time helping resolve a problem that was created entirely by your business.
After all of that, I arrived at the store with the package and was told that I would need to pay $1 to print the return label.
The issue is not the dollar.
When your employee said, “It’s just a dollar,” she was focusing on the amount of money. I was focused on the principle of the situation and the cumulative cost in time, inconvenience, frustration, and effort required to fix a mistake that was never mine to begin with.
By the time I arrived at the store, I had already invested far more than a dollar’s worth of time and energy:
The disappointment caused to my daughter
The time spent standing at the counter arguing about who should bear the cost of correcting the store’s error.
In a well-run operation, a customer who is helping correct a business’s mistake should not be asked to incur any cost whatsoever—not even a dollar.
The store could have:
Printed the label at no charge
Provided a QR code that could be scanned in-store
Accepted the package and handled the correction internally.
Instead, I was placed in the position of defending why I should not have to pay to fix someone else’s mistake.
I understand the employee at the counter may have been following policy or may not have had the authority to waive the charge. My concern is not with a young employee following instructions. My concern is with the fact that there appears to be no process in place that allows employees to properly handle situations where the store is clearly at fault.
This was never about a dollar. It was about being asked to absorb yet another cost, after already giving my time, effort, and patience to help resolve a mistake made by the UPS Store.
I hope this feedback is taken seriously and that a better process is implemented so future customers are not put in the same position.