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  #106  
Old 02-02-2018, 01:40 PM
HeyMikey HeyMikey is offline
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I hadn't heard from FedEx or GC for about a week and a half. Its Friday and I had a small break in my day so I called FexEx to see if there was any update.

The last 5 reps I spoke to insisted that the package was delivered. They supposedly even confirmed this with the driver. The public tracking information shows it delivered to my (invisible) garage.

However, the rep I spoke to today, said that what he can see on his system shows the package was damaged and NOT delivered ! There is also a claim number but he can't see any more detail. So the truth comes out. Or will it. Will that information suddenly disappear next time I call? I asked to have the appropriate group in charge contact me asap, which he said should be sometime today.

I let GC know. If there is a damage claim in process I would have expected that FE or GC would have let me know, since I've called and written so many times trying to get to the bottom of this.

Last edited by HeyMikey; 02-02-2018 at 01:42 PM. Reason: Edited...
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  #107  
Old 02-02-2018, 01:47 PM
roylor4 roylor4 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HeyMikey View Post
I hadn't heard from FedEx or GC for about a week and a half. Its Friday and I had a small break in my day so I called FexEx to see if there was any update.

The last 5 reps I spoke to insisted that the package was delivered. They supposedly even confirmed this with the driver. The public tracking information shows it delivered to my (invisible) garage.

However, the rep I spoke to today, said that what he can see on his system shows the package was damaged and NOT delivered ! There is also a claim number but he can't see any more detail. So the truth comes out. Or will it. Will that information suddenly disappear next time I call? I asked to have the appropriate group in charge contact me asap, which he said should be sometime today.

I let GC know. If there is a damage claim in process I would have expected that FE or GC would have let me know, since I've called and written so many times trying to get to the bottom of this.
I hope you got the guys name that you talked to so it can't be swept under the rug. I hope you get a positive resolution soon.
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  #108  
Old 02-02-2018, 01:49 PM
rokdog49 rokdog49 is online now
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HeyMikey View Post
I hadn't heard from FedEx or GC for about a week and a half. Its Friday and I had a small break in my day so I called FexEx to see if there was any update.

The last 5 reps I spoke to insisted that the package was delivered. They supposedly even confirmed this with the driver. The public tracking information shows it delivered to my (invisible) garage.

However, the rep I spoke to today, said that what he can see on his system shows the package was damaged and NOT delivered ! There is also a claim number but he can't see any more detail. So the truth comes out. Or will it. Will that information suddenly disappear next time I call? I asked to have the appropriate group in charge contact me asap, which he said should be sometime today.
Right then and there I would have requested an email confirming what he said. If he refused, I would have asked to speak to his superior, again, right then and there.
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  #109  
Old 02-02-2018, 02:12 PM
Uncle Clownmeat Uncle Clownmeat is offline
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I went to one and ordered a guitar. The cashier said the back-order date was in two days. Over a week later, with no guitar and no e-mails regarding its shipping status, I called them and was told the back-order date had changed from January to March. I hadn't heard from them because the cashier had made a typo when entering my e-mail address. I canceled the order and bought the guitar online from a place that delivered it in two days, with no shipping fees. The very next day, G.C. charged my account and shipped out the guitar I'd been told wouldn't be ready for over a month.

From a recent issue of Acoustic Guitar magazine:

"Despite the effort to be all things to all musicians, Guitar Center saw its credit rating downgraded twice this year [2017] into junk status as it faces $1.6 billion in debt."
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  #110  
Old 02-02-2018, 03:23 PM
DesertTwang DesertTwang is offline
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They just lost me as a customer, and about the only thing I can do is tell other guitarists about their fantastic customer service.
Good! People should buy more local anyway. I completely support your move.
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  #111  
Old 02-02-2018, 03:33 PM
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cotten cotten is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HeyMikey View Post
...the rep I spoke to today, said that what he can see on his system shows the package was damaged and NOT delivered ! ...
That is progress at least, and progress is good, even baby steps. You have a lot of friends following this story, so be sure to post the latest. I have no advice, except what you are apparently already doing. Hang in there. Remain respectful and businesslike. But do not grow weary and just throw your hands up in defeat. Keep it on the front burner, and move it up the ladder, with complete details, at every opportunity. I do not believe the customer is always right, but also do not believe that the customer should be left holding nothing when he paid for something.

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  #112  
Old 02-02-2018, 04:02 PM
DCCougar DCCougar is offline
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I recently bought a gorgeous Gibson Songwriter 12-string online from a GC across the county. Delivered to my home, had a big crack/separation atop the soundboard. I returned it to my local GC, got a full refund. Awful about the Songwriter, but otherwise kind of a boring transaction....

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....Hang in there. Remain respectful and businesslike. But do not grow weary and just throw your hands up in defeat.....
Good advice. And if anyone ever needs any motivation not to "throw your hands up," go see the Best Picture nominee Darkest Hour....
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  #113  
Old 02-25-2018, 01:12 PM
HeyMikey HeyMikey is offline
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Well, I guess I'm not surprised but GC is no longer returning my emails asking for an update on the loss claim. I called FedEx again but they won't release any information to me because their contract is with GC and not me. I simply don't matter to either company. I'm just the one out the money for buying something form GC that was never delivered to me by FedEX.

Let this be my final warning on this thread to anyone thinking of purchasing online from GC. Read the fine print - they take will no responsibility for items once they hand it over to the shipper.

As a side note, I've received about $300+ of gear from Sweetwater since then. Now, they might have the same shipping policy as GC or not. But, from what I've read and from my past experience with a defective item, Sweetwater at least seems to be interested in taking care of and retaining their customers.
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  #114  
Old 02-25-2018, 01:43 PM
RussL30 RussL30 is offline
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Sorry to hear that these companies have treated you like that and you are out your money. There’s no excuse for Fed Ex or GC not to fix it.

I ordered nearly $50 worth of Strings and picks from Strings and Beyond last year, and the tracking site said it was delivered but I never saw my package. I emailed them to let them know and they quickly emailed me back and said they would resend my order that day, no questions asked. I was impressed with their prompt and friendly service and will always support a business like that.
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  #115  
Old 02-25-2018, 05:31 PM
HeyMikey HeyMikey is offline
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Originally Posted by RussL30 View Post

I ordered nearly $50 worth of Strings and picks from Strings and Beyond ....
That is clearly a company in it for the long run and values customer loyalty. It does work both ways. Some companies have figured that out, others sadly have either forgotten or made a conscious choice to not make it a core business value.
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  #116  
Old 02-25-2018, 05:52 PM
Mr Fingers Mr Fingers is offline
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Remind me: were you able to cancel or withhold payment? If I ordered something and did not get it, I sure wouldn't pay for it. GC and FedEx can fight over who loses, which is exactly as it should be. I try to use my credit card whenever possible so that I can dispute a charge easily up through the posting of the item on my statement. And, at times, long afterward. To my surprise, the customer service folks are very positive and effective in these matters and have never failed to come through for me. On the other hand, corporations basically train their staff to put you off and deny claims hoping you will give up before fighting through several layers of people whose miserable job it is to try to make you go away. I get lies and BS all the time. Unfortunately, the only reliable way I have found, for me, to get satisfaction is to be a complete jerk, demand to speak to supervisors, ask for names and badge numbers, etc. (Don't get off the phone!) Sadly, these offices are trained to use your own courtesy against you, for their benefit. I'm sorry to say that it's often not until you have become a raging monster that you get someone on the line who treats you like a human being. I have better luck with the phone than w/ email, but I use email, too, to establish my own record/paper trail. And though this is Fed Ex's fault, GC is treating you like crap by not stepping up on your behalf. They have a huge relationship with FedEx and could readily get this settled for you without losing a penny themselves. This is why I avoid patronizing corporations, including the much-praised Sweetwater, because they are killing decent, person-centered business in the guitar world. I don't want them to do well. I want them to go away.

Last edited by Kerbie; 02-25-2018 at 06:34 PM. Reason: Removed masked profanity
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  #117  
Old 02-26-2018, 11:46 AM
archerscreek archerscreek is offline
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This is why I’m 99% sure I’m driving to PA to pick up my Custom HD-28 when it’s done, even though I ordered it from a site sponsor and not GC.

As said before, misdeliveries happen all the time. Last Saturday I received some guy’s pills in the mail (heard them rattling around in the package and did the carrier’s job myself) while someone else received my arrow rest. Both of those misdelivered packages were marked as “delivered to mailbox” according to tracking.

I was told by a UPS manager that UPS tracks their drivers with GPS. They can see exactly where a driver was/is when a package is marked as delivered. In my most recent case, I spoke directly with my post office’s post master and given the fairly consistent delivery times along the mail routes along with other packages’ tracking info they could find out where the package went to. So if UPS and USPS can figure out where a delivery actually occurred, FedEx should be able to as well.

And regarding the legal discussion that popped up, I am an attorney as well as a small business owner that frequently ships products. At least in Wisconsin, our courts heavily disfavor “take it or leave it” stock contract language that removes an injured party’s ability to recover from a seller. Stripped to its basics, a valid contract assumes bargaining between the parties. Because there is no bargaining with these stock language clauses, Wisconsin courts routinely dismiss them.

Thus, even though GC says on its website that it fully performed its duties to the buyer when fedex got the package, a decent judge in WI would simply roll his or her eyes and tell GC the language carried no weight and that GC would have to prove actual delivery. And besides, even if a court upheld the contract language regarding delivery to the shipper ending GC’s obligation, GC would have to prove they actually packaged and shipped a product in good working order. How many witnesses is GC willing to call to fight a $50 small claims action it knows it should have paid to begin with? Probably zero.

If it were my $50 and perhaps more meaningfully my time spent being jerked around by those two businesses, I’d press the issue. You should be reimbursed by GC. GC should be reimbursed by fedex.
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