+1 for Reverb Customer Service, -1 for UPS

[imperialstar]

I sold a drum set a few weeks ago and shipped everything through Reverb shipping (PirateShip was not less in this case) - a combination of 3 boxes to UPS and 1 box USPS. Bought a 28" cube box from FedEx to ship the 22"x14" bass drum and 15" floor tom plus a bit of hardware. I shortened the box to 23" H so everything fit nicely, measured, weighed and slapped the label on.

Today.....I get a notification from Reverb that UPS charged a label adjustment of $100! for that box. According to them, the box was 29" x 28 x 23 and thus nearly doubled the dimensional weight and shipping cost. I was already less than break even for that order and that charge took almost another 15% - no bueno!

I know the box was in fact 28" because it was measured - more than once. So it was time to complain. Customer service chat connected in 10 seconds or so, I made my case, and they waived the charge this time.

I haven't had to use their customer service much, but $100 is definitely worth it and I only spent maybe 5 minutes on it. Could the box have been bulging a bit from packing and their automated systems counted that? Maybe, but they don't measure for that if you drop it off at the UPS store so same thing might have happened through retail channels. I have not had this issue before with UPS even with boxes that were pretty stuffed.


Apparently, 28" boxes are right at the edge of dimensional weight rate classes so watch your measurements if you're close!

 

[GreezyBeats]

I have found UPS store to consistently add to dimensions and weight. I bought 24” box from them, cubed it 24” square and they tried to call it 26”.

I had to file my first claim ever w UPS, $1200. They paid, luckily I take pictures of my packing and pack to the max protection possible. Took 2 months, but they made good on the damage.

I wouldn’t buy any high dollar, irreplaceable item without a shipper/seller insuring the item, and photo documenting the packing of the item (which WILL be needed IF a claim has to be filed). Pain in the butt, but, if damage occurs, the seller/shipper will have to file the claim, even if buyer paid for shipping in the sale of the item. The seller/packer own the responsibility to package adequately, and prove it when a claim is filed; and refund the buyer.

I think a service like Reverb is valuable for higher dollar items, in that the buyer is protected, and likely to get refunded quicker if the Universal Package Smashers smash.

Due to recent shipping issues I’ve experienced, don’t think I’d buy anything over 4-500 without a Service like reverb behind it, even if the seller had to charge me 7% more to get what they want from the sale. Insurance is worth every cent when sh!+ happens.

 

[bluejacketsfan]

This is why I stopped buying drum sets. Because I know that in the future, it'll probably be sold, and the shipping just gets ridiculous with the bass drum. I feel like I have given away some good drum sets at low prices just because people were scared off by the shipping.

 

[bjisteve]

I had a similar experience with UPS. I bought the labels through Pirate Ship. Fortunately, I had taken pictures of the boxes with a tape measure on them. I appealed and they refunded the charge. Smells like scam to me.
And my boxes were smaller - 24" cube for the bass drum.
The only reason I happened to take the photos was that UPS had busted the bass drum on a previous shipment and because the buyer didn't take photos of how it was packed, they denied my claim. Now I hold my breath every time I ship a drum, until it arrives. I'm about done with all of it.

 

[Syncopated_1]

UPS SUX AND IS FIRED. I shipped two Tama Star snare drums to a dealer in NYC for consignment. BOTH were stolen in transit.

Took me THREE MONTHS of haggling with humans and a terrible claims system, FINALLY got the claim paid. Research this online for yourself, they have a terrible theft problem.