I returned home last night when it was pissing down with rain (in Manchester, go figure) to find a card through my door from the Home Delivery Network. There was no order number on it and none of the fields were filled in, but there was some pen scrawled on the top displaying the words ‘Round Side’.
Not sure what this meant I figured maybe there was a parcel left round the side of the house, so I looked. There was nothing there. Then I thought what if they’ve chucked it over the 6 foot hight gate? I hope not, it’s a very high gate, a long way for a parcel to fall and it’s been pouring down all day.
I went out to look and sure enough there was a parcel from Amazon sat a pool of water next to our bin. Jesus Christ, what sort of arsehole does this?
I decided evidence was in order so I took photos of the parcel as I opened it, you can see from the pics that the water had seeped into the box. It would, it had been there all frickin’ day.
I also have a computer coming from Amazon. I hope to fuck they don’t use the Home Delivery Network for that one. I doubt it’ll stand a 6 foot drop into a pool of water. What a bunch of fucking morons. Come on Amazon, sort it out.
Darren Jamieson, aka MrDaz, is the Technical Director and co-founder of Engage Web and has been working online in a career spanning two decades. His first website was built in 1998 and is still live today.
I have just had a very irritating call to HDN who have delivered a card through our charity office letter box telling us they have left a parcel with our neighbour, this parcel has not been left with our neighbour and HDN have no record of their own reference number!!!!!
Due to this incompetence they are apparently not able to investigate this further, we get parcels delivered on a daily basis so are unable to find out where this parcel was being delivered from. I asked to speak to the manager and was flatly refused.
How unproffessional, it pains me to think that a company as bad as this has got contracts from companies like amazon, who by the way i will no longer be using due to the fact that they use these imbeciles!
OMG! I’m having problems with them at the moment! I ordered a book from Amazon a few month ago and they threw it over my back fence too!
I ordered a pretty dress from Topshop yesterday an paid extra for next day delivery as I needed the dress for a dinner tonight. The driver claimed there was no access to my work address as it was closed at 6pm. Funny, I was sat at my desk, by the front door in an obviously open business till 8pm! Obviously hadn’t event bothered to try and deliver my package. I rang to complain and was told I wouldn’t get my dress for another few days as the driver won’t put it back on his van till Friday.
About to ring Topshop to tell them what a pack of twats they’re using!
ARGH!!!!
I was reading some of the post her last night worring that my parcel would not get her before my daughters baptism on Sunday. However, package was loaded onto van in Omagh at 10am and arrived at my door at 10.30am. The delivery man not only rang the door bell but also rattled the post box. Couldn’t have asked for better!!
All i can say is – Ive worked for HDN for several weeks now. Every morning at 6am it is madness, at the Wrexham depot we have 70 vans where only 16 fit in the depot so you can imagine the cue outside of all the vans waiting to load! They do their upmost to get every parcel out and delivered. The company has just invested £11m on a new system called Quinteg which tells the company where every parcel is and where the exactly the property is and what parcel is to be posted / collected on time and most importantly making sure the drivers do their job properly! They have also bought the other courier company DHL so together they will become one big company called YODEL. The Wrexham depot is also increasing in size to fit all vans on and they have just won contracts with M&S, Tesco and Argos. So…before you go knocking the HDN..watch this space….a massive improvement 🙂
My heart sank as I read that last comment re “one big company called YODEL”. As a HDN customer (=sufferer) I think SCREAM or GNASH would be better names. Dread to think of that inefficiency on an even bigger scale.
I personally will not buy again from Amazon until they stop using HDN (how about HOWL?). Thanks for the warning – I won’t be ordering from Tesco, M&S or Argos, either. I just don’t need the stress.
I’m awaiting a parcel from HMV, and they have used HDNL as their delivery service.
However reading a lot of these comments, I’m really worried. I’m awaiting Black Ops which I’m already getting late because of problems with some asshole on eBay. So I got a refund form him and tried HMV. The last time I got something from HMV, it was HDNL. And they were fine.
I got the £6.60 Express Delivery from HMV, and ordered late Thursday night, so it shoud definitely be here today.
On the tracking it says:
13/11/2010 02:34:00 SOUTHAMPTON DEPOT The parcel has been received into depot
I’m keeping a keen eye out of the window, for any van that drives down the road.
In that last comment, I meant it wasn’t HDNL, and it was fine.
Do you think I’ll have problems though, now they’ve got the tracking system and have bought DHL?
Update:
13/11/2010 11:32:00 SOUTHAMPTON VAN The parcel is in the Depot
Lets keep my fingers crossed.
The can drove straight past my house.
Great.
I phoned up and apparently “the driver had tried locating my house”.
Bollocks.
I saw the van in the village, then watched out of my window waiting and he didn’t even attempt to slow down.
Should be here by 7pm tonight or Monday.
No, not Monday because I paid £6.60 for Express Delivery.
Wankers.
About 170 deliveries on a van per day, until they reduce that number down by adding another van and driver to a route the poor punters are always going to get a shit service.
So that’s about 2 to 3 minutes allocated per delivery including travel time in traffic and the possible rigmarole of finding sympathetic neighbours to take parcels in if the recipient is out.
The whole concept of customer service goes out the window when you have depot mangers loading more and more onto one single van and to be honest some of the responsibility falls on small amount of greedy browning nosing drivers as well who say they can deliver 230+ parcels per 8 hour shift, but in reality they just end up impersonating Michael Jordan and slam dunking some unlucky kid’s PS3 over a garden wall from the van or simply marking them down as not at home to save time or not to get disciplined .
HOME DELIVERY SHITWORK SHOULD GUARANTEE 5 MINUTES PER CUSTOMER, which would give the driver about 96 maximum deliveries per van.
I do a lot of online shopping and order from Amazon and other websites regularly and had never experienced a problem with HDNL – until a couple of weeks ago when I needed to change the delivery address for my Amazon order.
I phoned HDNL to inform them and was told that they couldn’t take such instructions from me, only Amazon. Fair enough. I phoned Amazon who were helpful, phoned HDNL but were told that they couldn’t change the address until the morning. Amazon assured me that they would do this first thing. I called them back the following morning, they had changed the address, the driver would have the new one and I received a confirmation from Amazon that it would be delivered to my new address.
I waited in for my delivery, yet it never arrived. I tracked my parcel on the HDNL website and it was showing as being delivered to a “Secure Location at Front of Property”. Well I checked my house (although I was slightly bemused as to where they had found a secure location as there isn’t one at the front of my house) but there was no parcel. So I got onto Amazon, who in turn got onto HDNL who confirmed the parcel had been delivered to the OLD address. I used to live at the old address, and again there was no secure location there either. I actually went round to my old house to attempt to retrieve the parcel myself but to no avail.
Amazon have been extremely helpful, and they have given me a full refund for my undelivered items even though it wasn’t really their fault so I wouldn’t hesitate shopping with them again – I think the blame lies with HDNL.
I wrote a lenghty letter to the contact address on the HDNL website and to date have not received any reply, apology or acknowledgement. If I ever get one, I’ll be sure to let you know what they have to say for themselves.
I have recently had a horrible experience with HDN and their incompetent staff. Its a long story. I must let you know first i live on the third floor of a block of apartments. We have a security entry system. This having to press a button obviously totally confuses HDN drivers so my abode becomes completely impenetrable!! On 30th of oct i placed an internet order with one of my favourite mail order companies. They unfortunately use HDN. HDN driver attempted first delivery without any notification to myself so i was unaware therefore i wasn’t in! No card was left. So I didn’t know about this until i queried my order. So i accepted the bad luck and re-arranged delivery. I waited in all day until i HAD to do a school run. I was out 35 mins. Guess what he came then, but I didn’t know that until a day later as he yet again left NO CARD! On the 2nd re-delivery i requested he leave it with specified neighbours or caretaker if i was on school run again. Another delivery was attempted and he ignored request. So another re-delivery was arranged and this was after a good chat with their customer services who promised he would get my request about 3 neighbours he can leave it with. This time delivery was never made. The parcel wasn’t ever placed on the van. So that night again i rang. “Sorry we’ve lost the parcel!” HOW???? anyway after being promised an over night depo search would be made i put the phone down thinking; well its saturday tomorrow i can stay in all day and definitely get parcel. I needed it badly that saturday! I rang this morning (sat) to be told no search was conducted over night. It will not be out to me in the near future. When offering to drive to Mitcham Depo and get this parcel i was told not to bother as they “can’t locate it!” ABSOLUTELY PATHETIC!
These drivers are morons who seem unable to follow simple instructions that have lead to my day being f****d up.
I’m so annoyed. I have left complaints with all involved and my mail order company have opened a ‘parcel investigation case’. It wont help however in getting the item to me i so desperately needed today. Had driver of left calling card through my front door the first time this could of all been prevented!
For all your future knowledge numbers of all HDN depo’s are in Yellow pages or on 118118. Also I’ve left a complaint on BBC’s Watchdog, maybe if all you fellow HDN haters do the same someone might actually be asked a few questions regarding the appalling staff at HDN!.
To HDN staff, i’m aware your strictly timed and must do everything fast but why can’t you follow simple instructions and have some common sense?? If that driver had delivered first time to ANYONE in my block (as they’ve done before) or simply left a card he wouldn’t of had to come back 3 more times and he wouldn’t be getting complained about.
And to staff in depo how can you lose a giant parcel?? its either in the van or in a room somewhere. It can’t of grown legs and walked away!
To poor telephone staff, i don’t envy your job. Mine were polite but franky useless promising things that wouldn’t happen.
H.D.N ; hav done nofin’
H.D.N ; Horrible drivers network
H.D.N ; Horrendous delivery network
H.D.N ; Have delivered Nothing
I could go on!
Have good day all. I won’t.
Hi There everyone.
Now I can tell you the truth about HDN the USELESS LOT HDN DO NOT USE THEM !!!!!!
They employed me as a driver at IPSWICH HDN DEPOT. I started at 7h00 in the morning sat around the depot for 5 hours doing nothing they are much unorganized.
Then I was told at 12h00 to get a van and start scanning nobody gave any sort of training or showed me what to do remember I am a new employee. well this went on every morning and every day for two weeks I was given 120 to 160 parcels and was told to deliver everything as all other drivers do that much remember I only left the depot at 12 sometimes only at 14h00 and then they send me to Hallstead from The IPSWICH DEPOT .after one month of this type of rubbish organisation I then one morning got in and was given 160 parcels at 13h00 to deliver on all the farms about 7 miles apart from each delivery around Sudbury and I said to the supervisor LEE RICHARD AT IPSWICH DEPOT it is impossible to deliver all these parcels .his words was to me well then we don’t need you must GO ( FIRED ) OFF I went .
There is much more to this as I the phoned Jonathan Smith THE CEO and his PA phoned me to say that the HDN HR Manager Paul Bridal Tel 07770408079 will get back to me and then the HDN REG IPSWICH Manager from Ipswich Peter Tel 07713069603 will phone me he did and said he said they will get back to me but it was all just promises and nothing up to now have been done yet .No feed back at all so this is the managers now you can see why the company is so Useless .They are a bunch of USELESS Idiots as far as I am concern .
Thats why the drivers do what they do as they get threatened with their jobs and they are just trying to save their jobs and then try and deliver as much as possible otherwise they get FIRED for nothing and with no reason at all.
Hope this make it more clearly as to why HDN getting Bad bad Bad it come from the top Management.
They just want to get more and more work with not paying their workers and looking after them properly.They NEED More driver but dont want to emply more just want to HIRE and FIRE .and pay very little for that .
I am going to watch dog o watch the Space .
Please phone these managers above with all your complaints give them some work and let’s see if they can handle the call as much as the drivers must handle the overloaded amount of parcels they get to deliver per day.
Ipswich depot tell 01473286620
Have a nice day
HDNL had a parcel to deliver to me a while back – when it didn’t come I checked the tracking details, only to be told that the driver had ‘attempted delivery’ at 5.45pm… Incidentally at that time there had been two of us in the house for over an hour, without even the TV or radio on, so no possible way we wouldn’t have heard the door! Also no card through the door, so I guess the driver just ran out of time and went home, spending the journey making up lies about attempted deliveries.
Also I am a bit sick of drivers’ comments about how we should all be in to take delivery – the item I am currently waiting for was ordered from a company online, with no indication of the delivery date – do you seriously expect that I should take a week or more off work just in case you decide to do me the honour of delivering??
I wonder WHY ?????
HDNL are changing there name to YODEL !!!
I wonder WHY ???
available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and a call card will be left for the customer to rearrange delivery if required.
WOW – HDNL just attempted a delivery at my address.
What is the definition of attempt.
Im shocked by what they just done.
I was sat here with the laptop on my ‘lap’ then there was a BANG on the door.
I went to the door (as you can imagine a task like that would take 30 seconds max, when im sat in the living room)
By the time I got to the door the driver had already posted a ‘we missed you today’ card, by the time i opened the door he had driven off.
What the…..
I immediately called them and asked to redirect the driver back and was blatently told NO and that it was classed as a delivery attempt regardless how long he waited for me to answer.
Thats dreadful service in my eyes.
To me, the driver must be due to clock off so is whizzing around the place knocking doors and posting cards
Shocked
What a bunchs of sad lonely twats you all are if this is all you have to do with your lifes.
most of you here moan that your parcel was carded due to you not being in, well why the fuck would you order a parcel if you are not going to be in.
If you order from a retailer with delivery then read the terms and conditions. If you want a timed delivery then pay for it. dont go to a website that do free delivery of 2 to 3 days and then moan that you had to wait in.
A driver would not place a parcel over a fence if you was in.
why do you think companys use hdn for there deliverys, because there cheap, do you think they are going to try and redeliver a parcel 2 or 3 times at there cost cause you are not in. dont be stupid.
In this world you only get what you pay for. if you want FEDEX or UPS to delivery your parcel then pay there prices.
A Realist
I’ve had an absolute nightmare with HDNL, where I’ve now been waiting 5 whole days for a bin that still hasn’t turned up.
The first day it was meant to arrive (Thursday), I got an email from Made.com (who I’d ordered a bin from), stating that my item would be delivered ‘on or before Thursday 25th November, and I also got a text from Made.com stating that my item would arrive between 12-3pm – which I thought was a great service. How wrong I was.
I waited in all day Thursday, except it was still marked as ‘in the depot’ from 11.59am. When I called them at 6.30, customer services stated that the scanners weren’t working and that my item hadn’t left the depot that day. I was assured that my item would be delivered the next day.
I waited in all day Friday, only for the parcel to have left the depot and then to be marked back at the depot at 6pm. When I called and asked why this had happened, they said that the driver couldn’t find us and that there had been a problem when he put it into his sat nav. We have a very simple address and postcode that can be easily found by typing into google maps. Plus, no other delivery company has ever had any problems with finding us.
I also asked why the driver hadn’t called me if he hadn’t been able to find me – she said that the drivers only have their own phones and many don’t bother calling as they’d have to pay for the call themselves.
I was assured that my item would go out for delivery on Monday with new, more detailed delivery instructions.
I decided to do a little detective work and called the Wembley depot, which I presumed would be the depot for my delivery. I had never been told this by made.com or HDNL, and I have since been alternating between calling the depot and calling the main customer service line.
I waited in all day Monday, only for the item to be marked as ‘in the depot’ at 9.05pm. When I called customer services, again they said that the item would definitely come out the next day.
I waited in all day Tuesday, only for the item to be ‘in the depot’ again all day. When I called and asked to speak to a supervisor at HDNL, they said that all the monday deliveries had had to go out Tuesday due to the weather – whereas, it only started snowing on Tuesday in London and there hadn’t been any adverse conditions whatsoever on Monday.
I had by now got made.com involved, who couldn’t understand why they couldn’t find our address as “we can easily find you on google maps”. I emailed them even more detailed instructions on how to find us, and she assured me that she would make sure that HDNL got these new instructions.
I waited in all today (wednesday) and the parcel did go out on a delivery and I was given a set time – between 2.30-5.30pm. I’ve just called the Wembley depot again, and they advised me that it was a different driver and he couldn’t find us either. When I asked her why he hadn’t been able to find us on his sat nav, she replied that the drivers don’t have sat navs at all.
I’ve now been told that because the item has gone out twice, it won’t come out to me again. I’ve requested a re-delivery for tomorrow but I’m really losing all hope (and the will to live) with this ever arriving. The worst thing is, I’d already ordered another two items from Made.com, and I found out from HDNL that another package is due for delivery from Amazon, which is a christmas present.
I’m convinced that Home Delivery Network must be providing the cheapest delivery service for all of these companies – but at a price. With no mobiles, sat navs or any kind of project management when things do go wrong, it’s clear that the customer is the one left in the lurch here.
an attempt is basically logged by the driver. It can be traced by the management as a genuine attempt via longitude and latitude on scanners – if the driver has a working scanner or one thats switched on. Impossible to differentiate. Drivers are sent out with impossible delvery amounts, and Yodel will be a comany that swiftly gets a bad reputation. In the peak times, the greed of the company means that instead of looking after good people there is a revolving door of staff, treat like dirt. I really had hoped to have some sort of career with HDNL, but despite floggin my guts out and doin g everything asked, it was never going to happen. Managers are not managers, tehy are ex drivers. No training, no sturcture, just pot luck. A good driver gets a managers job??? Now its like me saying oh my mates a good dentise, let him do brain surgery.
I have had two major parcels delivered to me by HDN.
Both arrived late in the day when we were devoting shifts at sitting by the front door (after reading these horror stories). But they did arrive!
On both occasions the delivery men were courteous. I asked the second if he would get overtime for delivering as late as quarter to seven when (from tracking information) the van had been loaded at 08.28 am. He said he’d be just glad to keep his job.
Obviously overworked, but on time.
Home Delivery Network Limited puts Orders in peril!
Although I understand the problems the weather is having on timing of deliveries. I am very angry regarding the quality of the delivery of my Amazon order
Firstly, although I was up, I did not expect the driver to arrive earlier than 7am. But far more importantly I did not expect him to immediately hurl it over my very high gates, then shove a card stating that “we missed you today” half way through my letterbox (invisible from the inside)!! Then rush off without even knocking at the door once! If he had not been seen at the time it might still be there in the snow! I cannot understand how with footprints and the cctv evidence they are still trading like this!
I have always received good service from Amazon but this delivery has tainted my view. The order was “Only Fools and Horses full collection”-DVD’s Thrown above 8 feet and crashing onto hard ground. A Christmas present that could be damaged when opened!!! Also note the box had no protection and was open without any trace of tape!
When I pay for a product to be delivered I do not expect my order to be put in peril like this!
Yes HDNL have obviously stolen my book from Amazon. It says “delivered” on their tracking system at 12:37 today. I was in, the doorbell works and there is no book, no card, no neighbours have received it, it’s not been thrown over the back fence which is their usual tactic when they can’t be bothered to face it all.
So either:
1. Their tracking system is lying.
2. The driver has PODded it himself.
3. The driver has nicked it or lost it.
Place your bets.
Not like any of the couriers can read the book.
People who say that not all hdnl staff are useless have clearly not had that many deliverys from them. I am currently waiting for 8 parcels which were meant to arrive last monday. still no sign of them! today 3 of them were loaded on to the van and one was deliverd :S i rang to ask why as the driver said he didnt have anything else and went and checked. when i rang they told me the other 2 were on a different van and would be here some time tonight. i checked the website at 7 as i thought this was rather late and it said unable to deliver due to bad weather…. well the roads are clear i live off a main road so i dont understand how it was too bad to get to my house! i rang and asked and they said the driver was stuck somewhere so wouldnt be able to deliver my parcel untill tomorrow. i dont understand how the driver could be stuck as there has been no snow in england since friday night! it is an absolute joke!
apart from my latest bad experience i orderd some bedding a few weeks ago which cost £75.00 and found it behind a chair in my garden when i got it out it smelt foisty as though it had been sat out in the rain for days. before that i had a pair of henleys jeans costing £90.00 left on my door step! and numerous things just days late
HDNL driver left a card for me yesterday. Nothing filled in and nothing written on it. Item sent from Argos.
I spent all last night and all morning today trying to get through to them by phone and on their website, the details on therir card.
The website says that they can’t do anything about sorting out a re-delivery. As soon as the automated phone service finds out that you are calling about a non-delivery it gives out a standard starement and then cuts you off!
What kind of customer service is that?
Amazon continually seems to send some packages to me via HDNL and just about every time I have a problem with them. I look at the tracking details and it is constantly saying out for delivery then when I look in the evening it says retuned back to warehouse. Yes all the other better delivery companys parcel force and royal mail deliver in a timely fashion. Screw HDNL now, really pissing me off.
I ordered a Corsair PSU and Corsair RAM from Crescent Electronics on 1st December. Since then their near useless tracking system was showing “The parcel has been sorted at our hub”. So after a week I called Crescent and cancelled the order. Thought I would have better luck if I try Amazon coz i didn’t really think they would use these jokers to deliver. Imagine my shock when I saw that my order is dispatched and delivered by.. Yes, you got it! HDNL!!! And of course I didn’t receive anything. Once again it got stuck at Droitwich.
Here comes the best thing. When I complained on Facebook about their service in my status, I received a message from one of their drivers named Stephen Campbell who wrote: “if your parcel is urgent you can come to the depot to collect it instead of waiting in, and alot of people dont wait in so they would have to wait, if they inconvinence us. so grow up, or fuck off back to russia. we drivers see names like yours and decide nah you not getting your delivery today”
Made my day!
were not all tossers
i get paid to deliver non wet, non broken and 100% in good condition items.
i cant speak for other people who do my job,
but don’t tar us all with the same brush
I am still waiting for my parcel – over a week after it was ordered I had a card left, I wanted to contact them to get them to deliver it to my work instead but the service is “suspended” due to bad weather (which here in Northampton was pretty much a non event and ended before I even ordered it!) making them completley uncontactable. I doubt they will even try to redeliver !
amazon what a Joke, Sorry but i work for said company and you guys aint got a cue what it comes to good old amazon, Shitty boxes, No tape around them, labels falling of boxes, Miss spelled address, using the number (0) instead of the letter (o) in postcodes. We have to fix 30% of all orders before they leave a depot. Were not all bad people, We do try, but please we have muppits like YOU working for us, We try not to have temps but you know, somebody has to have the dosers
I ordered a Playstation from Amazon that was supposed to be delivered 15-dec-10. Waited in all day and night with no show only to be told someone from HDNL tried to deliver but got no answer and left at 9pm. I was in watching a liverpool Europa cup game all evening so thats a lie. Now its late friday night, no playstation, no idea where it is. even offered to go to the depot and pick it up but I’m not allowed to!
They cant tell me when they are going to deliver even though the depot is ten minutes from my house, I might not even get it this side of Xmas.
Useless company and so many people have complained about them, why dont Amazon get rid of them?
I take back my previous comments completely – the driver ttied daily to redliver it – 3 failed attempts before finding me in today (saturday). Couldn’t have tried harder really so they are not all bad!
Well, HDN have delivered 90% of the items ive ordered on time, ive never been carded and if out they have left the packages with my neighbours.The driver i have met has always been very polite, friendly and chatty. This work can be extremely trying (i know i was a foot delivery postie with Royal Mail for years, remaining positive around certain members of society can be bloody hard work , especially with a round of 943 houses to deliver to in pouring rain. The only time they failed to deliver was when i ordered a Christmas tree earlier this month and it hasnt appeared, so , its December and i,ll just go to the garden centre tomorrow. Their customer care could be better mind , the woman at the call centre …wouldnt want to meet her on a dark night
Home delivery network is a load of rubbish. Rubbish that needs to be frigging dumped! It’s the poooooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesssssssssssssssssttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt delivery network I’ve ever come across and is unsure why companies still use them
Absolute shower of f**kers.
Three times I’ve had deliveries through them, three times there have been issues.
The first time, it was a bag I bought online. I arrived home to my flat (number 1 in the block) to an HDNL card which stated my parcel had been left “at number 1.” I was confused, as obviously I’m flat number 1. I thought maybe they meant block number 1, so went from buzzer to buzzer in block 1, but to no avail. I asked the rest of the neighbours in my block too, again, no avail.
I emailed the company I’d ordered through, who said the bag had been signed for by someone with the surname Wood. Now, I don’t know any of my neighbours: I live in a block in the city centre, so I didn’t know who “Wood” was.
I told the company this, who said that as the parcel had been signed for, it was no longer their problem. Helpful!
Luckily, I work in a bank, and stumbled upon the very person I was looking for when she came in to open a bank account!! Turns out she lives at number 3. Nothing to do with number 1 at all.
My second issue was a few weeks ago, when I ordered through JohnLewis.com. John Lewis emailed me to say that the HDNL courier driver had been unable to deliver that day as I had been out, but had left a card. Fine by me. That is, until I got home, and there was no card left.
I emailed John Lewis back, who apologised and said that HDNL had definitely left a card, but they would get them to re-deliver.
Next day, same issue. HDNL claiming to have left a card, but no card at my door.
I phoned HDNL directly. They informed me they’d left 2 cards at number 23 (I live at block 9, flat 1) and that John Lewis must have given them the wrong information, but that I was welcome to come out to the depot and collect my parcel.
I did, but John Lewis were definitely holding the right information for me.
The latest issue is still rumbling on, and I’m actually ready to stab someone I’m so angry.
Ordered an item through RetroSweetHampers.co.uk on 10th December, who have been brilliant and emailed me constantly, always getting back to me and giving the HDNL tracking reference number.
The order sat with HDNL having been “sorted at their hub” for over a week (I understand it’s been snowy, but other couriers have managed to deliver to me, and I had taken the week off work especially in order to be in to receive the items), and then when my parcel finally made it to my local depot, I called the depot and explained that I’d been off work the previous week but was not going to be in now, so could I give an alternative delivery address or arrange collection?
The girl from HDNL said that although the parcel was showing as having arrived into the depot, it was “downstairs and had to be brought upstairs to be loaded onto a van”, and they’d try to deliver, and if I wasn’t in, they’d leave the parcel with a neighbour. (Presumably Wood, since she seems to be in during the days.)
Today, the status changed to “loaded onto van”, and I’ve spent the day in a state of excitement, tinged with dread over the hassle of trying to find which lucky neighbour had signed for my parcel this time.
However, I checked the status again at 5pm, and it had changed to “in depot”, so I assumed they had been unable to find a willing neighbour (where were you, Wood?) and called the depot to ask if I could come and pick it up after work. They said they closed at 6, and I’d have to phone in the morning so they could locate my parcel.
I agreed, and set my alarm for early o’clock, thinking I could almost get to the depot and back to work without being too late.
I checked the website again just to see if they’d updated the info, and to my horror saw that the parcel had been returned to the sender!! In floods of tears I phoned HDNL, who informed me that the company I’d ordered through had requested the parcel be returned to them, and there was nothing they could do, despite me saying this must be a mistake.
I got in contact with the company, who said that HDNL said they had been unable to find my address so had returned the parcel to them, and it was currently on its way back from Edinburgh to Lincolnshire.
So basically, HDNL have lied to me about the company requesting the parcel back. They lied to me about leaving their cards, but they have yet to throw a parcel over my fence. Maybe that’s a joy for another day…
I have had nightmare with HDNL over the past two months.
First was a parcle from Littlewoods which was just chucked into next doors garden.
then there was two parcels from Argos left in the rain in some bushes.
the lastest was a set of golf clubs which sat in their Maidstone depot for TWO WEEKS. They said they tried to deliver and was carded. LIES as I was in all day when they said they tried and no card was left. Since then i spent at leat 30 mins a day onto HDNL to try and get it delivered. They said they couldn’t find the parcel or it was on the van or it was on hold at customers request or my address didn’t excist.. Both myself and the supplier were on to them every day for two weeks. Finally i went to depot today and my parcle was in their offce. i wponder if someone was planning to take it home with them
I ordered a washing machine and a fridge/freezer and to
have them deliveried on 24th Dec taking time off to have them
deliveried…The company deliveried them on 23rd Dec while I was
out…Next delivery will be on 5th Jan which is no good…I told
the company to return back to sender…Do not use that comapny
anyone
There really is some rubbish on this blog! December is a
busy month, then you add snow, travel chaos, closed airports, and
more snow, then what happens? You lot moan because your deliveries
are late! Idiots.
cornishtiger what are you on about? Are you blaming HDN for
attempting a delivery earlier than you requested? Have you thought
that the company you ordered through didnt tell HDN you wanted a
nominated day? Not only that, but you moan because they didnt come
out on CHRISTMAS EVE. Jesus christ, the nerve of some people. Arent
delivery drivers allowed time off for christmas now then?
Matty how do you explain the lies i was told my HDNL including the one that I was carded. I was then told my address doesn’t exsist (the address has been here since at least 1890). They refused to deliver and wouldn’t give me a time. I finally went to depot and demanded my parcel or I’ll report it stole. Low and behold it was in the office, not the warehouse. Was someone planning to take my goods? It makes you think. It was relunctently handed over.
Kate do you seriously think they would be planning to steal
your parcel, just because it was in the office? Good god what
planet are you on?! As for your address not existing, was it 100%
correct on the parcel? Doesnt sound like it to me, even though Im
sure you will say it was! And the point you said about being
carded, well if the address was incorrect maybe the wrong address
was actually carded, and the driver wasent lying at all?! Sounds
plausable to me! I seriously doubt they refused to deliver your
parcel, more likely judging by your post you were demanding it
delivered there and then, which could never happen, and unless you
pay for a premium delivery, you wont have a delivery time, just a
day. And as for reporting your parcel as ‘stole’ (or stolen
perhaps)? Thats the funniest thing I have read all day!
Matty the address was 100% correct. I phoned the the customer services number (witch I was given by the company I bought the item from). I was told I couldn’t arrange re delivery for certain date and they would deliver ASAP. After a few days I phoned again. This time I was told the parcel was on hold at MY request which was a total lie as I needed that parcel ASAP. HDNL were in breasch of contract due to non-delivery. Both myself and the companyi bought the item from was told different stoies everytime HDNL were contacted. Explain that one!!!
This was not the first time I had problems with this bunch of idiots. They have either thrown parcels over next doors 6ft fence think I owned the garden or have left goods on my doorstep in full view a very busy road. If HDNL drivers had a brain cell they would be dangerous
Kate, just because the address was correct when you phoned, doesnt mean it was correct when the driver attempted delivery.
Alot of the time, unless you have a route like mine, that is rural with the same customers day in and day out, you cant know the address is wrong until you are on the road trying to deliver it.
If the address is wrong, then that night the office staff contact the client to update the address details.
HDN are not in breach of contract, because they attempted delivery.
Its not the drivers fault if the client (company ior person ordering) prints an incorrect lable, or writes the wrong address.
HDN is not obliged to try a second or third delivery attempt, but it will be sent out again when the route IS NOT TO BUSY. That is not ideal, because it leads to complaints from customers that either werent in on the delivery day THEY ARRANGED, or they/the company put incorrect address details on the item.
Example, today, I had a amazon box addressed to Mrs x, Bideford, devon
The bideford area covers 30 mile!! No doubt the customer will be blaming me for being a idiot moron hdn driver… even though I have no address to deliver it to!!
My depot does give the customer an ulternative day for delivery, but that isnt company policy, and tbh I dont understand why not?
Matty, HDNL did NOT attempt delivery as when the ‘customer services’ department checked they said that delivery was attempted at 20:34hrs. At that time I was in!!!!! HDNL were contracted to deliver a parcel. They did not do so. I call that breach of contract and so soes Trading Standards and some solictors I have spoken to.
There was no contact by HDNL attempted what so ever. I was LIED to by HDNL.
You haven’t tried to explain away why a package was thrown over a 6ft fence on one occasion and on another why another parcel was left on my doorstep in the pouring rain in full view of a mojor road!!!!!!
Kate, how do you know delivery was not attempted? If the wrong address or incorrect address was on the parcel then its likely the driver went to the wrong address, and if nobody was home, how would he know it was the wrong address?
I seriously doubt you have contacted trading standards (who dont exsist any more, they are called consumer watch) or any solicitors, and if you have, they would tell you the same, the delivery was attempted.
Its not the fault of HDN if the address was wrong on the parcel was it?
Ecconomy delivery means just that, cheap delivery, like tesco value… economy service means 1 attempt at delivery, between 8am – 9pm within 72hrs.
Theres also no right to a second delivery attempt free of charge, however it is normally offered.
If you want a better service, then pay for it. Its simple.
Regards parcels being left on your door step, or being dropped over a fence, obviously they should never be dropped over the fence.
Being left on a door step is another matter, it is agreed between HDN and the client (argos, amazon etc) that unless the parcel says POD it can be left on a doorstep if theres no answer.
It seems your not happy if its left on the door step, your not happy if the parcel delivery is being looked into (parcel in office) because you seem to think its about to be stolen, and your not happy if it isnt delivered!!!
Why do you order a parcel, then not be in to accept delivery?
The hdn left another card today, so my only hope of getting the package is a 1.5 hour round trip to the depot rather than a 5 minute journey to the post office. I wish amazon would stop sending me stuff via this company. I am not at home to receive the parcel because i go to work like most people. Yet again we are seeing more evidence as to why having a private postal service is a crap idea.