Who's the wo/man I should be talking to in FedEx?

May 12, 2006 9:40 AM

FedEx Help - - I did a driving course online and I need the documentation in my hot little hands before I go to the judge on monday. I paid for next day and should have received it yesterday.

But I left a PO Box as the mailing address, they called and we changed it to a street address (I should have been told prior that they don't ship to PO Boxes, but - anyways)-- so no harm no foul -- I would receive it by 5pm today.

BUT - they (the driving school )screwed up and sent it second day (yesterday the 12th) so that means according to FedEx tracking system that it would arrive to me on Monday before 4:30pm. Great.

So I called the traffic school, many, many, many times and got them to change it so it would be delivered on saturday. But I being the smart little man that I am called Fedex to confirm this and looked it up on tracking -- nothing had changed! Still scheduled for delivery on Monday. I called FedEx and they said it's very hard to change the delivery date of something midshipment. (I'm really pissed at the driving school now.)

Who do I call besides customer service (they've been as helpful as they can) to make sure it gets delivered to me tomorrow? Is there a special person in fedex who listens to this kind of thing and can help me? Is there a super customer service god of FedEx?

posted by bigmusic to travel & transportation (16 comments total)

Fax machine delivers documents at the speed of light.
posted by jellicle at 9:44 AM on May 12, 2006

Unfortunately, a fax is not considered valid by the court for this and I don't think it could be faxed either, -- they are printed inside those little carbon copy envelopes.
posted by bigmusic at 9:49 AM on May 12, 2006

Why can't the driving school send you another copy of the records overnight?
posted by joannemerriam at 9:52 AM on May 12, 2006

Has the package made its way near your delivery address? There's a reasonable chance that it will arrive at your local FedEx depot by the weekend and you can beg your way in to pick it up.

Alternately, it should *definitely* be at the local depot early Monday morning. Again, beg your way into the place and snag it before it gets put on the truck for delivery and high-tail it to court.
posted by baltimore at 9:52 AM on May 12, 2006

The package is still in midair, and I don't know where it's next stop will be.
posted by bigmusic at 9:55 AM on May 12, 2006

Hmmm. I was just a poorly trained Kinko's peon, but for what it's worth, the FedEx training propaganda is full of Purple Promise go the extra mile crap, so if you're tenacious, you'll probably run into someone who can help. Call 1-800-GoFedex and explain exactly how urgent this is to you. (Everyone says their package is urgent, so you need to let them know that it's a legal document.) They should at least be able to tell you exactly where the package is right now. Ask for them to transfer you to that location or to the driver's cell if it's on a truck.
posted by Skwirl at 9:56 AM on May 12, 2006

joannemerriam: Why can't the driving school send you another copy of the records overnight?

The certificates are accountable to the state -- they are numbered and serialized. etc. They are controlled documents, the school just can't give them out willy-nilly. Each certificate is registered with the state and only the state can make approved copies.
posted by bigmusic at 9:57 AM on May 12, 2006

The package is still in midair, and I don't know where it's next stop will be.

IANAFedexGuy, but I was under the impression that FedEx does its flying overnight. So it's likely to be somewhere on the ground.

More importantly, once you get a helpful person on the line as Skwirl suggests above, Fedex should be able to tell you exactly the route and timeline of that package, from its departure, to delivery. This will help you determine whether (or more likely, how) you can intercept the package once it's within driving range of its final destination.
posted by baltimore at 10:16 AM on May 12, 2006

bigmusic - check your email.
posted by Carbolic at 10:17 AM on May 12, 2006

Failing all this, couldn't you just request a postponement?
posted by baltimore at 10:18 AM on May 12, 2006

In case you cannot get the fedEx on time: find out the certificate number and see if the driving school can fax you a copy of the certificate or a letter saying they put certificate of completion #xxxx in FedEx envelope, tracking number, to Address on Date at Time. Print out all your FedEx tracking documents and make a log of all your phone attempts to change delivery. Throw yourself on the mercy of the court on Monday; the judge may not care, but in case s/he does you have amply documented why a continuance is not just a stalling tactic.
posted by crush-onastick at 10:20 AM on May 12, 2006

If you can prove your efforts to satisfy the courts requirements were not met due to another party failing to make good on promises, I am willing to bet the judge will adjourn the trial for a while. I've seen (had) adjournments for much more piddly things than that. I guess it's up to the judge, though, perhaps you'll meet Mr. Hardass.
posted by shepd at 10:21 AM on May 12, 2006

If you can't get the FedEx in time, get the fax. Yes, I know you said it's not the same. But judges are people, and they understand that sometimes shit happens. If you come in with an explanation, the FedEx tracking number, and a fax of the doc, the worst that could happen will be something not very bad.

Make sure the judge knows you're doing your best, and that's all you can do.
posted by kingjoeshmoe at 10:36 AM on May 12, 2006

It's really dependent on where the package is now. On occasion you can change transit time mid-shipment. Often though it's difficult to do due to short transit times. I've found that we're able to change transit time maybe 70% of the time.

Give the online info time to be updated. It doesn't change instantly.
posted by DieHipsterDie at 12:12 PM on May 12, 2006

I followed everyone's advice and documented everything to show to the judge to ask for an extension. I decided to bite the bullet and just go see the judge today and hope he was lenient.

I just got back from seeing the judge about an hour ago, and he didn't ask for an excuse or anything. He gave me until June to get it all to him. So I guess I was worrying about nothing. Thanks everyone for your concern and advice.
posted by bigmusic at 2:40 PM on May 12, 2006

99% the judge will postpone if you tell him the package is on the way.
posted by delmoi at 10:45 PM on May 12, 2006