In the digital age, online shopping has become an integral part of our lives. The convenience of ordering products and having them delivered to our doorstep is a luxury many of us enjoy. However, what happens when this convenience turns into a perplexing situation?
One man’s recent experience with a logistics firm has left him both bewildered and frustrated.
According to Lianhe Zaobao, Mr. Zhang Yuanyu, an online store owner, ordered 14 bags of clothes that weighed more than 1300kg from Taobao, a popular online marketplace based in China.
He paid a hefty S$600 for delivery services to his door, expecting his purchase to arrive at his doorstep in Singapore.
A Bump in the Road
On the day of the scheduled delivery, Mr. Zhang received an unexpected text message from Ocean Pearl, the logistics company responsible for the shipment.
They requested a change in the delivery date, proposing the 30th of September instead. Curiously, no reasons were given for this change.
To make matters worse, they informed Mr. Zhang that if he couldn’t receive the goods on that date, they would have to charge him an additional $75.60 as storage fee.
This sudden change of plans left Mr. Zhang in a predicament, as he had taken leave from work specifically to await the delivery.
He refused to accept the change, demanding that the clothes be delivered as initially agreed on the 29th of September.
Unpleasant Surprises
Ocean Pearl then relented and agreed to deliver the clothes on the 29th of September. However, another unpleasant surprise awaited him.
He received a message stating that the goods couldn’t be moved upstairs, with the logistics company claiming they were “too heavy” and could not fit in the lift.
Instead, they suggested leaving the bags at the void deck, and they mentioned having already informed China about this decision.
A Disheartened Customer
Naturally, Mr. Zhang was disheartened by this turn of events. After all, he had paid a substantial amount to have his goods sent to his home.
He said that when he previously made similarly huge orders, the goods would be sent to his doorstep without fail.
Taking Matters Into His Own Hands
Ultimately, Mr. Zhang and his wife had to take matters into their own hands. They were left with no choice but to bring the bags home themselves.
Because each of the bags was too heavy to be carried up to their home, the couple had to open up the bags and bring the goods back little by little, with the process taking them almost 3 hours.
Mr. Zhang is now contemplating lodging a formal complaint with the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) regarding the logistics company’s conduct.
Ocean Pearl responds
Ocean Pearl responded to the incident and said that they had informed Mr Zhang that they couldn’t bring the bags up to him because they were too heavy.
They added that 10 out of the 14 bags weighed about 180kg each, and they were worried about their employees injuring themselves.
They also highlighted how they were worried the lift could handle the weight of the goods.
The company also added that when they informed the customer about it, he allegedly reacted with a bad attitude towards them.
They eventually left the shipment at the void deck because they had no other choice.