It’s Time to Get Rid of Broad Time Slots for Delivery Drop-Offs
“Your designated drop-off time will be between 8 a.m. and 11:15 a.m.”
If you have ever ordered something that required a delivery drop-off, you are all too familiar with this sentence.
What happens if they don’t show up at that designated time? As I wait for my new couch to arrive well after the designated time, I have come to hate the “window” policy of drop-off times that some businesses choose to do. Is there a logical explanation for this or is there a better way to do business? I’m going to need help with this one.
My fiancé and I ordered a new couch in November. We were told by the company that it would not be ready until February, and we understood. That’s not unheard of when it comes to furniture orders.
February came and went, and we were told it would arrive in March.
The first two weeks of March came and went, and we finally received word that the couch would be arriving on Friday morning between 8 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. We decided to call and ask for a different pick-up time, seeing as how those hours are very much in the midst of a typical workday. This is where I began to get frustrated.
We were told that we are unable to pick our time frame because they have a “system in place” of how they load the delivery truck.
When we asked why the time frame is so large, we were told that there is no way to predict how long each drop-off will be, and therefore they are unable to provide a more exact time.
Today, we were told it would arrive by 11:15 a.m. As of this writing, it is now 3:15 p.m.
I am not one to complain to customer service because I like to give people the benefit of the doubt, but in this circumstance, I am at a loss. How can you expect a person to sit at home all day, during a workday no less? Not to mention, we have waited four months for the arrival.
Is this standard for furniture deliveries or is this a sign of bad business? Asking for a friend.