Fedex charged me over 500 bucks (Canadian) to ship from California to Vancouver

[implmex]

Good morning All:
This is a cautionary tale about blithely ordering overnight air freight on ANYTHING.
Before you do it FIND OUT HOW MUCH.
I did not and man did I ever pay.

Two boxes from Vista California to Vancouver Canada...Overnight Air Standard.
The bigger box is 18" x 18" x 12" and weighs about 15 lb.

How much could it possibly cost ???
A LOT!!! five hundred ninety dollars and I was an utter idiot not to ask first.
If I'd known I would have shipped it Fedex Ground and saved hundreds.
I didn't NEED it fast but I knew my Fedex Air account number but would have had to dig a bit to find my Fedex Ground account number.

I saw the credit card charge on my Fedex account this morning and almost flipped a gasket.

But it's my own damned fault...I didn't bother and now I've paid the price for my laziness.

A word to the wise and all that!

Cheers

Marcus
Implant Mechanix • Design & Innovation > HOME
Vancouver Wire EDM -- Wire EDM Machining

 

[Garwood]

That sounds better than I'd expect it to be.

I've paid $850 to ship Miami to Portland early AM. I did ask the price before I paid it though.

 

[Milland]

Ouch!

And now you have me wondering how our fearless leader is doing with his (what was it, $4500?) charge from F*ckEx over a cheating buyer reneging on their paying the tab.

 

[Terry Keeley]

Any chance it was delayed (due to Covid, lol) and didn't get to you as guaranteed?

If so you could get your money back...

 

[implmex]

Hi Terry:
Nah, it came right when it was expected.
It was my mistake...it was obviously my mistake and I just have to be a big boy and eat it.
These humbling experiences help keep me honest...after all, where would we be without a bit of crow on our plates from time to time.

Cheers

Marcus
Implant Mechanix • Design & Innovation > HOME
Vancouver Wire EDM -- Wire EDM Machining

 

[EmGo]

Any chance it was delayed (due to Covid, lol) and didn't get to you as guaranteed?

Mailed something to White Rock a while back - I could walk there in ten minutes - took a month. Have heard other horror stories about mail to Canada. Not sure what is going on ?

 

[CITIZEN F16]

Pre Covid it was obvious shipping rates doubled in the last 10-15 years, Covid has kicked them up more. I don't do overnights anymore, but I used to 15 years ago. I figured $15 a pound on average, so I figured that would be around $30 a pound now. With a little Covid bump, the OP's price sounds normal these days. Lessen learned, if in doubt get shipping quotes before shipping, hope it was a high margin item.

 

[Terry Keeley]

Mailed something to White Rock a while back - I could walk there in ten minutes - took a month. Have heard other horror stories about mail to Canada. Not sure what is going on ?

Been waiting 4 weeks now for a small package from Germany via DHL, shipper called and was told it's taking at least 20 business days for overseas shipments.

This is "DHL Express" or the Deutsche post variant, I've had good luck with DHL's courier service.

 

[boosted]

Perhaps the mistake was choosing overnight service? Standard FedEx Express is typically 2-3 days by air, and a lot cheaper.

If something must ship ground, we try to use UPS. IME FedEx Ground has a much lower on time percentage.

 

[moonlight machine]

When I was selling Ferrari refueling systems in Europe some teams just sent a courier with 4 big suitcases. Cheaper to buy a round trip ticket than pay shipping!

 

[mjk]

Most of my business shipments go out billed to the customers account.
ANYTIME I have to pay the bill I get at least an online quote and print it out if there's real money involved.
Started selling "orphan" musical drums that were usually in 18 x 18 x 16 boxes
FedUp prices have jumped in the last couple years
The high shipping cost discouraged a lot of long distance sales

 

[bob]

Try netparcel.com for international shipping very substantial savings. Sent 12 lbs to Denver for $25 Canadian went UPS
Bob

 

[Mcgyver]

I'd expand that to include any trucking. I recently had the party sending it get a quote to truck a skid from BC to Toronto. $290. great, liked the quote, sender drops it off at the depot ship collect to my account. The bill arrives 1500. WTF!? When I called they said "oh, we didn't realize you'd gotten a quote first (because it was in buddy's name), no problem, we'll change the invoice.

As in, if you don't get a quote, we've gotcha and the price will be 5x higher

 

[EPAIII]

Anyone with a bit of a volume can easily get discounted shipping rates. My former employer always had anywhere from a dozen to a hundred or more small items to ship each weekday and often a bunch on Saturdays. The shipping companies would call on our shipping clerk and compete for our business. They all had their scales and computers lined up on a bench in her shipping room and she could just move a box from one to the next until she got the best rate. And yes, many of those shipments were overnight, often with AM delivery. Nothing ever went out any slower than two day.

If you have any volume at all in your shipping, do call the sales departments and ask for their best rates. Call several shipping companies, not just one. Play them against each other, with discretion, of course. And, if you are in the US, DO include the USPS. If you are not in a hurry, they are often the least expensive - but NOT ALWAYS. You just have to ask.

Another way to save on shipping costs if insurance. If you ship expensive items insurance can cost a lot when purchased from the shipping companies. They see it as just another profit stream. Talk to your insurance company to see if items lost or damaged in shipment can be covered as part of your business insurance package. This can save a lot if you ship items that cost many hundreds or thousands of dollars.

 

[Mr.Green]

Probably US to Canada is the cost. I just overnight a decent size package from a parts supplier for 40 bucks, about 15 pounds of forklift parts.

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