RESOLVED: I was trying to avoid posting this - General jointer damaged by ???

[Bruce Page]

Do I understand this correctly? Whenever we take delivery of a piece of machinery we are to uncrate and perform a complete inspection? Do the trucking companies really want this? I bet it took 45 min. to uncrate my MM bandsaw. I can’t imagine the trucker standing around for 45 min watching me do this.

I think Old Dim is trying to pull a fast one.

[Ted Miller]

Do I understand this correctly? Whenever we take delivery of a piece of machinery we are to uncrate and perform a complete inspection? Do the trucking companies really want this?

It does not matter what the trucking company or the hourly driver says or does, if he wants you to accept the item he will wait. Once you sign the bill of lading its now your responsibility and the trucking company is off the hook for claims unless noted on the lading.

I have over 20 years managing a warehouse for a community college and I see damaged freight on a daily basis. 15% of my small delivery drivers, DHL, UPS, Fed-x Home, Fed-x Ground are damaged. Fed-x Express maybe 1% will be damaged and believe it or not USPS maybe 1%. Freight carriers its in the range of 60%, yup 60% of the freight I see is damaged. Out of the 60% of freight its 30% the manufacturers bad packing and not properly securing items the way they should be.

I check in everything on this campus from cadavers to robots. The other day a $270,000.00 CNC machine came in and yes the driver helped me uncrate and inspect the item to make sure nothing was damaged. I bet he was here for 25 minutes.

Once you sign the lading its your unless otherwise noted. Never REFUSE any shipment then you have nothing to bargain with against the vendor IF it is damaged or if there is missing items.

When you are ready to sign the bill of lading always sign and print your name, add the piece count and date near your name. make sure you have a copy of the bill of lading. If you see any damage to the crate, box, pallet, wrap, etc you mark it down. if you hear any noise in the package mark it down. You have every right to open and inspect anything you sign for. Any claims must be filed with the VENDOR not the freight company within a few days. It is not your responsibility to deal with the frieght company. You are the consignee not the shipper. I will often mark down "subject to inspection" if the packaging is pristine but I hear noises inside even if I look inside and see no damage. I also write down "subject to piece count" if the bill of lading has tons of small pieces like hundreds of items. Always look at what the lading has for count. It may say pallet count and piece count. Then sign for what exactly you see, pallets or pieces or both or write any remark you feel is neccesary.

I sign for 3-7 million dollars worth of freight each and every year. Every damaged item I deal with gets handled 100%. I know claims adjusters on first name basis and the best protection for damaged freight is pictures. Remember freight claims companies are third parties and they have no interest in ripping you off. My digital camera is ready on my desk waiting for a truck to show up and that one thing always wins when it comes to the claim, pictures.

Always remember that freight companies do not make money on the deliveries only the pick ups. Deliveries just waste money on fuel and drivers wages.

Just because the driver handles this truck all day he is only incharge of getting the freight off his truck by 2:30pm so he can begin his pick ups. You are incharge of the package since you paid for it so do what you need to do to settled your mind that everything is correct before he leaves.

Now drivers DO NOT have to help you move the product and place it in your shop. If the bill is prepaid FOB that means the driver will help unload from his trailer but thats it. Some compnies have a 50 ft. rule on how far they will move items from their trailer. Also weight is a major concern if the driver will help you unload. If you did not ask for liftgate delivery and your item weighs in over 300 lbs on a regular trailer then good luck getting the driver to help you by hand.

Attitudes go far when it comes to drivers and receivers. I can tell how a drivers attitude will be towards me by the way he drives up to my whse and the way he walks even before he speaks one word to me. They can have some serious chips on their shoulders and if they give you any lip about anything, then tell him to leave and DO NOT SIGN for anything but copy down the pro number from the package. Trust me he will be back with a smile on his face since he does not want to work around your item in his trailer when doing pick ups. Or if you like call his dispatch and tell them what you think about that particular driver.

CYA and DTA are words to live by when dealing with freight...

[Ted Miller]

Geez, Forgot to add in my long winded blowhart post that the items I see damaged in this thread look to have been done prior to packaging. If the outer packing material was in pristine shape then the vendor is at fault here.

Consealed damaged happens all the time but this case it looks to be the vendors fault IMO.

Not one time in my life have I seen a freight company repack a damaged item they damaged. Yes I see clear tape on many things that drivers use to fix a box that is open. But recrate something, no way...