Proper Labeling of your package is a MUST!

[WtGreg]

Alot of people send out packages marked "perishable" and not "live harmless reptile." I always have had mixed feeling about this, of which I started typing a gripe-message but don't want this to be a griping thread.... Anyways, here is why better labeling is, um, well, better!

I have never had a DOA, nor a package get off track, but this week I had a fear of a DOA when the package got sent off track. Luckily no DOA, but definitely a, shall we say, "adventure" getting it fixed.
I have the same method usually for shipping: Label and setup box, package the snake and get dimensions and weight, from a email asking the customer to cross-verify address I copy and paste (not type) the info into fedex. If nothing else, copying into it means if the info was incorrect, it was the customer's fault when they cross checked it.

So two things happened in this. One is I debated even marking it Live Harmless Reptile and was thinking maybe this time I would leave that label off. I decided that since I have always done it the one way, and Fedex asked that I label it that way, I would not change it. GLAD I LEFT IT, wait to see why....

The copy-pasting thing....ummm, ya, I did for all fields except zipcode. I typed this in manually.

So to get to it: the package is out and the next morning I get an email: "exception, wrong address." I am trying to call Fedex when suddenly they call me. They explain that I had a dyslexic moment and flipped two numbers in the zip code, putting it in the wrong part of C.O. and it was too far for customer to drive to pick up the package. The lady on the phone was super helpful and nice as she was a self proclaimed animal lover and when they saw that they were going to leave a package marked with a live animal in it in the 100 degree warehouse, she got concerned and took it upon herself to pursue fixing the problem... unfortunately there was indeed a big problem.

What she told me was that packages labeled for Adult Signature Required were required by policy to be sent back to the shipper. So not only was the snake going to cook, it would make it back to GA. She stated she felt this was too much for the snake and I agreed. While I drove across town and faxed authorization to her to change the address, she went through a few of her higher-ups to be allowed to forward the package rather than do the normal policy of returning the package.... at this point she didn't even know if they would allow her to change it.

She was going above and beyond just for my one package!

I called her after the faxed authorization and explained the best temp to keep the package in and she said she knew a perfect spot until it went back out that evening. There were some issues the next morning where the package was not set to be delivered before 10:30 and the adult signature requirement was removed, but in the end the package got to the customer and the snake was fine.

Lesson 1: don't just double check your address, triple check. I flipped 1 number and double checked and still didn't catch it.

Lesson 2: Properly label! properly label!!! If not for that one label, this would have played out with a heat exhausted snake or a DOA since they would have ignored the package.


Here's to Proper Labeling!!

And Here's to Casey at Fedex who saved the day by simply reading a label and showing concern about my snake!