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UPS scrambled on Thursday to deliver packages that had failed to arrive in time for Christmas as the No. 1 U.S. ground delivery service sought to limit the fallout from the delays.
The lag in deliveries – which triggered intense criticism on social media – could encourage eCommerce companies, like online retail giant Amazon, to spread their shipping contracts across more companies to lower risk.
Amazon.com Inc. is offering refunds on shipping charges and $20 gift cards after Atlanta-based United Parcel Service Inc. said overwhelming volume left it unable to deliver some packages by Christmas.
Customers angry over delayed deliveries of packages ordered through Amazon and other retailers complained via Twitter and Facebook. Some said UPS’ decision to stick to its schedule of no Christmas deliveries was unacceptable. (UPS said Christmas Eve that drivers would not work December 25, but that the company’s Louisville hub would work Wednesday night to sort packages so that they could be delivered the day after Christmas).
People without power and packages on Christmas could only gripe through cyberspace, but companies are trying to make amends for disrupted service.
Social media exploded on Christmas with complaints about UPS and FedEx from customers furious about empty spots under their trees.
Most complaints were directed at UPS, which issued statements on Christmas Eve and again on Christmas Day acknowledging that the company was overwhelmed by unexpected volume and some packages were delayed until after the holiday.
“This has been the worst Christmas ever,” said Larry Ledet, 55, of Houston, who has been a UPS driver for 27 years. He made 337 stops and delivered 505 packages Monday.
Bloomberg’s Paul Sweeney discusses UPS’ heavy Christmas volume and holiday shopping numbers on Bloomberg Television’s “Bloomberg Surveillance.”