Hello, I just wanted to express my sincere apology to "K" for the delivery problems she had experienced with us. I would blame Fed Ex 100%, and the reason I do blame Fed Ex is because we do have some serious troubles with their delivery at times, but we have taken every precaution we know of. We put a sticker on every box that we ship Fed Ex that says "If you have problems delivering this package please call 1-888-833-7738 for further instructions" or something to that effect. Suppose you live in Texas, and the package got there in 4 days... Supposedly, they will send you a post card - or contact you by phone, and hold the package for 7 days waiting for your instruction, then it will be returned to us. We won't find out about it until it comes back to us. Keep in mind, we also have "your" phone number on the label too. It really stinks that this company can be so inefficient about deliveries, and what is totally unfair is that in 90% of the country, Fed Ex has made their ground product excellent! - But for whatever reason, some parts of the US are seriously inefficient, and SOME people within their network are not doing their jobs. The AIR product on the other hand, is 99.9% perfect - one of the best shipping methods available to anyone today. So why do we use Fed Ex? In order to keep the "Free Shipping" policy, we have to go with the most economical carrier. In some parts of the USA, UPS is cheaper for us, Fed Ex for others, and for some packages, US Priority Mail is the chosen method. Fed Ex as a company has always treated us well in the past. We also have many customers that "swear" by Fed Ex Ground, and love their Fed Ex drivers, and we hear the same about UPS. So we want to offer both carriers... How do we decide how we ship your "Free Shipping" Package?... We have a shipping system that queries every shipping carrier and picks the best rate. Because of the shipping problems, last year we started an option where you can pick between UPS and Fed Ex for $0.99. Some customers want the ability to pick their shipping method, but we need to ship at the lowest possible cost to maintain a free shipping policy. We initiated the $0.99 charge to select your delivery method because generally when our system picks Fed Ex over UPS or vice versa, the average savings to us is about $0.75-$1.25. It may not seem like we should care for a dollar, but multiply $1.00 by 200-500 packages per day... One dollar we can save on a package is a huge savings. We currently have 18 Full Time employees with benefits, and another 8 Part Time employees. Every year, health insurance, unemployment, liability, Workman's Comp, shipping costs, and product prices have risen, and for this, we have to raise our prices occasionally. Free Shipping is something that we believe EVERYONE should be entitled to, from every company - so I will always do whatever I can to maintain this policy. I know this is a very long, drawn out explanation, but as a consumer myself, I always hate it when companies institute policies, and never take the time to explain them. I will respond privately to any questions you may have, please write me at [log in to unmask] Thank You, Joe Palko NEEPS, Inc. The Ferret Store +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Joe Palko - NEEPS, Inc. http://www.theferretstore.com The Ferret Store Phone: 1-800-440-3356 Ext. 9201 Fax: 1-888-329-8384 / (570) 208-1948 We're More Than Just Ferrets! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ [Posted in FML issue 3507]