"Please call an hour before...."

I have for small customers that we have to make sure that there is somebody there. Some of these business have less then 10 employees with no night drop. I get at least 3 a week like that.

 

One thing that drives me nuts is appointments. Great, now I gotta plan my entire day around this drop off or pickup. I am not a TL carrier, I got lots of crap to do and little time to do it. What gets my blood pressure going is a nose-load of tires (180+). "Oh, we want those at 9 AM and you will unload them with two of our guys". Ummm.... I can spot that trailer at 9 AM, but I will be out and about working my 2nd/3rd trailer, otherwise I will be happy to show up at 4:45 PM when I am done with everything else. Sorry, not gonna burn up my prime time to kick tires

 

Don't you love those storage unit drops? I don't mind calling when people, you know, answer the phone, but it gets right up my nose when people demand that you call them 30min/1hr/6hrs in advance and then it goes right to voicemail. I'm not a freakin' answering service!!

 

My customers are really good about answering the phone. One guy usually has some excuse not to show up and tells me to let myself in by using a combo. Problem solved.

Residential deliveries are sometimes iffy. The crap they expect from us and the attitudes they bring because now they have to take an hour off of work to sign for their crap that they ordered.
Hot tubs are the worst out of all of them. They almost always want them in the back alley that is not paved and has low hanging powerlines.

 

And please fill it and make sure it's heated to 102 degrees before you leave.

 

Delivered some office furniture to a residential once and the guy was Pissed that I was by myself and wouldn't bring it down to his basement and set it up...Really!? He even called my barn and complained to the manager.

 

He knew I was a driver not a furniture delivery/setup guy, but I think he assumed it would be delivered/setup by the manufacturer.

 

I run terminal to termnal and most of the paperwork says to call 3-8 hours ahead. If I travel through the weekend, there would be no one to call so just deliver right when they open. There is one agent terminal though, they will call me 8 hours out then when I get there it is a new shift and the guy behind the glass will ask why I didn't call in. I explain someone called me and I said I would be here at this time. "Well you didn't talk to ME" and makes me sit out in the gravel lot over night.

Once I broke down coming into that place, a day late, they are calling freaking out where their freight is etc. once I got there they again made me sit out in the gravel lot overnight. I like to walk in in the morning and say to the new office crew that they forgot about me again, then they freak out because they need to serve their customers.