United Package Smashers

UPS Flight 382 Nearly Collides with Small Plane at MIA

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating a near miss at Miami International Airport (MIA) involving a UPS 757 and a small turbo prop. The planes came within 4,000 feet of each other in what could have been a head on collision. The news media may be guilty of sensationalizing this a little bit - 4,000 feet is only 1,280 feet short of a mile - which seems a reasonable distance for planes to be apart from each other on a runway.

Posted in Accidents, All Items, Safety | No Comments »

FBI, Secret Service, Others Raid UPS Contractor

A breaking news story in Tennessee tells us that several government agencies have raided a UPS trucking contractor, Swift Transportation in Memphis, TN. Information is sketchy, but according to reports documents and computers were sized in the raid.

Posted in All Items, Crime & Security, UPS Trucks | 2 Comments »

FedEx Employee Arrested While Stealing from UPS Truck

Now this doesn’t happen every day. A guy walking around with a pay stub in his pocket from UPS rival FedEx was recently arrested on a tip from a citizen as he broke into UPS trucks to steal packages with an accomplice. Apparently, one acted as the lookout while the other one pulled off the heist while the driver was away from his truck making a delivery.

Posted in All Items, Caught in the Act, Competitors, Crime & Security, FedEx, Package Abuse, Profits, UPS Drivers, UPS Trucks | No Comments »

Thives Follow UPS Truck, Stealing Packages

Three thieves were arrested after they followed a United Parcel Service truck and stole boxes left at homes in New Dorp. Igor Roshko, 20, Simon Berman, 18, and Artur Velichko, 18, were in a car tailing the UPS truck at around 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, sources said. After the UPS worker left boxes on doorsteps and drove off, the suspects swiped the items, which included clothing and shoes, a spokesman for DA Daniel Donovan said.

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UPS Benefits from Recent Supreme Court Decision

UPS - and smokers - benefit from a recent Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) decision in Howe v. New Hampshire Motor Transport. The case started when Maine enacted a law prohibiting companies like UPS from delivering tobacco products to anyone and then provided for penalties against companies that do so. The package delivery companies argued it’s not their job to enforce the whims of state legislators. SCOTUS correctly found that it is the federal government that gets to regulate interstate commerce and not the states.

While the states usually cite a desire to prevent today’s increasingly internet savvy kids from ordering smokes online and avoiding age requirements, the law is more often than not more about ensuring that smokers don’t evade state taxes on cigarettes, which can vary greatly from state to state. States that have very high cigarette taxes (New York, Maine) tend to have lots of laws about bringing smokes in from other states, designed to keep people from getting smokes in the deep south where they are much cheaper.

Posted in All Items, Crime & Security, Services | No Comments »

UPS to Speed Up Ground Services in 8 States

United Parcel Service (UPS) said it is accelerating ground package movements between more than 12 million ZIP code pairings by one day or more starting this week. These improvements include lanes originating in eight states (Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Montana, North Dakota, western Nebraska and Wyoming) and more than 70 markets, speeding up more than 75,000 packages nationwide every day. “Accelerated ground service means customers can get to market faster, turn inventory quicker and improve customer service,” said Alan Gershenhorn, senior vp-worldwide sales & marketing for UPS. “It’s how we’re continually helping companies of all sizes to conduct business more efficiently.”

Posted in All Items, Delays, Services, Volume | 1 Comment »

Missing a UPS Parcel? Maybe it Burned Up.

If your package stopped showing tracking activity in Illinois, you might want to call UPS and ask them if they’ll at least return the ashes. A trailer full of parcels caught on fire while parked at a UPS terminal in Hodkins, IL, according to a news report. There is no estimate on how many parcels may have been effected or how the fire started.

Posted in Accidents, All Items, Package Abuse, Safety | No Comments »

UPS: Don’t Ship Your Pot With Us

Five people shipped 330 pounds of pot and the occasional cocaine shipment through United Parcel Service using drop off n’ ship stores, according to a report. Apparently, UPS detected the shipment and contacted the police, who setup various raids and stings to capture the five suspects, only to have them miss their court dates after a bondsman posted bail. UPS declined to say how they caught onto the illicit dealings, saying, with UPS Spokeswoman Kristen Petrella saying “We don’t discuss our security procedures because that tends to make them counter productive,” Petrella said. “But we do have security measures in place.”, she added.

Posted in All Items, Caught in the Act, Crime & Security, Safety, UPS Drivers, UPS Store & MBE | No Comments »

DHL CEO Klaus Zumwinkel Under Investigation for Tax Evasion

UPS and FedEx (to a lesser extent - having just dealt with its own tax issues) must really be singing a merry little tune at what looks like the beginning of the end for competitor DHL. German prosecutors are looking into whether or not DHL CEO Klaus Zumwinkel cheated on his taxes. This is not a good time for DHL, which has lost its monopoly on the domestic postal system and is in the middle of a major self-examination of strategy. It is reportedly considering selling is US-based DHL service to FedEx as well as looking at possibly dumping its German banking subsidiary.

Consumers - on the other hand - have little to sing about because the end of DHL would also mean the end of meaningful competition in the industry. DHL, while failing to turn a profit - is serving a purpose in the market. It makes the other two - Fedex and DHL - earn their customers. History has shown us that for an industry to be truly competitive, three players are needed and right now, DHL is that third player in the parcel delivery business.

• When your primary choices were between Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Netscape’s Navigator, most people who are not computer illiterate would tell you that neither option was very attractive.
• When it was just between FedEx and UPS, most would agree that services were higher and less efficient. Thanks to competition, packages are delivered much quicker now than they used to be. Some places used to be 10 day destinations for UPS, but those days are long gone.
• Sports card collectors have often moaned about the fact that two main companies - Upper Deck and Topps - control nearly all trading cards made today. When a plan for these two companies to merge came forward, a huge uproar ensued. Thankfully, that idea never got off the grounds.

Competition is a dish best served in three courses. A third competitor - especially one like DHL - whose entire business plan is based on low prices and no frills - will help to ensure that UPS and FedEx don’t run over consumers or their packages with outlandish rates and shoddy business practices - at least not too much more than they already do.

Posted in All Items, Competitors, Crime & Security, DHL, FedEx, Profits, USPS | 9 Comments »

Couple Arrested for Stealing Packages Dressed as UPS Drivers

A former United Parcel Service worker and a companion were arrested on suspicion of stealing parcels from numerous San Rafael homes while dressed as UPS couriers, police said.

“A witness said they thought it was suspicious that someone dressed as a UPS driver was walking away with a package,” said San Rafael police Detective Todd Berringer. “Without ringing the doorbell.” Mari Lynne McClennan, 37, and Sabrina Mamie Ugenti, 24, were booked in Marin County Jail late Wednesday after their arrest on Grand Avenue in San Rafael. Their vehicle was stopped by San Rafael police after a resident called in a tip that two women in UPS uniforms were taking parcels from outside homes in the Glenwood and Peacock Gap neighborhoods.

Posted in All Items, Caught in the Act, Crime & Security, Package Abuse | No Comments »