09/05/2023
I could spend more time on this than it makes sense to, so I'll try to keep it simple. Form your own opinion about the service received/not received from FedEx when a driver damaged our new lawn:
In April 2023, I invested in having major landscaping work done and 28 pallets of sod installed.
· April 27, FedEx delivered a package to my house while we were not home.
· Upon getting home, I noticed significant tracks in my lawn next to the driveway. I looked at my security video footage and it showed a Fedex driver as responsible.
General facts from that day:
· Grounds were wet from the rain.
· When pulling into my driveway, the driver swung wide and drove over the new sod. (our driveway is wide enough that this is merely poor driving being demonstrated)
· At its widest part the tire was about 18-24” off of the driveway. The tires created significant ruts requiring leveling work.
· Soon after the incident we reached out to Fedex via phone within a few days. We told Fedex that we had a video showing that the driver was responsible. FedEx opened a claim/case.
· May 1, a Fedex rep emailed us requesting a copy of the video.
· May 2, we responded to email with the attached two images of the damage and video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZOKUceb2Jc of the Fedex truck driving wide off the driveway. (the end of the video clearly shows the new damage)
· Soon after sending the email, Fedex told us via a phone conversation that another company by the name of Gallagher Bassett would be handling the claim moving forward.
· May 3, GB rep emails us kindly requesting video and photo evidence.
· At this point, my wife believed she had replied with the info (which had already been sent and confirmed as received by the Fedex rep). Admittedly, it turns out that her email was never delivered.
· As of May 15, we hadn’t heard back from GB and sent what we believed to be a follow up email. This email contained the images, a link to the video (both had been received by Fedex on May 2) and a copy of the repair estimate from the sod company we’d used for the landscaping and sod work.
The repair estimate read (minus irrelevant and personal info):
“Overview: For this job project we are replacing sod that was run over by fedex
truck at the address mentioned above. Sod will be taken up and the area will be
re-graded. New pieces of sod will be brought in and layed back down. Price for this
is $350.00”
· May 16 @ 3:00PM, GB rep emailed:
“Can you please provide me with your claim number?”
· May 17 @11:40AM, GB rep emailed:
“I am not able to look up your claim by name nor email. Please provide your claim number. I am not able to view the video sent.”
(The link we’d emailed the rep was to a video hosted on my business youtube channel. I personally uploaded it. Before sharing the video link with the Fedex rep on May 2 and the GB rep on May 15, I personally verified that the unlisted video would play for anyone having a direct link. Fedex didn’t appear to have any issues with the link we’d sent.)
· May 17, we replied to above email with the claim #.
· May 18, we email the GB rep:
“Hopefully you're able to view the video with this link. [link]”
· The next time we emailed the rep was on July 7. Between May 18 and July 7, we made multiple attempts to reach the rep via phone to get an update. Admittedly, I haven’t gone back and searched our phone records to have an exact count of attempts we made (although I could if that actual figure mattered). Best guess was 6 or 7 attempts were made in this month and a half span. Each call ended with my wife leaving a voicemail requesting an update.
· Early in July, my wife called a general office number (found in the rep’s email signature) and was directed to speak with someone else. After calling this rep a number of times without success, we sent an email.
· July 7, we email the new GB rep:
“I left you a voicemail but thought I'd also try to reach out to you through email.
I have been waiting to hear back from [first rep’s name] since May 17 regarding our claim. I have emailed her all of the requested information, left voicemails, and follow up emails. Is this something you could help me with?”
· Within 20 minutes, we received a reply from the new GB rep:
“I was forwarded your email from my coworker. Your claim is still being investigated. Upon completion of the investigation and liability decision has been established, I will reach out to you. If you need immediate assistance, please contact your insurance provider.”
· In mid-August, we received the attached letter from Gallagher Bassett on behalf of Fedex, denying our claim. The letter was signed by the first Gallagher Bassett rep we spoke with.
At this point, FedEx, via their representative company Gallagher Bassett, has blown a lot of our time and energy only to deny what is clearly damage caused by a Fedex driver. Simply put, this is exceedingly poor business practice from start to finish. Feel free to form your own opinion on the situation and express what you think of Fedex the next time you need to ship a package somewhere.