UPDATE: FedEx wins. Package Found. 1 1

[Phill the Governor]

Hey everyone,

UPDATE:

In an unbelievable turn of events, after talking with a FedEx higher up, a coordinate search began and the package was found inside the lobby (behind the locked front door) of a nearby building.

I really must commend FedEx as they've been very receptive in the past, and now with this.

 

Edited August 8, 2022 by Phill the Governor

[mtracy64]

I recently had a similar experience with Fedex. I made the calls as you did, and was surprised when my package magically showed up in my apartment lobby a few days later. I don't know whether the Fedex driver or a neighbor originally absconded with the package, but somebody either grew a conscience or had management breathing down their neck. I certainly hope your situation has the same happy ending.

[Buzzetta]

On 8/5/2022 at 5:31 PM, Phill the Governor said:

Hey everyone,

Bad news art day. I was ready to put this piece up on my wall today, not start a thread here.

I live in Queens, NY. Heritage shipped me a package with a piece of art won in a weekly auction. Since my account is in good standings, as a courtesy they sent out my winnings despite the invoice not having been paid yet. The unfortunate thing is they shipped it FedEx without signature required. I realized this a few days ago and kept up with the tracking updates expecting it to arrive this morning/afternoon. Around 11:45am I checked the tracking and it said "11:26am Delivered - Left at front door. Signature Service not requested." The FedEx driver did not ring my apt, they just left the package. Immediately went down to my lobby... and there was nothing there. I immediately called Fedex and filed a claim, and a report for the driver since they did not buzz my apt. Then I called Heritage to update them on the status of the stolen package.

While I always tell anyone shipping me to use signature required for this very reason, 10 years of living here and this is the first time it's happened. To be clear, all day there have been other packages sitting in the main lobby, past the door you need to unlock. Seems almost definite that this is one of those people following delivery drivers and taking packages as soon as they are left.

So...

Inside the package was one piece: The Walking Dead 105 pg 22 by Charlie Adlard. I'm hoping the person who stole the package is dumb enough to try and sell the art online or talk to some auction house. My biggest fear is they throw it away or destroy it not knowing what it is. Adlard pencil/ink pages are very easy to damage because he used water soluble inks that come off/ smear with finger oils.

The best I can do myself is periodically checking ebay hoping it pops up. I'd think Facebook marketplace would be the other best place to check but I'm not too familiar with it.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

Fed Ex is the worst here on Long Island the Queens - Brooklyn Metro area. 

My advice would be to reach out immediately to a couple of more local comic stores like Royal Collectables who have the money to buy something like that if it walks in off the street to give them a heads up.    MAYBE... maybe consider filing a police report as well. 

 

[Krismusic]

Sorry that your artwork is lost I do hope you recover it. Best wishes!

[Tnexus]

It's pretty unlikely it was stolen within 15 minutes. Chances are it was misdelivered to a different address. If they scanned it delivered at the doorstep, they should have it geotagged.

I'd suggest checking other buildings with similar numbers to your address if you haven't already.

[Buzzetta]

On 8/7/2022 at 5:51 PM, Tnexus said:

It's pretty unlikely it was stolen within 15 minutes. Chances are it was misdelivered to a different address. If they scanned it delivered at the doorstep, they should have it geotagged.

I'd suggest checking other buildings with similar numbers to your address if you haven't already.

Actuallllllyyyyyyy.

There are cars that follow Fed Ex trucks around looking to see if they leave packages on people's doorsteps. 

I have ring doorbell videos of vans opening their doors at one end of a block and people get out checking unlocked car doors only to jump back into the van with anything they can find at the end of the block.   They did not stumble upon an unlocked car, they are going after them.  The same is true with porch pirating. 

Never underestimate what goes on.  I don't advocate people being paranoid, but people do follow the trucks around to get what they leave at people's doorsteps.  In many cases porch pirating is not a crime of opportunity but one that is well planned and executed. 

Edited August 7, 2022 by Buzzetta

[theCapraAegagrus]

FedEx is garbage and I will never willingly use their service ever again. I had 3 packages "delivered" in 2022 that never made it to me. In 1 instance, they claimed to have delivered it while I was home, never using the buzzer in any attempt to contact me. I lived in a community that had a package delivery center if the carrier could not access the building, and they are required to use it if they cannot enter the building (which they have keys to...).

I suspect that companies are beginning to get frustrated by non-delivered packages, too, as the people who sent the 1 package mentioned above have been reluctant to refund me my ~$110.

[Phill the Governor]

On 8/7/2022 at 5:51 PM, Tnexus said:

It's pretty unlikely it was stolen within 15 minutes. Chances are it was misdelivered to a different address. If they scanned it delivered at the doorstep, they should have it geotagged.

I'd suggest checking other buildings with similar numbers to your address if you haven't already.

Unfortunately there has been a problem in my area (although it appears this is nation wide?) with packages being taken.

 

On 8/7/2022 at 6:16 PM, Buzzetta said:

The same is true with porch pirating.

This. This is why I make sure to have signature required because it eliminates any issues. Heritage should never had shipped out a collectible of value w/o it.

I just spoke with a FedEx manager who talked to me about the driver, and apologized that it was left and my apt was not buzzed. Which was nice, but it doesn't alleviate the missing art.

Hopefully Heritage won't try to strong arm me and force me to pay for a piece of art that is now not in my possession. However, I think that it may complicate filing a police report? Sort of stuck between a rock and a hard place unless the piece of human filth that stole the package is stupid enough to try and sell the art somewhere that it will be noticed.

[Buzzetta]

On 8/8/2022 at 10:26 AM, Phill the Governor said:

Unfortunately there has been a problem in my area (although it appears this is nation wide?) with packages being taken.

 

This. This is why I make sure to have signature required because it eliminates any issues. Heritage should never had shipped out a collectible of value w/o it.

I just spoke with a FedEx manager who talked to me about the driver, and apologized that it was left and my apt was not buzzed. Which was nice, but it doesn't alleviate the missing art.

Hopefully Heritage won't try to strong arm me and force me to pay for a piece of art that is now not in my possession. However, I think that it may complicate filing a police report? Sort of stuck between a rock and a hard place unless the piece of human filth that stole the package is stupid enough to try and sell the art somewhere that it will be noticed.

It depends on the route you want to go.

Back in January my Uber account was pirated.  They do not have a customer service department you can call but you can get in touch over twitter or through email.  Going by my credit card I had noticed that multiple rides had been taken across various states on the same day.  Rides in NYC, Chicago, Atlanta and others were all taken.

When I went into the Uber app and reading through the messages, I surmised that someone used my email address to go on twitter and say that they were locked out of the account.  I don't know what other information they had but brain dead customer service gained access and changed the email. (I should have received but never got an alert that this was done so who knows if customer service did it from their end.)

When I called my credit card company they did an investigation, refused to pay Uber and credited my account.   Uber in turn has locked me out of the account until I pay them for those rides.   I severed my relationship with Uber.  Oh well... Haven't needed to use them since last December anyway and there is always Lyft. 

 

Why tell this story.  I saw what you paid for the piece.  Hey, I was curious as it was a nice page.   The thing is you might be severing your relationship with Heritage.  In order to file a police report you have to show that you were actually impacted by the theft / missing package.   You have to demonstrate loss.  If you pay then it is your loss and you file a police report.  If you do not pay, then Heritage has been impacted and they demonstrate loss.  They have insurance for this but you might be severing your relationship with them. 

I would also monitor your financials to see if they auto-paid themselves. 

[Phill the Governor]

On 8/8/2022 at 10:52 AM, Buzzetta said:

It depends on the route you want to go.

I saw what you paid for the piece.  Hey, I was curious as it was a nice page.   The thing is you might be severing your relationship with Heritage.  In order to file a police report you have to show that you were actually impacted by the theft / missing package.   You have to demonstrate loss.  If you pay then it is your loss and you file a police report.  If you do not pay, then Heritage has been impacted and they demonstrate loss.  They have insurance for this but you might be severing your relationship with them. 

I would also monitor your financials to see if they auto-paid themselves. 

Yeah, the real crappy thing is that:

1. the piece was for my long term personal collection. I've been collecting TWD art for over 11 years now, and have been patiently waiting for a Negan & Lucille page at an affordable price.

2. It is definitely worth multiples more than I paid. From other comparable pages at Heritage/ having intimate knowledge of private sales, I had a 2.5-3k +/- value on it.

My loss, as far as I'm concerned, is far more than the price of the piece. It's worth far more than was paid, and I already had a frame ready to put it in and hang on my wall for the long haul.

I'm going to call Heritage tomorrow/ once the FedEx case is closed. I suppose it's on them to see what will happen. I'll pay the invoice before severing ties with them since I do a good amount of business with them, and will do more going forward. But this experience certainly puts a bad taste in my mouth because it never should have happened.

[Buzzetta]

On 8/8/2022 at 11:33 AM, Phill the Governor said:

Yeah, the real crappy thing is that:

1. the piece was for my long term personal collection. I've been collecting TWD art for over 11 years now, and have been patiently waiting for a Negan & Lucille page at an affordable price.

2. It is definitely worth multiples more than I paid. From other comparable pages at Heritage/ having intimate knowledge of private sales, I had a 2.5-3k +/- value on it.

My loss, as far as I'm concerned, is far more than the price of the piece. It's worth far more than was paid, and I already had a frame ready to put it in and hang on my wall for the long haul.

I'm going to call Heritage tomorrow/ once the FedEx case is closed. I suppose it's on them to see what will happen. I'll pay the invoice before severing ties with them since I do a good amount of business with them, and will do more going forward. But this experience certainly puts a bad taste in my mouth because it never should have happened.

When Fed Ex signed for and delivered my Superman 3 CGC 6.0 with some resto to the wrong house, I had already paid for it.  Even with that they also contacted Fed Ex to see what is up.  (I eventually got the book due to a good samaritan not Fed Ex). Calling Heritage is also a good idea since they can talk to someone higher up on the food chain than you or I would. 

Out of curiosity was it en route to you from the city area or from the Bethpage / Old Grumman hub?  

Lotta problems coming from the Bethpage / Old Grumman hub. 

Edited August 8, 2022 by Buzzetta

[Phill the Governor]

UPDATE:

Package found!

Updated first post.

On 8/7/2022 at 5:51 PM, Tnexus said:

It's pretty unlikely it was stolen within 15 minutes. Chances are it was misdelivered to a different address. If they scanned it delivered at the doorstep, they should have it geotagged.

I'd suggest checking other buildings with similar numbers to your address if you haven't already.

 

I was about 99% sure it was stolen upon delivery as there are documented instances of non-signature req. packages being taken that way in my neighborhood. But, to my surprise you were correct!

On 8/5/2022 at 6:27 PM, mtracy64 said:

I recently had a similar experience with Fedex. I made the calls as you did, and was surprised when my package magically showed up in my apartment lobby a few days later. I don't know whether the Fedex driver or a neighbor originally absconded with the package, but somebody either grew a conscience or had management breathing down their neck. I certainly hope your situation has the same happy ending.

There's no way to know exactly what happened, but the calls helped and great advice.

[ADAMANTIUM]

On 8/8/2022 at 11:26 AM, Phill the Governor said:

UPDATE:

Package found!

Updated first post.

 

I was about 99% sure it was stolen upon delivery as there are documented instances of non-signature req. packages being taken that way in my neighborhood. But, to my surprise you were correct!

There's no way to know exactly what happened, but the calls helped and great advice.

 so it is in hand? or just found, to the 1st post!  

[ADAMANTIUM]

On 8/5/2022 at 4:31 PM, Phill the Governor said:

Hey everyone,

UPDATE:

In an unbelievable turn of events, after talking with a FedEx higher up, a coordinate search began and the package was found inside the lobby (behind the locked front door) of a nearby building.

I really must commend FedEx as they've been very receptive in the past, and now with this.

 

 

[Krismusic]

Glad u found ur package 

[Phill the Governor]

Piece is in hand.

 

It's luck that the people in the building lobby it had been delivered to didn't decide to just take it. I am also grateful to the FedEx employees for putting in the time to find it, redeliver, and the other manager calling me soon after to confirm it was found and in my possession.

I was not aware that Heritage had my account set to "packages under 1k value sent non-signature required" until this happened so lesson learned from a unlikely fortunate turn of events. I'd like to think I'm not one to jump to conclusions but under the circumstances the chances were greater it was stolen not misdelivered so starting the thread soon after it happened seemed like a good idea to get the word out quick if worst case did happen.

Edited August 8, 2022 by Phill the Governor
spelling

[rexinnih]

Great to hear. Enjoy your, now in possession, latest addition to the collection. 

[lizards2]

On 8/8/2022 at 10:22 AM, Phill the Governor said:

Piece is in hand.

[Ares]

On 8/8/2022 at 1:22 PM, Phill the Governor said:

Piece is in hand.

 

It's luck that the people in the building lobby it had been delivered to didn't decide to just take it. I am also grateful to the FedEx employees for putting in the time to find it, redeliver, and the other manager calling me soon after to confirm it was found and in my possession.

I was not aware that Heritage had my account set to "packages under 1k value sent non-signature required" until this happened so lesson learned from a unlikely fortunate turn of events. I'd like to think I'm not one to jump to conclusions but under the circumstances the chances were greater it was stolen not misdelivered so starting the thread soon after it happened seemed like a good idea to get the word out quick if worst case did happen.

how did FedEx explain how it was sent to wrong address

[Phill the Governor]

On 8/8/2022 at 5:29 PM, Ares said:

how did FedEx explain how it was sent to wrong address

The delivery guy came back and redelivered it. He apologized and said he was rushing and it was safely in the lobby (past the locked front door) of the joined building next door. Then I hugged him took the package and was on my way.

So he got a hug whether his intentions were good or not. If it's what happened he'll feel good because I'm genuinely appreciative of the effort to track it back down. If he had nefarious intentions, that hug was incredibly awkward for him. Either way, persistence and kindness prevailed.