Secret Sales and Hermes

KatieDee

Hi everybody,

Back in November I purchased an item from Secret Sales. They are a website that takes orders and the dispatches once they have reached a certain number. My understanding is that the items are dispatched from a different supplier.

My email states the dispatch date was the 18th of December which was fine as I know Hermes tend to deliver relatively quickly once the item has been collected. However, I received an email on the 11th stating the item had been dispatched and to expect it before the 18th. However, the tracking has been stuck on this ever since the 14th:


Date Time Status
12/12/2015 09:14 Awaiting Courier Receipt
12/12/2015 05:24 Manifested to Courier
12/12/2015 01:29 Processed at Depot
12/12/2015 01:25 Receipt at Depot
11/12/2015 21:59 Hub Sorter Receipt Scan
11/12/2015 21:59 Missing Pre-Advice

I'm a bit concerned now because there is absolutely no way I could afford this item without getting the great deal I got, plus it's a gift for my partner so I don't have too long to find a replacement.

Secret Sales haven't been fantastic (although they're probably dealing with a lot of calls at the moment!) but have said they will chase it up with Hermes which takes up to 48 hours.

Anybody had anything like this and ended up with it being resolved or should I just have a cry and buy a back up present

robatwork

They seem pretty active on twitter and facebook so a nudge there may help?

Never used them but they seem genuine, even mentioned on the main site here. If you have to cry, catch the tears in a saucepan and use them to cook the sprouts.

KatieDee

robatwork wrote: »

They seem pretty active on twitter and facebook so a nudge there may help?

Never used them but they seem genuine, even mentioned on the main site here. If you have to cry, catch the tears in a saucepan and use them to cook the sprouts.

The perfect money saving solution...I won't have to use any extra salt!

Thanks for the heads up - I'm not much of a tweeter but will have a look into it I suppose I'm just looking for people who have seen similar and ended up with the item!

ThumbRemote

At a guess it's got lost at the depot. It arrived there and was scanned at 01:29. It was then assigned to a courier (I think in Hermes speak a courier is specifically the person who delivers to the final recipient) at 05:24, but has never actually been scanned as received by that courier.

KatieDee

ThumbRemote wrote: »

At a guess it's got lost at the depot. It arrived there and was scanned at 01:29. It was then assigned to a courier (I think in Hermes speak a courier is specifically the person who delivers to the final recipient) at 05:24, but has never actually been scanned as received by that courier.

If something goes missing in the depot, does it tend to turn up again or is it lost in the great abyss?

I don't even mind waiting longer for it, I just don't want it to be written off if possible!

paddyrg

I've seen the shambles that is MyHermes couriers (last step in the chain) loading up tired private cars on an icy forecourt early in the morning at the Frome depot. If everyone is honest, it should show up again, although being paid somewhere in the ballpark of 40p/delivery including wear and tear on the car, fuel, time and insurance it might be tempting for someone to keep it. Hopefully they'll find it and get it to you pronto.

Otherwise, it's actually up to the sender to remedy the situation, they chose the courier and have that contract.

dacouch

paddyrg wrote: »

I've seen the shambles that is MyHermes couriers (last step in the chain) loading up tired private cars on an icy forecourt early in the morning at the Frome depot. If everyone is honest, it should show up again, although being paid somewhere in the ballpark of 40p/delivery including wear and tear on the car, fuel, time and insurance it might be tempting for someone to keep it. Hopefully they'll find it and get it to you pronto.

Otherwise, it's actually up to the sender to remedy the situation, they chose the courier and have that contract.

My friend delivers for Hermes and receives a fair amount more than the figure you quote.

He's making £1300 a week at the moment and would normally make (Non Xmas) about £600 a week.

It always amuses him when people assume they all steal stuff, they work hard and make good money. There's no need for them to steal stuff and if they did it would soon become apparent and they would lose their lucrative job.

As with any job, no doubt there are wrong 'un's but they don't last long plus the stuff they deliver is mainly clothes so not attractive to a thieve unless they had an ebay account selling female clothes

JReacher1

dacouch wrote: »

My friend delivers for Hermes and receives a fair amount more than the figure you quote.

He's making £1300 a week at the moment and would normally make (Non Xmas) about £600 a week.

It always amuses him when people assume they all steal stuff, they work hard and make good money. There's no need for them to steal stuff and if they did it would soon become apparent and they would lose their lucrative job.

As with any job, no doubt there are wrong 'un's but they don't last long plus the stuff they deliver is mainly clothes so not attractive to a thieve unless they had an ebay account selling female clothes

Hermes pay 48p a parcel. If your friend is earning £1300 a week then he is delivering around 400 parcels a day. So either your friend is working very long hours or he is lying to you about how much he earns.

paddyrg

dacouch wrote: »

My friend delivers for Hermes and receives a fair amount more than the figure you quote.

He's making £1300 a week at the moment and would normally make (Non Xmas) about £600 a week.

It always amuses him when people assume they all steal stuff, they work hard and make good money. There's no need for them to steal stuff and if they did it would soon become apparent and they would lose their lucrative job.

As with any job, no doubt there are wrong 'un's but they don't last long plus the stuff they deliver is mainly clothes so not attractive to a thieve unless they had an ebay account selling female clothes

Oh I am certainly not accusing them as all being thieves, I'm saying I've seen the circus at one depot and how it would be easy for that package to go missing, and once out of the tracked system any rum types might be tempted.

Looking at your friend's figures though, £600/week is gross of vehicle depreciation, fuel, etc., so it's not a straightforward comparison with someone earning that as a salary. Sounds like they have a great route if they are able to do 200 parcels a day. They must have quite a large, reliable vehicle, so that's all good for them, but not necessarily the universal experience.

If it's 48p/item, allowing for expenses let's say 40p/item, then you need to deliver 15 items an hour to make minimum wage, average one every 4 minutes. That might be easier in a dense urban area with multiple drops on one street than anywhere even slightly remote.

Great to hear they're happy though Sounds like they've worked out how to enjoy the best of the system.

dacouch

paddyrg wrote: »

Oh I am certainly not accusing them as all being thieves, I'm saying I've seen the circus at one depot and how it would be easy for that package to go missing, and once out of the tracked system any rum types might be tempted.

Looking at your friend's figures though, £600/week is gross of vehicle depreciation, fuel, etc., so it's not a straightforward comparison with someone earning that as a salary. Sounds like they have a great route if they are able to do 200 parcels a day. They must have quite a large, reliable vehicle, so that's all good for them, but not necessarily the universal experience.

If it's 48p/item, allowing for expenses let's say 40p/item, then you need to deliver 15 items an hour to make minimum wage, average one every 4 minutes. That might be easier in a dense urban area with multiple drops on one street than anywhere even slightly remote.

Great to hear they're happy though Sounds like they've worked out how to enjoy the best of the system.

My friend works for a largish contractor in London on a PAYE basis and in effect receives just over 50p a parcel. He receives a considerably higher amount per parcel at weekends to encourage him to work at weekends.

The (Modern) vehicle is provided by the employer at no cost to him as part of his employment at no cost to him.

It's such a good rub another friend was looking into going into it and asked me to cast my eye over it.

He's genuinely on PAYE and receives holiday pay (All be it at minimum wage).

The Xmas wage is high due to the increased volume, he was working 12/14 hour days 5 days a week and 6 hours each on Saturday and Sunday.

The normal wage (Non xmas) is based on 8 / 9 hours a day in the week days and 6 hours on a Saturday.

Hermes may well pay 40p per parcel to some drivers and need them to provide their own car, but this does not apply to all of their drivers as the contractor he works for has approaching 100 drivers.

He says he works very hard for the money and it's not a job most people can do but he likes it and earns very good money. My other friend is joining up in Spring