Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

[ehenry]

I know there are WAAAY better things to vent/rant about but this is a paper I subscribe to and pay for home delivery service. I've been a subscriber for 30+ years and have seen delivery folks come and go and generally most of them deliver the paper on or berfore the subscribed time which is by 6 a.m. on weekdays and 7 on weekends.

The delivery person we have now is consistently late ie: 3 to 4 times a week and we're lucky if we get the paper by 8:30 or 9 on the weekends. If we get the paper at all. I've called and emailed the paper several times and have always been told my account would be credited but that hasn't happened because there is a draft on my bank account for it and I see I haven't been credited.

Well, today after the 3rd email this week I finally got a response from someone who apologized and said they weren't the area manager for me but would look in to the issue. I told her that I understand that things happen...presses break, trucks that deliver to the pickup points break down and that delivery people's vehicles shoot craps. I told them that this has been an ongoing issue for several months now and I would give them another month. If if was not corrected by the end of October that I would be canceling my subscription.

The cost of the subscription went up considerably last month and they also started charging to view the papers website. This is a the Clarion Ledger out of Jackson, MS. Which was bought up by the Gannett conglomeration some time ago. When the paper was owned and put out by the Headerman family in Jackson I had absolutely no complaints.

Am just being a crotchety old fart or is there anyone else that feels my pain?

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

What is this newspaper thing that you speak of?

And yes, if you still get an actual paper newspaper then you are a crotchety old fart

WHole system has gone downhill since they stopped having 10 year olds on bikes delivering the paper.

 

[Water_God32]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

That sounds pretty lame to me, I feel the same way about verizon wireless. I have been a customer for 20 years there and they have always been a great company to work with. Now they are going to take away our cell plan and make us switch to one were we have to pay for all of the data used. Great way to treat loyal customers of 20 years.

 

[JB]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

I think you probably qualify for license to crotch, ehenry. It is one of the benefits of aging that we can gripe when we do not get what we expect and pay for.

BTW, I note that you share a birthdate with my father and one grandbuddy. That makes you special in my book.

 

[r.j.dawg]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

I feel for you Henry. I had the exact same problem so I just switched to their online edition and problem solved. The paper is always on time and available for me anytime I want it. Cheaper too, only 5 loonies a month.

 

[ehenry]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

BOY HOWDY ! ! ! JB says I qualify for a license to "Crotch" ! ! ! That has made my day ! ! !

JB, one day I'm going to be coming remotely close to "The Hideout" and I'm going to swing by to meet, greet and shake your hand !

Tell your grandbuddy us goats have to stick together.

 

[aspeck]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

I too feel your pain ... signed up for the paper's wireless subscription which was to run concurrent with the delivery subscription and they cut me short by 8 months and never did anything about it. Saturday morning is an early edition and to be in the box before 8. I leave on Saturday's at 8:45 and it has been over a year since I left with the paper. Weekday issues are to be delivered before 5pm. I can get the paper out of the box pulling in the driveway between 5:15 and 5:45 about 3 times a week. The other 2 times it comes well after 6. Frustrating, do say the least.

I am about to dump my local paper also ...

 

[rbh]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

At least it was'nt a kid whipping it into the yard with the sprinkler going.

 

[ehenry]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

Thats correct, Bubba ! ! I just had 178 acres of those things called trees cut down, sawed up, ground up, hauled off to the mill, stumps dug up and pressed for turpentine just so I could have my paper ! Gotta bear in mind though I do recyle ! I use the paper to mulch the garden, start the charcoal, beat the dawg when need be, swat assorted varmints, make hats......too many other uses to name!

 

[ajgraz]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

The other day, my daughter wanted to make something out of paper-maiche. I told her to use some old newspapers. She said, "what, you mean, like, print it out?"

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

They still deliver newspapers?

 

[carguy001]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

we had something like this happen with our local paper, we had it delivered just on Sundays only and it was like 15.00 every 3 months, then the paper company desided to jack the price up to 32.00 every 3 months, we called them and ask them why. the paper company said due to raising cost of the things they had make the adjustment and they would not lower the price, so we canceled the service. 2 days later the paper company calls us wanting our business bad and would give us the Sunday paper for .99 per week. WOW thought they had to make adjustments........

 

[StickyWidget]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

I have been in the circulation department of a newspaper for six years. It is my job to find and "supervise" carriers. I also deal with complaints from subscribers.

My one wish as that each subscriber have to go with the carrier who delivers their route each day for a week. I think they would not call in complaints as often after walking a mile in the carriers shoes.

Most newspapers are seven day a week publications with early morning delivery. Carriers must provide their own substitutes in any event they can't deliver (And I mean ANY reason, in the hospital?, got in a wreck? Doesn't matter find your own sub) If you don't deliver your could be charged fees that are over five times what the route makes in one day.

Most carriers have to give one month notice before they end their contract, good luck getting a new job when your bound to a contract that requires 30 or more days notice to end it without penalty.

A lot of walking routes make less than $100 a month. Even if a route only took a half hour (Good luck finding a 30min route) to deliver that's a little over $6.60 an hour. Would you even roll out of bed every single night for such little money?

Driving routes make more money but expenses add up very fast. Risk greatly increases on driving routes as well. Most newspaper tubes are mounted next to the mailboxes or driveways of the subscribers. The US Mail typically uses right hand drive vehicles so that they can deliver out of the driver side of the vehicle and go with traffic. I have yet to find a carrier that delivers out of the right side of the car which means that they deliver facing traffic on the wrong side of the road. -Yikes!-

The typical Sunday delivery creates a whole different set of problems in both weight and volume. A 100 paper route on most days you could carry all in a carrier bag, on Sunday you'd be lucky to get a third of them in, which means walking parts of your route two and three times. I have seen many a motor carrier check clearance on their vehicle after loading on a Sunday to see if their tires can move.

Given the conditions under which a lot of newspaper carriers deliver in you can imagine newspapers don't generally have applicants beating down the doors to deliver. The character of the ones that do can often be questionable. When ever I have a carrier that didn't show up when expected there are two calls made, the first to the county jail, the second to the hospital.

The next time you call the newspaper ask them how much the route makes a month and how long does it takes to deliver, you might just be a little more forgiving to the person who delivers to you each and every day.

I apologize for my lengthy response but I thought it would be a help to see the other side of the situation.

 

[mscher]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

I drive to work about 4am (Indiana) and see the rural newspaper delivery making their "rounds".

Deliver a paper, drive a mile, deliver another paper, turn on a cross road, drive a half mile, deliver another paper, turn around and come back, to the same road, turn an drive another mile, deliver a paper. They pass probably fifty non subscribing houses, just in the short time I see them.

Hard to imagine why newspapers are going out of business and cannot get reliable rural route drivers.

Printed newspapers, will become a thing of the past, sooner, than later.

 

[mommicked]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

I helped 2 friends deliver papers to make some money back in the day. Most were tossed into the driveways/yards, after folding-rubberbanding-plastic bagging them all. Some were stuck in mailboxes, others wanted it on their front porch. We did it in the morning and late afternoons and were fast w the driver chuckin em out one side and I ridin shotgun out the other in the suburbs. I remember dogs would chase us up and down the road. One time my big 260lb. buddy had to dive in the window of the Ranch Wagon when a big, mean dog chased him while returning from putting one on a doorstep!! I never saw a big guy move like that before or since!! We wagered 25cents on tossing them from the moving car onto some of the porches, and making it in the driveway and not slide into the grass ( 5 cent penalty ). Tossing one into the bushes, ditch etc. meant a 25cent penalty and a stop to retrive it and put in in the driveway. Good times.

 

[BlkY2k]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

Saturdays paper was in the bushes unwrapped, pouring rain. There goes the tv guide for the week. Sundays came wrapped, dry, and 6" from the center of the door. Nice shot kid, Thanks

 

[aspeck]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

I apologize for my lengthy response but I thought it would be a help to see the other side of the situation.

Hey Sticky, I get what you are saying, and that is why I call the paper and not the delivery person. It is the PAPER'S responsibility to get the paper to me in a timely fashion. I pay the paper to do this service. I do not pay the carrier. If the paper is offering a service, and they can't find qualified people, maybe they need to adjust their hiring practices and compensation plans.

I have some friends who are carriers and have told them to find another line of work as they are under appreciated and over worked.

 

[204 Escape]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

StickyWidget is EXACTLY right !!!! Both of my sons worked a local paper route. The pay was NOT GOOD. We would in the winter time drive the boys around, because it was cheaper than doctor bills for colds, etc. We tried to teach our boys that it was a BUSINESS, and that they were the CONTRACTOR ALL of the papers were put on the porch. Some by request was put in other places. However, you could tell the ones who appreciated their service at the end of the year, by the "tips" around Christmas time. (Tips are just that t i p s. It is a gratuity extended for services rendered).

We get just the Sunday paper. The carrier, is a friend of mine. EVERY Christmas we give him a fairly generous tip. Because we KNOW what he goes through !!!!! (One year he got stuck in a snow drift about 4 a.m. in the morning. I pulled him out, and took him a thermos full of hot coffe. He offered to pay me. I refused!! I had always told him if he needed anything to call, and he did.

 

[ehenry]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

Thanks Aspeck.

I feel for everyone involved. The carrier and the paper. I hate that the hours for the carrier suck and I hate that the paper doesnt pay the carrier enough. The way I see it though is, its the papers responsibility to give me the service I subscribe to and if the the carrier can not hold up to the terms of the contract that they signed, the paper needs to terminate the contract and get someone who can.

Stickywidget makes good points and I understand them but it doesnt change the fact that its a service I pay for and am not getting what I paid for. This has been an on going problem for several months. Not just a week or two. I'm fairly certain if one of Stickywidgets carriers was performing the way my carrier is he would make an adjustment.

 

[mommicked]

Re: Newspaper Delivery Vent/Rant........

I don't get the paper but others around do. The carrier is on time mostly around 4:30/5 am. I know this because he/she drives a tuner car w a very loud sounding muffler or lack of one and you can hear them winding through the gears from about 1/2 mile away. I assume it helps them from hitting the abundant deer population, driving in the early morning darkness, by scareing them away from the road!