We used a courier company called MyHermes to deliver 14 items which we had soldon ebay in November last year. The parcels included 4 items which, though not massively fragile were breakable - a ceramic basin, a vintage bakelite radio, some art deco wall lights and some ceramic door knobs. They were all wrapped well in several layers of bubblewrap and marked as “Fragile”.

We were subsequently informed by the buyers that all four were not just broken but smashed almost beyond recognition. I find it difficult to believe that such damage was not done maliciously.

As I began preparing claims for the broken items, I discovered that within the small print (which I doubt many people ever read), was a long list of items which were excluded from any claim for breakages. This included anything made of glass or ceramics. The small print also states that, no matter what the value of the item, MyHermes will only compensate you £25 unless you have bought special insurance.

I do not think it unreasonable to expect a courier company to make every effort to transport all items with care and without mishap, though one has to accept that occasionally accidents do happen.

For every item that was breakable to be broken is to my mind a demonstration of a company which has poor systems, is badly managed, and hires very poor operatives. A firm which should be avoided at all stakes. Incidentally there was one other item which was not delivered for more than 4 weeks!

I have had a number of conversations with MyHermes customer services and eventually I was offered £30 for the radio and a “good will gesture” for the other three items of £25. My total remaining losses amounted to at least £175, not to mention the time, inconvenience, stress and anger generated dealing with unhappy buyers.

You will note that the Ebay discussion board includes almost 500 postings about MyHermes, the vast majority of which are highly negative. There are 14 pages of complaints on moneysavingexpert.com and 70 bad reviews on Trust Pilot (score: 2.5/10).

I do feel that if the firm seems incapable of fulfilling even the most basic of expectations should be made (if nothing else) to warn customers when they book that fragile items are very unlikely to arrive in one piece.

I think that we need to know more about the circumstances of this contract but I don't see that the merely inclusion of an exclusion clause in the contract necessarily allows them to escape all liability

As there seems to be a lot of complaints about this company around the internet, it would aslo be helpful for other people affected to let us know their stories on new thread in this sub-forum

I have used MyHermes before. I would never waste my time with them again.

I think they use self employed people with vans who couldnt care less about the packages they carry.

You get what you pay for and in MyHermes case it's a poor careless service.

Always pay a little extra and get a reputable company to deal with. It's worth it in the long run.

you are properly right in your assessment. However just because they might be cheaper than elsewhere doesn't mean that their customers have to put up with anything less than a reasonable service and proper standards.

I am very surprised that no one has so far join this thread from the eBay forum, where there are lots of complaints and also from Money-Saving Expert.

It would be very interesting to have some actual case studies on this forum to see what can be done. Looking over the Internet it seems to me that people are just giving up. I am quite certain that there is more than this which can be done.

I have used MyHermes before. I would never waste my time with them again.

I think they use self employed people with vans who couldnt care less about the packages they carry.

 

You get what you pay for and in MyHermes case it's a poor careless service.

Always pay a little extra and get a reputable company to deal with. It's worth it in the long run.

Nothing wrong with self employed couriers. The problem with HERMES is that they use "lifestyle Couriers" Housewives in their cars without proper insurance or any business knowledge. And judging by their forum parcelforum.co.uk a lot of them dont really give a monkeys about your parcels.

I would suggest taking them to small claims court - use the posts by other unsatisfied customers as evidence and your things as well (pictures would be helpful) also good to report them to the Better Business Bureau

I started using My Hermes last October and up untill January they were very good I was recommending them to every one. Since January they have changed the courier that collects the parcels and he hasn't once turned up on the day he was booked to even though I wait in all day untill 10pm. This has been happening for 4 weeks now with numerous complaints calls from myself to the customer services dept it's still happening. The guy at customer services even rings the courier while I am holding on the phone and the courier promised to turn up at a certain time but never does and I am left waiting by the door for hours. The courier has also held on to my parcels for 8 days before handing them in to the depot. The customer service guy reported the courier to his manager as even he believed that the couriers actions were unacceptable yet he still does it and nothing is done. Today was the last straw, after last weeks complaints I agreed to give them one last chance and again today ... no courier has turned up again!. I rang this afternoon and they guy on the end called the courier on his mobile who said he would be here at 6pm. Waiting waiting waiting.. you guessed it, never showed. The lies this courier comes out with for not showing is unbelievable too. I'll be calling them again tomorrow for a refund then that's it, I'll never use them again. They are the worst

I would recommend using parcelmonkey iv used them loads of times they are very proffessional and a good price.

I would suggest taking them to small claims court - use the posts by other unsatisfied customers as evidence and your things as well (pictures would be helpful) also good to report them to the Better Business Bureau

That's not evidence, that's hearsay.

That's not evidence, that's hearsay.

Being hearsay does not mean that it is not evidence.

Furthermore, hearsay is admissible in civil matters - S.1 Civil Evidence Act 1995

I meant in the strictest sense. It proves nothing.

Hi, I have used all of the courier services available as I sell over 100 items per month on eBay

so tried them all. I have found My Hermes slow but good. The self employed man who collects from me always phones me in the morning to tell me what time he is going to turn up and has given me his telephone number so I can contact him if there is a problem. However, because they are slow (normally 5 days) and I do not really want breakables in the post system too long I tend only to use My Hermes for larger non-breakable items.

Regarding breakables, no one will insure them for damage in the system!

I have had breakages occur by Royal Mail , DHL, and UPS. I have seen Royal Mail drop my parcel onto the floor when loading into the back of the van. I have seen the UPS driver throw my parcel into the back on his van and DHL somehow managed to break in half a boxed steel golf club.

I always double box all fragile times, but that still does not protect from them really bad handling. I do get most upset about this, but there does not appear to be anything I can do about it. When I complain to ANY of the courier companies I am told that I did not pack well enough and that such items are not insured. I have also been told that the reason why glass and china is not covered is because it is possible for the item to be broken before packing.

If anyone knows of any courier that will insure China and Glass please let me know as they would get my business full time....however as I know of no such courier I must consider that breakages is just part of my business risks and the cost I charge for items need to reflect any losses I may occasionally make. To minimise this risk I use 1-2 days delivery services, as I think that the less time the parcels is in the couriers hands the better.

My experience however does not point to any of them being better than another in regards to looking after my parcels well, and all of them know they have opt out clauses within there terms and conditions.

Aaaargh. I'd never heard of this outfit before last week. I ordered a Playstation 3 from Amazon last week and Hermes UK were the courier company - well it never arrived here. Furthermore it's listed on their tracking site as "delivered to secure location" - well wherever that is, it certainly wasn't here. The trouble is Amazon now say since it's listed as "delivered" they think thats that, job done - and now I'm £189 out of pocket with nothing to show for it - to be honest I'm shocked Amazon would use such a company. It's made me think twice about ordering anything from Amazon again.

If you're looking for further complaints about Hermes theres a lengthy one on the Amazon discussions board, not that they take any notice of it. Shocking company. Theres also a clip on YouTube of the BBC Newsnight investigation into the company that aired on dec 3rd last year.

Hermes delivered to my elderly neighbour who is housebound and can't get to the door - and on the card said the parcel was in the "Recycling Bin" - very helpful as it was the day before recycling day and that was then promptly collected!! What kind of idiot thinks the recycling bin, (where by definition the contents are thrown away) is a safe place? .. anyway... Dorothy doesn't know who the parcel was from as she orders quite a bit of stuff and gets various free gifts from charities etc - all Hermes automated reply will say is "contact the retailer" - But I can't - I don't know who it is. They must have the sender of this parcel in their system - surely. I have the card with a code on it. Does anyone know how to contact a real person at Hermes - it's driving me crazy and worrying poor old Dorothy. Thanks -yours frustrated.

Hermes delivered to my elderly neighbour who is housebound and can't get to the door - and on the card said the parcel was in the "Recycling Bin" - very helpful as it was the day before recycling day and that was then promptly collected!! What kind of idiot thinks the recycling bin, (where by definition the contents are thrown away) is a safe place? .. anyway... Dorothy doesn't know who the parcel was from as she orders quite a bit of stuff and gets various free gifts from charities etc - all Hermes automated reply will say is "contact the retailer" - But I can't - I don't know who it is. They must have the sender of this parcel in their system - surely. I have the card with a code on it. Does anyone know how to contact a real person at Hermes - it's driving me crazy and worrying poor old Dorothy. Thanks -yours frustrated.

Hello Appletree38, We're very sorry to hear about this. I hope yourself and Dorothy accept our apologies for the trouble caused. You can email rosie @ myhermes.co.uk with your query. This is a dedicated complaints email address. Somebody will get back to you as soon as possible. Include as many details as you can in the email. Very sorry again for this. Rosie

aaaargh. I'd never heard of this outfit before last week. I ordered a playstation 3 from amazon last week and hermes uk were the courier company - well it never arrived here. Furthermore it's listed on their tracking site as "delivered to secure location" - well wherever that is, it certainly wasn't here. The trouble is amazon now say since it's listed as "delivered" they think thats that, job done - and now i'm £189 out of pocket with nothing to show for it - to be honest i'm shocked amazon would use such a company. It's made me think twice about ordering anything from amazon again.

 

If you're looking for further complaints about hermes theres a lengthy one on the amazon discussions board, not that they take any notice of it. Shocking company. Theres also a clip on youtube of the bbc newsnight investigation into the company that aired on dec 3rd last year.

do not use hermes.

I have had a parcel damaged to the point of destruction.

Hermes say their rules state ' no compensation for damage to computers'.

Their list of items where they do not pay compensation is very long and

includes almost all items that are breakable.

Use parcelforce.

Boots used them to deliver some good that i ordered for my kids xmas, the parcels were due on a Wednesday, Wednesday comes and nothing so i ring to get told that the driver couldn't find my house so would be out for delivery again (at the time we lived by a school) Thursday nothing ring to get told again couldn't find address so i tell them instructions to ring my mobile which they should have done but never did and i will guide driver Friday and it 8.30pm i check on-line status to be told delivered and left on porch i was livid i had stayed in all day but the best bit is i don't have a porch and no parcels were left outside and in special instructions it clearly stated do not leave outside of property or with neighbours.

I ring boots to get hold of them i had enough by this time i was in floods of tears as they were gone, boots told me to ring them and find out what going on, I did this to be told im sorry there is nothing we can do i told them to get hold of the driver and tell him to deliver the goods to my house they told me that they had no contact with the drivers i told them they were lying as they had to in case of problems and at 10pm the goods came opened and battered!!! i was livid ive lost all trust in them and boots as when i rang to ask what to do they said as it left there warehouse in good condition it was down to Hermes to sort it. I have tried on several occasions to sort it but nothing in the end i had to re-buy some of the goods

Boots used them to deliver some good that i ordered for my kids xmas, the parcels were due on a Wednesday, Wednesday comes and nothing so i ring to get told that the driver couldn't find my house so would be out for delivery again (at the time we lived by a school) Thursday nothing ring to get told again couldn't find address so i tell them instructions to ring my mobile which they should have done but never did and i will guide driver Friday and it 8.30pm i check on-line status to be told delivered and left on porch i was livid i had stayed in all day but the best bit is i don't have a porch and no parcels were left outside and in special instructions it clearly stated do not leave outside of property or with neighbours.

 

I ring boots to get hold of them i had enough by this time i was in floods of tears as they were gone, boots told me to ring them and find out what going on, I did this to be told im sorry there is nothing we can do i told them to get hold of the driver and tell him to deliver the goods to my house they told me that they had no contact with the drivers i told them they were lying as they had to in case of problems and at 10pm the goods came opened and battered!!! i was livid ive lost all trust in them and boots as when i rang to ask what to do they said as it left there warehouse in good condition it was down to Hermes to sort it. I have tried on several occasions to sort it but nothing in the end i had to re-buy some of the goods

I have told Boots, Landsend, Amazon, Debenhams and Marks & Spencer that I will not accept any parcels they send to me if Hermes are the delivery agents.

Hopefully if enough people do this it will have the desired effect to stop this bad service.

I have tried to use my hermes to make a delivery. Collection was arranged and no one turned up, a new date was given and again no one turned up, so cancelled order with them and went back to DHL, a lot dearer with insurance but they seem reliable from past experience..I had a return to send back to Jacamo and they arranged collection by my hermes . That time they collected parcel and took 3 weeks to deliver it, had to make a claim to sort it out.the point of this is just to let anyone be aware of the poor service from my hermes so that they can avoid them.

I ordered an item off eBay and waited patiently to receive it.

Yesterday a Hermes failed delivery card was found on the front doormat with my surname and "Thurs" scrawled across it.

Nobody had rung my doorbell.

I contacted the seller and confirmed that they were using Hermes and they gave me a tracking number.

Hermes tracking service log revealed that this had been the second failed attempt, the first apparently on the previous day.

There was no failed delivery card nor did anybody ring my doorbell on that day.

I reported these events to Hermes who advised me to contact the seller to discuss the issue with them (which I did) and that the seller should raise the issue with Hermes as they were unable, for contractual reasons, to discuss the issue with me.

Now, today (Thursday) I find another card on my mat claiming that this was the second attempt.

My doorbell did not ring and the Hermes log no longer shows the original phantom attempted delivery.

The seller has been most helpful in providing details of my experience to Hermes and I am currently waiting to see if a third delivery will be attempted tomorrow (Friday).

My online research reveals that this company, in its present and previous incarnations, uses "self-employed" deliverers who are paid a pittance per item that is successfully delivered.

I had previously suspected that they were paid on a per-call basis and that they were boosting their pay with fake failed deliveries.

My current suspicion is that their deliverers are being required to deliver more parcels than their vehicle's capacity and/or that parking problems are a major nightmare for them and that our local courier does not have the wit to find a doorbell.

My advice to users of eBay and other online services is to avoid using the default "Other Courier" option for delivery and pay the little extra for the more reliable Royal Mail option (unless, of course, you don't mind being frustrated by such issues).

We are receiving so many complaints about this company that I think that someone - or maybe a group of people should start getting together to bring a small claim s action.

You don't need to be involved in the contract to do this.

See Contracts (Rights of Thirds Parties) Act 1999 http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1999/31/contents which would allow the recipients of deliveries made through Hermes to sue Hermes directly for breach of contract

Here is the latest on my Hermes fiasco.

This morning my doorbell rang at around 10:15.

On answering it I found that it was the Royal Mail postman and that there was a Hermes card in my letterbox.

After receiving my post I examined Hermes' card and found that it had my surname and "Hairdressers" scrawled on it, so I went into the hairdressers' shop that shares the same address as mine and collected my parcel, finding that it bore a Geopost label, presumably affixed by the seller's staff, and that it also bore a large print label reading "PACKAGES MUST BE SIGNED FOR AND NEVER LEFT SAFE".

I checked with the hairdresser and he confirmed that he had, indeed, signed for it. ( I had expected that the signatory should have been the addressee.)

On checking the Hermes tracking log I found that it had been registered as signed for at 09:41 with the note "Signature from Household".

The shop is not part of, nor the shopkeeper a member of, my household.

I was within earshot of my doorbell until it rang at 10:15 and summoned me downstairs.

The fact that my local Royal Mail postman had the wit to ring my bell throws into question the standards of intelligence that Hermes set when recruiting their couriers.

Please accept my sincere apologies for any inconvenience caused and we do empathise with your situation however we need to reiterate the policy in relation to excluded items and parcel compensation. The myHermes website clearly states what items are deemed to be excluded and you are prompted to review our excluded list before purchasing our service. By agreeing to our terms and conditions, which you have accepted by virtue of using our service, and which are part of the legal contract between you and us make it clear that, “We will not be liable to you nor pay you any compensation for damage in relation to any goods that are excluded from compensation for damage”. As a gesture of goodwill we have refunded your postage back into your account. Once again please accept our apologies. Rosie myHermes

As there seems to be a lot of complaints about this company around the internet, it would aslo be helpful for other people affected to let us know their stories on new thread in this sub-forum

I first used MyHermes last year. I posted a bottle of malt whisky to someone and tracked it on a very rudimentary system on their web site. For a number of days it never left the hub. I enquired why it appeared to be stuck in the central hub and after some time and a number of contradictory messages I was told it had been broken and since it was glass it was excluded from compensation so (basically) 'tough'.

I requested to see the package as I suspected that it was an item likely to have been pilfered (a round heavy tube obviously containing liquid!). After a couple of days pressure to see some evidence I was finally told that they could not produce any because due to health and safety reasons the glass had to be cleared away. As with everyone else I've read of who shipped 'excluded items', I naturally got nowhere with a compensation claim (though their cutomer service first thought it was liquids that were excluded, before becomming glass).

So I informed the buyer and sent him a replacement at my own expense this time via the post office who quite happily accepted and insurred glass and liquids. This package arrived the very next day. Three weeks later the buyer sent me a message to say a totally smashed bottle of whisky in a sodden package had arrived at his house. Now you can make you own assessment as to what might have occurred but I was obviously fed a total load of rubbish from customer servive.

It is possible that the package was stolen but because I was creating such a stink to see evidence someone decided it best to put it back in the system (broken) without knowing I had already been told it had been cleared away - all VERY fishy.A year on, the memory of this had faded and in an effort to reduce shipping cost on ebay I once again gave MyHermes my custom (more fool me).

Ten parcels in and so far so good! THEN I post a video recorder. It's survived 15 years use and three house moves unscathed. As a totally anal Engineer I double boxed the item and packed the box solid with bubble wrap. In the box the video was a good three inches clear of any side but packed tight. Even so the video arrived with the case dented. The ONLY way that could have happened is if the box was dropped from a (great) height or thrown and dropped. I have just applied for a claim form. They were VERY interested to know exactly I had posted. Probably to see if they could claim an exclusion.

I'll let you know how it progresses.

MyHermes really need to be taken to task over their shoddy handling.