Greg, I am very sorry to here about what happened to your Boa. I had a very similar situation with Matt.
I purchased 11 Emory's Rat snakes from Matt back in August of 2004. We discussed shipping arrangements numerous times, and when he mentioned Fed Ex, I told him that they do not guarantee delivery to my part of town till 4:30 PM, and that here in the Phoenix, AZ area, it was going to be 110+ degrees on the day they to arrive. I then told him about a a really bad close-call situation that I had just had a couple of weeks earlier with Fed Ex, where an overheated and almost dead snake was delivered to me from Fed Ex at 3:00 PM in 110 degree weather. The late delivery time, and the high heat make for a very bad situation. It was at this time that I told him a cold pack would be absoluetly necessary, and he agreed. He said I need not worry, that he would not ship with Fed Ex if they could not guarantee delivery by 10:00. I voiced my concerns to him again, and he assured me once again that everything would be fine, and that I would have them at my door on Tuesday 7-20-2004 by 10:00. I told him that would be fine if he could do that, but to only do it if they would guarantee delivery by 10:00 AM. This was for two reasons. The first was simply due to the fact that delivery vans can reach temps in excess of 140 degrees on a hot August day in Arizona (baked snake is not on my menu). The second reason was that I had to be at the airport that afternoon to pick up my brother in law from London (I needed to leave around 1:30 PM).
I told him all of these concerns on numerous occasions during our the multiple phone conversations that we had, and I went over them one more time on Sunday 7-18-2004 (the day before he was to ship). He still assured me that things would be OK. He said that if for some unforeseen reason Fed Ex could not guarantee the package for a morning delivery, he would just go with UPS. Well, guess what... Fed Ex did not guarantee delivery by 10:00 AM, and instead guaranteed it by 4:30 PM!!!! (just as I told matt they would), and Matt (knowing this) still went with Fed Ex, completely disregarding my wishes and his promise. When He called me on Monday night (7-19-2004) with the tracking #, I asked him to verify the guaranteed delivery time. He said it was guaranteed by 4:30 PM, but that it would most surely be there in the morning. I asked why he did that, and reminded him where I was supposed to be that afternoon and of the serious risk he put the snakes in. Things then went from bad to worse when he told me that he did not ship with a cold pack. I told him that he just signed their death warrants. He apologized, and called Fed Ex to try to have them hold the package for me at the station (about 35 minutes from my house). On Tuesday morning (7-20-2004) Matt sent me this E-mail in response to our conversation the night before:
James,
First and foremost I would like to apologize. I am
terribly sorry about the outcome and sloppiness of
this shipment. I do not want this to reflect the way
you think conduct business and I definitely do not
want this to affect business that we can do in the
future. I wish we would have communicated a little
better but peoples' life's are complicated and
sometimes get a bit messy.
I do want you to know that I am sorry for putting
this situation upon your shoulders. Sorry again. I
hope this doesnt cause the death of great animals.
Sincerely,
Matt White
However, Before I was able to log on my computer and and read it his e-mail, I was awakened by a phone call from a Homeland Security Federal Officer. He asked my name, and if I was expecting a package. Then He asked me what was in the package. I told him harmless snakes, and I asked if he could instruct the Fed Ex people to hold the animals at the counter (it is air-conditioned there) until I could pick them up. He said sure. When I went out to get the snakes, the Fed Ex people were not pleased at all, and they would not release them to me. They said that Game and Fish had to come later that evening and inspect the snakes in order to verify that they were not in violation of any state regulations. So I had to go home empty handed. I called Matt and voiced my dissatisfaction, and updated him on the situation. He apologized again. Later that evening, I got a call from our local Game and Fish enforcement officer, giving me the green light to pick up the snakes, and that one seemed a bit lethargic when he examined them. When I got there the next morning, I was appalled to see that these 24 to 30 inch snakes were packed into 4 inch deli cups that were only 1.75 inches tall. The snakes were packed (one snake per cup) in these cups so tight that many of them could not move, and appeared dead. These cup were not much bigger than a hockey puck! To give you an Idea, they were packed in a box with the inside dimensions of 10"Long x 8"Wide x 6"High. That is a total of 11 tiny deli-cups containing 11 large sub-adult Emory's Rats packed in this tiny space. The snakes were packed in the containers like sardines, and the containers were in turn packed in the box like sardines. One het for albino female had died from lack of oxygen. It turns out that her deli cup had no holes in it. I learned this a few weeks later, as I saved all of the deli cups and the box to use later with appropriately sized hatchling snakes. There was no doubt as to which deli cup was the death cup, as it (along with the others) had a label detailing its former contents. With no holes in the cup, it was basically a sealed tomb for her. I was actually amazed that any of the snakes lived (even in the air conditioned environment that they were in). Had they left on the truck they all would have parished well before lunch. I called Matt again and gave him an update, and he was apologetic. He promised me that a refund for the one snake would be posted to my paypal account in 6 days, which was the following Monday. This did not happen, and only after numerous (yet still polite) calls and e-mails did I get results, and only after an additional 9 more days after the promised 6 days. Along with the refund Matt posted this nice little gem of a note for me. This is what he had to say:
I am going to be honest, I think it sucks that that animal died but I do not feel that it was my fault. I feed a little shorted because that situation was ot of my control. I ship 7 - 8 packages of reptiles a week through fed ex and never had a problem with them. Matter of fact I sent 4 Monday and ALL of them arrived with no problem.
Any future business that we conduct will be Delta Dash with no Live Arrival. It would have been really bad if all of those snakes would have died due to poor communication on both of our parts.
No hard feelings just small amounts of frustration, Thanks for your business,
Matt White
After reading that I was in shock. Poor communication on both our parts??? I could not have been more clear. and I repeated myself so many times I was on the verge of sounding like a broken record!
My Response:
I am very confused. Let me get this straight. You feel shorted, and you feel the snakes death was not your fault. Wasn't it you who shipped them through Fed Ex (a company that I specifically told you NOT to use numerous times in our communications)? And wasn't it you that did this knowing that delivery was NOT guaranteed until 4:30 PM in 112 degree weather (with no cold packs being provided for the snakes)? Wasn't it you that ignored my request to send for MORNING delivery on that day, and to use a cold pack? Wasn't it you that put each snake in a deli cup that was too small, and then multiplied your error by 11 times, compounding it even further by placing the 11 already cramped snakes in a very small box that did not allow for ventilation? Wasn't it you that chose not to put a cold pack in it even though I specifically requested one? How can you say this occurred due to lack of communication when I told you about the Fed Ex delivery times here??? I specifically told you that they would not guarantee until 4:30 PM, I specifically told you that it was 110+ degrees here, and that they required a cold pack. You knew all of this before you shipped, and you chose to ignore my requests and the information that I gave you! You promised me morning delivery, and then sent with a company that could not guarantee it. You promised me that these snakes were going to be sent to my door in the morning, and instead I had to take time out of my schedule to make, not one, but TWO trips into Tempe to get these snakes on my own time and at my expense. I am the one who got the call form an officer with Homeland Security, and that got questioned. I must tell you that I did not appreciate that at all. Matt, this did not happen because of a lack of communication; it happened out of stubbornness on your part. The fact that you claim no fault is just the last shining example of that stubbornness, and your refusal to learn from a foolish mistake. You have guts though. You sent me the 70.00 two weeks late, with your "slap in the face" note claiming no fault of your own. It must have been my fault... I do not think we will be doing any business in the future. Had you used Delta Dash in the first place I would not have been called by a Homeland Security officer, I would not have had to make the trip twice, the snake would not have died, and we would not be having this conversation. I have considered the possibility that you might doubt my story. I would be more than happy to have Fed Ex, Homeland Security, and Game and Fish all contact you to fill you in on the details. Just say the word.
James
Matt's reply:
First of all.
Dont get a f***ing attitude with me James. I intended
on none of this to happen. All of this happened due
to a lack of communication from the both of us. You
arent better than me so stop acting like it. You got
great animals at hugely discounted. DONT EMAIL ME
BACK FOR I WILL NOT RESPOND JERK.
I was just telling you how I feel...half off that
money went to my dead friends daughter.
I ship off packages all the time and this is the first
time I have ever had a problem.
Nice! This is just one example of why I have sold off my collection.
