I've been known to sing the praises of Fresh Direct so ardently that a roommate once asked if I was recording our conversation for a radio advertisement. Which is why, in fairness, and at the risk of seeming petty, I feel I should share the story of my disillusionment. Because, at long last, the honeymoon is over.
On Thursday evening, I had a delivery scheduled to arrive between 7 and 9 p.m. Around 10, as I was starting to consider going to bed, I realized the Fresh Guy (as my nephew would say) still hadn't shown up. I checked my cell phone to make sure I hadn't missed a call -- I've given them my cell and home phone numbers, so they can call if something unexpected happens. And in the past I've received calls now and then, usually to ask if I'd be willing and able to accept my delivery earlier than expected (would I?!). But I had no missed calls. They don't supply customers with a number to reach the delivery person or dispatcher, so I couldn't do anything but wait. In the meantime, I sent this email via the company's online "contact us" form:
My order was scheduled to be delivered between 7 and 9 p.m. -- it is now 10:15 and there's no sign of the delivery. I have not received a call to tell me it's delayed.The Fresh Guy showed up half an hour later, at 10:45 on the nose. He had nothing to say (except "sign here"): no apology, no explanation, not even an acknowledgment of his tardiness. (I would have thought he didn't realize he was late -- maybe they packed my boxes in the 9:00-11:00 part of the truck? -- but the boxes had the delivery time marked right on the labels, right under my name and address.) I put all the groceries away and went to bed. In the morning I had an emailed reply from Fresh Direct:
Thank you for contacting FreshDirect. We sincerely apologize your order arrived later than anticipated. You can be assured that this is not the type of service you can expect from us in the future. Going forward, every effort will be made to arrive during the scheduled delivery period. We apologize for any inconvenience, and we hope everything in your order arrived to your satisfaction.I'm glad that they have the confidence to assure me that "this is not the type of service [I] can expect from [them] in the future." But I'm not quite as optimistic, and I wouldn't mind a little evidence that they're actually working to prevent it. In short, I had other questions and concerns. So I kindly responded to the email with an update:
If you have any other questions or concerns, kindly respond to this e-mail. To reach us via phone, please review the 'Get Help' section of our website.
Sincerely,
Sara
My order finally arrived at 10:45 p.m. -- nearly 2 hours after it was supposed to have arrived, and well after I was expecting to be awake and accepting deliveries. Although the delivery information included my phone number, no one ever called to tell me there was a problem, and the person who finally delivered it offered no acknowledgment of or explanation or apology for its lateness. This isn't the first time a delivery has arrived late, but a delay of nearly two hours, that late at night, with no notice is unacceptable, and will make me much less likely to rely on Fresh Direct in the future.The response came quickly, and it sounded a little bit familiar:
~ Mollie
Dear Molly,The only evidence that a human being was involved in responding to my email is the misspelling of my name -- a nice personal touch! But this is virtually the same response I would have gotten if the delivery I expected by noon had arrived at 12:15. I know, because when I lived in my previous apartment, a few consecutive deliveries arrived at the very end of, or minutes after, their scheduled window. After this happened a few times in a row, I sent a note to Fresh Direct to let them know that this route was being overbooked (or else this delivery person was slacking off), so they could adjust their plans accordingly. They wrote right back to say they were sorry for the inconvenience, and they refunded the delivery charge on my most recent order. I thought that was pretty darn nice of them, since I wasn't really all that put out by a 5-minute delay in the middle of the day. Now, though, I can see that "We're refunding the delivery charge" is their automatic response to "My order was late" (but only if you complain!). In my case it was a bit more complicated -- I signed up for a "delivery pass," meaning I made a (low!) one-time payment to cover an unlimited number of deliveries during the summer. It was a great deal -- unless, of course, it means I get immediately bumped to the low-priority list when the deliveries are running behind. But it meant there was no "delivery charge" on this order, so they extended the "pass" instead. However, I still don't feel "assured" that they will make an effort to improve their service, since I don't have any sense that they've identified the problem. So I felt compelled to try again, in the hopes of getting some direct acknowledgment of my specific complaints: it was not just late, but very late; it was quite late at night, which makes it that much more inconvenient; the delivery person could have called and didn't; the delivery person could have apologized and didn't. Their online form asks that you "include as much specific information as possible to ensure a prompt response to your inquiry." So I guessed I needed to be even more specific. I wrote:
Thank you for contacting FreshDirect. We sincerely apologize your order arrived later than anticipated. You can be assured that this is not the type of service you can expect from us in the future. Going forward, every effort will be made to arrive during the scheduled delivery period. As a courtesy, we have issued a two week extension to your delivery pass. We apologize for any inconvenience, and we hope everything in your order arrived to your satisfaction.
If you have any other questions or concerns, kindly respond to this e-mail. To reach us via phone, please review the 'Get Help' section of our website.
Sincerely,
Leanne
Thank you. Can you tell me anything about why my order was so late, and why I wasn't contacted to let me know it would be delayed? I've supplied my cell phone and home phone numbers for exactly that purpose. This was a significant delay (an hour and forty-five minutes!), especially given the late hour, and if I had at least known it was on its way I could have adjusted my plans, instead of waiting to accept it when it was scheduled to arrive. I can't understand why I was never called, and I was especially annoyed that the delivery person didn't so much as acknowledge that he was late when he finally arrived at 10:45.Surely that would get a real response. Surely now they would investigate and find the answers to my specific questions. Surely I wouldn't just get the same form letter again...
Thank you for contacting FreshDirect. We sincerely apologize your order arrived later than anticipated. You can be assured that this is not the type of service you can expect from us in the future. Going forward, every effort will be made to arrive during the scheduled delivery period. As a courtesy, we have extended your DeliveryPass by 1 week of free deliveries. We apologize for any inconvenience, and we hope everything in your order arrived to your satisfaction.Fresh Direct! After all this time -- after all the good times we've shared -- are you telling me I'm just another girl to you?! By the way, I'm not sure whether my delivery pass was extended by another week -- i.e., three weeks total -- or whether "Mavis" just gave the standard response, and then saw that "Leanne" had already taken care of it (and had been more generous). I think it's the latter -- just a two-week extension. But that's not really the point, is it? As a consolation prize, it's sort of like that Match.com offer: "If you're not satisfied after six months, we'll give you an additional six months, FREE!" Sorry you're unhappy with our service -- please accept more of it! Except in this case it's "We are sorry you have complaints, which we intend to continue ignoring. We hope you will continue to rely on our service, despite the fact that we have given you ample reason to doubt it; we hope you'll care less about potential inconvenience if you don't have to pay extra for the privilege."
If you have any other questions or concerns, kindly respond to this e-mail. To reach us via phone, please review the 'Get Help' section of our website.
Sincerely,
Mavis
At least Match.com has a guarantee; technically, Fresh Direct isn't even obligated to issue a refund/extension if they fail to deliver on time. Reviewing their "Customer Agreement," I learned that they have a very specific set of guidelines for what happens if you, the customer, are unavailable to accept an order during the time slot you designate. Which is fine, because honestly, if you can't find two hours when you, or your doorman, or your neighbor will definitely be able to sign for the food, what else can you expect them to do for you? But what if you're home, and they're late? What if they waste your time? Suddenly their policy gets vague:
In the case of inclement weather, or unforeseen delivery complications, it may be necessary to make adjustments to our delivery schedule, which will cause us to suspend chosen delivery dates and times. If there will be a significant delay, a customer service representative may call or e-mail you to let you know the status of your delivery time. We will deliver your order the first possible moment the conditions permit. We will never deliver an order past 12:30 AM without a customer's consent.They may call to tell you not to spend your night at home, waiting, if they're going to be a couple hours late. But hey, they promise not to wake you up past 12:30! And they'll refund the delivery charge if you complain that your delivery arrived late -- but only if you complain. They're not keeping track. And keep in mind that it's a "courtesy" for them to make reparations. I still think a "We're going to be late" call -- or even a "Sorry I'm so late" shrug -- would be even more courteous. But I guess that's asking for too much. And I guess that means it's time to go back to supporting my local grocer. At least I'll save money on the tip.
ETA: But wait! A surprising new twist that will restore your faith in romance! (Or at least in the power of venting your complaints via indirect bitching on the internet.)
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