#6 (6 of 7 for August 25, 2000)

Complaints.com received this e-message on August 24, 2000:

From:

RE: complaint regarding Sun Delivery, Inc.

BACKGROUND

My wife, Amy Cox, purchased a leather couch from House Dressing International Furniture, a North Carolina direct furniture sales company. House Dressing had the couch sent to Sun Delivery, Inc. to be shipped to our home in the Memphis, Tennessee area.

Other than choosing a poor delivery company, we have no complaint with House Dressing International Furniture; their sales representative was most cooperative. House Dressing International Furniture is a division of Vestal Investments, Inc., 3608 West Wendover Avenue, Greensboro, NC 27407-1521. Sun Delivery, Inc. is located at 114 Payne Road, Thomasville, NC 27360, telephone 336-472-5000.

INITIAL PROBLEM

House Dressing confirmed to Sun Delivery on July 21, 2000 to deliver the couch to us. (The custom in this industry which we have observed over the past twenty years of buying furniture in this manner is that the delivery company contacts the customer and advises when a delivery will be made in their area and then a few days before the truck leaves their facility the customer receives a follow up call advising a range of dates in the immediate future when the truck is expected to arrive at the customer's address.)

Sun Delivery never called us to advise that they would be delivering our couch. They have a voice mail system which never gives the caller the opportunity to connect to an operator; we placed numerous calls to the delivery mailbox on their voice mail system but never got the courtesy of a return call. A full 32 days after Sun received the notice from House Dressing to make the delivery, I called House Dressing and Sun to trace my delivery order.

THE RUNAROUND

The House Dressing personnel advised that Sun is the only delivery company which they use and that "the biggest complaint we get about them is that they won't return customer calls." After almost an hour of calls with House Dressing personnel, I received a call from a representative of Sun Delivery. I spoke with Sun Delivery personnel on August 23 and 24.

I was advised that House Dressing had not given notice to release the couch for delivery until August 1; I advised that I already had learned that they were notified on July 21. Then I was advised that they had lost some employees and that they were very busy.

During the August 23 call, they advised that the manager, Chris, was on another call but was personally looking into the problem and was to call me back later to straighten it out that day; I received no return call from him or anyone else that day.

On August 24 I received a call advising that they would call back to schedule the delivery; when I asked why I had not received a follow up call on August 23 from Chris as promised I was advised that he had been out with a sick child and had not been involved in this complaint.

MY IMPRESSION

Sun Delivery has no competition and therefore no motivation to provide even minimal customer service. They have a voice mail system which does not allow the caller to speak to anyone. They do not return customer calls.

They refused to confirm by fax that they still had my couch and had not lost it or misdelivered it. They said on August 23 that delivery could not possibly be scheduled before late on Friday, August 25 or on Monday, August 28 due to their shipping procedures.

On August 24 they said delivery could be scheduled that day. In other words, depending on whom one speaks with, the caller receives assurances that are contradictory.

CAN CUSTOMERS OF HOUSE DRESSING HAVE ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION? CAN CUSTOMERS OF SUN DELIVERY HAVE ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION?

I will be happy to provide additional information if requested.

TERRY COX