Paying a premium price for a special service, say, getting a package the next day, is worth it if you’re in the business of needing things quickly. Which is why Chris is regretting that the person delivering an item essential to his work happened to be a FedEx employee who didn’t know what to do with a doorbell.

Chris writes that he had a deadline to meet at work, and needed a computer part to replace one that had broken. He ordered the piece on a Thursday and paid extra to make sure it would arrive in Philadelphia the next day via FedEx from California.

Lo and behold, the very next day, the delivery agent did turn up at his high rise office building. But when confronted with an unmanned lobby and a doorbell that would summon any of 125 employees, the FedEx person just left a door tag instead, saying there was “no one to be found to sign for the package.”

Chris shrugged and figured as long as the package arrived first thing Monday, all would be well.

I called FedEx and reminded them that once you step off the elevator, there is a door buzzer to reach one of any 125 people who can sign for the package. Surely the package would be here Monday.

Well, it was and it wasn’t.The Rhodes Scholar that FedEx sent over on Monday did the same thing, again. No door buzzer was pushed and a 2nd door tag was left.

Instead of waiting for a third attempt to fail, Chris ponied up $20 in cab fare to get to the FedEx depot to pick up his package on his own.

Time to brush up that button-pressing training, eh guys?

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