FrankenMauser
New member
I live in one of the five largest cities in Idaho.
Though big for Idaho, it is, admittedly, a small city (even including the 'metropolitan area') that must be considered 'rural' under most circumstances.
I just found out that our UPS Customer Service Center closed its customer counter in May, and no longer accepts shipments at the facility.
Seems simple. But it means firearms can no longer be shipped from this area by a private individual, via UPS.
Even the UPS employee that I ran into at the location (and was kind enough to accept the package that I had with me) was surprised when I asked, "So what is someone supposed to do if they need to ship a firearm? The UPS Store won't accept it."
Her reply was, "I hadn't thought of that. I don't think anyone has thought of that. I'll ask at our next meeting."
When I got home, I started digging through the wasteland that is the internet, and making phone calls to locations around the state.
It seems that all of the other Customer Service Centers within 100 miles of me have been closed, as well. The locations still operate for delivery and sorting; but there's no longer a staffed customer service counter.
I called every UPS Store within a 2-hour drive that was listed as a location accepting "Restricted Items" (the category for firearms), and asked if I could get an estimate for a firearm shipment. All, of course, said they couldn't ship firearms. To that, I would respond with, "You are listed as a location that accepts restricted items. What other restricted items don't you accept."
The responses were generally along the lines of, "Just firearms and certain live animals."
So, if someone in this area wants (or needs**) to ship a firearm via UPS, the closest location is 180 miles away, each way - or about 2.5 hours, if traffic and road conditions are okay.
I doubt that it was a move done specifically to spite gun owners, but it sure is irritating.
FedEx? Closest location that I could ship a firearm out of is 55 miles away.
USPS? I am not a dealer. That means long guns only, and even that is a hassle.
Has anyone else noticed this in other parts of the country?
**I've had two instances in the last decade when a firearm shipment HAD to go through a specific carrier. One was a "warranty" claim, and the company ONLY accepted packages from UPS. FedEx and USPS shipments for warranty service were refused delivery, and returned.
Another was the return of a firearm, after a dispute about how it was represented went to arbitration, and the terms of the judgement required FedEx as the return carrier (claimed to be for insurance reasons). No other carriers would be allowed, or the judgement would be void.
Though big for Idaho, it is, admittedly, a small city (even including the 'metropolitan area') that must be considered 'rural' under most circumstances.
I just found out that our UPS Customer Service Center closed its customer counter in May, and no longer accepts shipments at the facility.
Seems simple. But it means firearms can no longer be shipped from this area by a private individual, via UPS.
Even the UPS employee that I ran into at the location (and was kind enough to accept the package that I had with me) was surprised when I asked, "So what is someone supposed to do if they need to ship a firearm? The UPS Store won't accept it."
Her reply was, "I hadn't thought of that. I don't think anyone has thought of that. I'll ask at our next meeting."
When I got home, I started digging through the wasteland that is the internet, and making phone calls to locations around the state.
It seems that all of the other Customer Service Centers within 100 miles of me have been closed, as well. The locations still operate for delivery and sorting; but there's no longer a staffed customer service counter.
I called every UPS Store within a 2-hour drive that was listed as a location accepting "Restricted Items" (the category for firearms), and asked if I could get an estimate for a firearm shipment. All, of course, said they couldn't ship firearms. To that, I would respond with, "You are listed as a location that accepts restricted items. What other restricted items don't you accept."
The responses were generally along the lines of, "Just firearms and certain live animals."
So, if someone in this area wants (or needs**) to ship a firearm via UPS, the closest location is 180 miles away, each way - or about 2.5 hours, if traffic and road conditions are okay.
I doubt that it was a move done specifically to spite gun owners, but it sure is irritating.
FedEx? Closest location that I could ship a firearm out of is 55 miles away.
USPS? I am not a dealer. That means long guns only, and even that is a hassle.
Has anyone else noticed this in other parts of the country?
**I've had two instances in the last decade when a firearm shipment HAD to go through a specific carrier. One was a "warranty" claim, and the company ONLY accepted packages from UPS. FedEx and USPS shipments for warranty service were refused delivery, and returned.
Another was the return of a firearm, after a dispute about how it was represented went to arbitration, and the terms of the judgement required FedEx as the return carrier (claimed to be for insurance reasons). No other carriers would be allowed, or the judgement would be void.