shipping to UK

[arunadasi]

Roger,

the problem does not seem to be with orders of books printed in the UK. It's when the book is printed in another country that Lulu behaves badly.

They NEED to inform customers before payment that shipping is from a different country, and they need to say from which country. Otherwise we expect a delivery in 4 - 5 days, worry if it hasn't arrived after a week, and possible would not order at all if the timing is not convenient.

How was I supposed to know that book was going to be shipped from Sweden, and would take over two weeks to reach me? Why did nobody form Lulu address my query, not even after several reminders, until 18 days had passed? Why, when they did reply, did they sand a form letter and not even anwer my specific question as to which country the book was mailed from? Why, in that form letter, dd they shrug off the whole matter and not even attempt to take responsibility? As a matter of fact there was no option with the order to book a traceable way of shipping, and I believe that if the book had gone lost they would indeed have had to take full responsibility.

I understand that for some international customers the traceable option is so ridiculously expenseve noone intheir right mind would pay it - I've heard sums such as $60, $100, and more. This is not excusable, even if service withing the UK is generally good.

Like you, I've had fast deliveries within the UK. Which is what had me so worried that the book -- costing £40 - had been lost in the post.

[Keith Dixon]

Lulu doesn't have a printer in Sweden, so it's highly unlikely that the book originated there. What is possible is that the book was erroneously shipped to an address in Sweden and the recipient got in touch with Lulu Support to tell them. It would probably have then been despatched by that customer (was there anything on the packaging about that?).

Just looking at your original post again, I see that it was a Letter-sized book that was printed. As this isn't a default UK or European size, then it's more than likely that it was in fact printed in the US and shipped via a (Swedish) port. I once received a book from the US that came via Rotterdam, I think, and that took longer than it should have done, for obvious reasons. Perhaps the books are shipped over and land at whatever is a convenient staging post before being sent on to their final destination. Rotterdam for me, Sweden for you ...

[Ken Anderson]

arunadasi,

They NEED to inform customers before payment that shipping is from a different country, and they need to say from which country. Otherwise we expect a delivery in 4 - 5 days, worry if it hasn't arrived after a week, and possible would not order at all if the timing is not convenient.

Lulu don't work like that and never have. All their systems are automated and there is guarantee where your book will be printed, by which printer.

You really should read this link on shipping. Lulu don't guarantee that you will have your book delivered 'in any normal time' after it has been printed. Anyone coming to Lulu and expecting guaranteed and prompt production and delivery times is living in cloud cuckoo land. Yes, sometimes it works out to fairly prompt but don't expect it for each and every type of book and book printed.

[arunadasi]

Keith,

it defintely had the Lulu logo and SWEDEN in the top right hand corner where the stamp should nbe, so it probably is as you say in your second suggestion -- that it was shipped via Sweden.

[arunadasi]

Ken,

I don't care if the system is automated. That does not stop their customer services from giving  a polite and personalised reply to an worried query. They knew the answer, as Keith above says: US Letter is printed in the US and so it would have shipped from there. That's all I wanted to know.

I did NOT, on the other hand, expect a guaranteed delivery time. Since I addressed the point that it was a US Letter size book I believe any member of staff at Lulu could easily have told me that it must have been shipped from the USA. I would have been perfectly happy with such a clear response in a day or two or three. Not a form letter after 18 days.

Everything on the order form led me to believe that it would be shipped form the UK. Not even the size of the book was given at that point. That's why I originally thought that it was shipped from the UK.

It was only when it didn't arrive, and I did some searches, did I find out that it was Letter size. And when I found that out I spent a long time reading  FAQ pages, trying to trying to find out if US Letter was printed in the UK, and that information was nowhere to be found. I also carefully read the shipping link you posted above, before I started this thread. Unfortunately, as you will see if you read teh page carefully, it says nothing whatsoever about shipping times from US to UK. All the times given are either within the US or within the UK.

[Ken Anderson]

That does not stop their customer services from giving a polite and personalised reply to an worried query. 

Aaaagh, I see your problem. You actually think that there is a "customer service" department with real people!

Get real.

[arunadasi]

Well, yes. I've had an offline chat with customer service PEOPLE quite a few times in the past. In fact, the chat service is now up again.

But by the tone of your posts and your word choices I can see that you are more into taking pokes at whatever I say. To each his own.

Have a good day.

[ivlia]

Mine arrived this morning, also via Sweden.  I wouldn't have minded waiting at all, I just wish they'd been honest about the shipping times in the first place instead of saying "expected 1-2 days"  

Oh well, got it now and it looks great!

[Chiron]

Lulu needs to address this both in action and here on this thread.  I'm on two very large author websites and if I don't get my books in a reasonable time frame I shall announce it loud and clear.  I have been waiting for a sample copy to be sent to Spain.  Despatched on 17th December and still not here.

[her_benny_hocking]

Hello there, you have made an order at the height of the busy period, and this alone will result in delays, not sure if it's the same where you are but in the UK there are 3 Bank Holidays clogging up the works. Add to this that your order is not one that could be printed, shipped and delivered all in one country, then this means longer again, especially if it is a basic shipping service. My own issue with Lulu on shipping has always been the cost, never the delivery. Once the overweight printer called Eric, with a gimpy leg, NH glasses patched up with band-aid and wearing a brown dust coat, pats the side door of the Royal Mail van to send it on its way, the delivery is purely within the remit of the Mail / courier, and not Lulu or its print partners. Do have faith, the overwhelming amount of orders made do arrive within a time frame considered normal by the trade, as it were. Regards.  J