SCDigest
Editorial Staff
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 Make sure the carriers understand that you are competitively bidding the business and that price is the most important component in making the transition, Hempstead adds. 
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As DHL unwinds its US domestic services, with plans to completely leave the market by the end of January, 2009 (while maintaining international services), what are parcel shippers who used the number 3 ranked player after UPS and FedEx to do?
Since its November 10 announcement (see It’s Bye-Bye for DHL Parcel Operations in US Market), DHL has already stopped its drop off arrangement at Walgreen’s and Office Max, picked up many of its big yellow drop boxes, communicated with numerous customers that they cannot schedule a call-in pick-up after December 10, laid off employees and otherwise rapidly scaled down its business in the US.
Even before service is officially ended in January, parcel shippers need to be cautious in using DHL services until then, says Gerry Hempstead, a former DHL executive and now president of Hempstead Consulting.
“I'm hearing of service issues resulting from their cancellation of their service guarantee on November 17. This now leaves to the discretion of the destination terminal management and the delivering driver when and if he wants to deliver your package today regardless of the service you purchased and paid for at the time of tender,” Hempstead told SCDigest. “Now, with no published service guarantee, shippers have no recourse to get all or part of their money back” for shipments that take extra days to be delivered.
How should shippers that use DHL in whole or part for their parcel business prepare for its total demise?
First, Hempstead notes that if a company has procured any of the DHL Ship Ready pre-purchased products, they should be used very quickly. A shipper also has the option of applying for a refund. (See Reader Question: Prepaid DHL Envelopes.)
Second, Hempstead says that if you have not done so already, it’s time right now to call in your FedEx, UPS and USPS representatives and lay out for them your DHL business and service needs.
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Make sure the carriers understand that you are competitively bidding the business and that price is the most important component in making the transition, Hempstead adds.
