Avoid this Shipper in Pahr Ganj/ UPS "shipping"

I had the bad luck to attempt to ship a package on a pseudo-public holiday in India (Good Friday of all things (!?!) where the post office was open but int'l shipments were not available) and as I was leaving that evening, I was forced to use a private shipper. The shipper was A.R. Courier Express Services, right off the main strip in Pahr Ganj. The shipper told me that the shipment would be sent by UPS and thus if anything broke I would be able to claim under the UPS insurance policy.

When the shipment arrived it was not in the box we had packed it in, but was in a soft rice bag with items poorly wrapped. Needless to say, a glass plate was broken. In addition certain items were missing. Apparently, in an effort to ensure that we did not send any contraband, the shipper took it upon himself to open our shipment and did not repack it properly. I am not sure why they kept our tea and certain other small items, but in any event it seems as though the shipper sent the shipment to its US affiliate, Exim Express, which is a large shipping company located in Delhi with an affiliate in New York. Exim then sent the shipment via UPS to the address I provided in Delhi. When I received the shipment with the broken/missing merchandise, I contacted UPS, but they refused to deal with me directly since the shipper of record was not me, but instead was the US affiliate, Exim Express. Exim Express, both US and India, refuse to assist me or reimburse me in any manner.

And so a word of warning as to claims that your shipment will be covered by UPS' (or any other courier's) insurance and I would definitely avoid A.R. Courier Express.

On the other hand, dealing directly with either UPS or (my preference) DHL as the sole carrier between India and the US has worked out pretty well for me.

Point taken, sounds like a real Charlie Brown. But the real lesson here is not to roll the dice by leaving it all to the last moment & then, sans referrals, letting it go the most convenient, handiest courier on the street. Risky business anywhere - especially in India.

Shipping anything in and out of India is always a risk - even with DHL I had a problem with them once it landed in India, shipping books and an ATM card at the same time. From landing in Delhi it took 10 days to reach Jodhpur (an overnight train journey) and even then it was 'lost' in Jodhpur for a day.

As to the opening up and 'wrapping' etc. parcels are also opened by customs either going in or out of India - the missing items could have gone at any point prior to exitting India.

The best parcel shipping service I have had has been with the Post Office for going out of India. Not quite so good for coming into India - once I had a coffee packet pierced with a knife, and a tube of hair conditioner stuff taken. But all other parcels received have been intact.

Any idea of typical transit times to the US using the Post Office?

Sorry curt, I don't - my parcels went by surface mail previously and took around 6 weeks to Australia. Airmail will be there in less than 10 days.

We used one of the Blue Dart agents for awhile and had some good success with them. Although, when you are on the phone &/or in their office on a regular basis with any given courier - it really can add a 'sniff of ammonia' to their handling & clearing ability/process.

Unfortunately a tourist with time constraint issues & one who may be perceived as unlikely to return to India anytime soon - is, for obvious reasons, infinitely more likely to receive shoddy service.

As a tourist, I might try & contact DHL(for example) head office well ahead of time & request some contact numbers for their most reputable agents in the city that you will be posting from.

Parcels I sent from Kolkata in November arrived in San Francisco in late January. I'm never in a rush for my souvenirs to arrive.

I do a lot of importing from India. Probably a major reason for your mishap was that they repacked it to get the size smaller to save money on shipping after charging you the full price. You wouldn't believe what some places would do to save even 10 Rupees...That's how it goes unfortunately. Sometimes UPS, etc. do have to inspect it also but usually a workaround is available if it's a known shipper.