Job Discussion Forums

Ben Round de Bloc · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 1946

Mexico is a country of variety . . . or maybe inconsistency would be a better term.

Based on my personal experiences, I would never use Mexico's public mail system for anything important, not even its registered mail service. I once received notice that I had a registered letter which I could pick up at the branch post office. I went there to claim it . . . three times. It took them three days to find it!

In the city where I live, FedEx is the most realiable and the fastest for private couriers. However, it is costly, and one must pressure them a bit to get good service. For example, if nobody is home when they attempt to deliver here, they don't like to make a second delivery attempt. When one calls the number on the doorknob card that they leave, they try to get the customer to drive all the way across the city to their office to pick up the parcel instead of scheduling a time to deliver again.

Guy Courchesne · Joined: 10 Mar 2003 Posts: 9650 Location: Mexico City

DO NOT USE regular or registerd Mexico mail. Terrible. For sending out from Mexico, I've had a 50% success rate. So, half my mail is officially nowhere. Receiving in Mexico means going through customs...real a@#holes. Try this and expect to multiple telephone calss telling you about special taxes and duties to pay, often equalling 100-1000% of the value of the package.

DHL is very good, as well as FEDEX.

Ben Round de Bloc · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 1946

Guy, that money that I owe you . . . the check is in the mail. Wink

MELEE · Posted: Wed Sep 10, 2003 4:50 pm Post subject:

Here's a comment from a more out of the way place...

DHL---DONT't Do it! Well, if you live in a big city okay, but in the state of Oaxaca, they only deliver to Oaxaca City if you live anywhere else you have to go there to pick up your package.

FEDEX--reliable with one hitch, they actually contract with a Mexican company called Multipak. So it arrives via FedEx to the Toluca airport where they have their offices, then they see it is not in a major city and they pass it on to Multipak, Multipak signes that they have recieved it--so on FedEx tracking it appears as recieved by (insert name of unkown Mexican person here) and if it was important--who ever sent it to you looks at online tracking as sees recieved by Juan Martinez or whoever and emails you and says did you get your package? It was recieved by Juan Martinez--and you're like WHO?!?! and no I didn't get it. Meanwhile it goes into a bag waiting to fill up enough for multipak to justify the expense of putting it in the baggage compartment of a first class bus to the nearest city where first class buses arrive. Then once its there, they put it in a van with all their packages and start delivering--maybe it will get to you before the drivers lunch, maybe it will get to you before the driver knocks off for the night, but if not it will have to wait until tomorrow, or the next day. All this time, the person who sent this to you in the US or where ever, is getting hysterical with FedEx because they insist the package was delivered, it has been signed for after all, but you still haven't gotten it--and FedEx promised 2 to 3 day delivery. On the 5th, 6th or 7th day it finally arrives in your hands and the saga is over---for now... Razz

seanie · Joined: 28 Nov 2003 Posts: 54 Location: m�xico

My experience with Multipak has been pretty good. But that's sending stuff OUT of Mexico.. I've sent to the UK, Jamaica, USA, Spain with no problems and speedy delivery (usually by FedEx at the other end.) I haven't received anything by courier though except a couple of times by DHL and - as MELEE said - I had to get on a bus and head to Oaxaca City (2.5 hours away) to get the package. I'd say Mexico's regular mail system's improving, though... most of the stuff I send abroad arrives in a week or two; and on this end I've only had one package go missing in 4.5 years (regular, non-certified mail; on average, 20 pieces a year).

some waygug-in · Joined: 07 Feb 2003 Posts: 339

That depends on where you are in Mexico. FED EX has reasonable service in larger cities, but I doubt very much that you could count on it if you are in a small place. Tampico....... well, it should be OK?? Confused

Ask someone who is there what their experiences have been like.

I had an awful experience with FED EX while I was stranded in Guatemala after having my wallet and credit cards stolen. They actually sent my new card to the wrong country. Shocked

Then it took them 10 days to figure out how to get it back.

Suerte

LM · Joined: 17 Jan 2003 Posts: 25

We had a difficult time with DHL recently. We just imported our furniture. We needed the original paperwork from Canada to be able to pick up our stuff in Veracruz.
We waited two extra days and then had to make calls to Canada to track it down. We live in Toluca, but in a small place on the edge of the city. It seems the driver didn't like the look of the address and decided to make some kind of excuse that the address was not written correctly.
My husband had to go downtown to pick it up or else it was going to take another two days. When we got the package, the address was perfect. The package was even marked "extremely urgent". They even had our correct phone number, but never bothered to call.