LoveFilm offer: A few questions and concerns...

[DieselDragn]

Ay up again!
As anyone who's currently in the select.freebiejeebies conga will know, I started my LoveFilm trial on Sunday. However, despite my first DVD being selected and sent out to me on Monday, it still hasn't arrived here and I'm becoming increasingly concerned as to it's whereabouts.

Obviously, there'll be a number of people here who'll have taken a LoveFilm trial before now...So can anyone tell me roughly how long it takes to receive the first DVD after signing up? Also, are DVDs taken on trials sent out via second class post insted of first to cut down on costs and whatnot?

Personally, I'm already getting quite worried over this delay. Aside from the film being a refreshingly Gory one that I'm itching to watch (And thus want to receive as quickly as possible! ) my greater concern of course is that - Because it's a rental DVD and thus remains the property of LoveFilm - I'm worried that I might get charged for replacement of the same, despite the fact that any loss at this stage could only be Royal Mail's fault and definitely not my own.
I'm very tempted to open a support ticket with LoveFilm outlining my current concerns, but as many here will have already run through the process I thought I'd seek clarification of the matter here first before I elevate it with them.

Whilst I'm at it: As part of an LF competition run over the weekend, I was lucky enough to win a FilmExtra credit that's good for a third free rental. If I redeemed this credit for my second or third DVD, would that affect my FJ offer in any way or even invalidate it? As it is, my offer status is still up as pending on the FJ site...And I have to say that so far the above delay and the slow speed of this process are proving most infuriating...

Finally: If I took my third free rental as mentioned above, might that lead to my incurring a subscription on the LF site as it'd mean I'd have taken three DVDs out? Although I'm already liking the huge range of decent Gore movies available on LoveFilm, the worryingly slow speed at which things are currently progressing is starting to give me second thoughts...

Farewell for now, and many thnks in advance for any info!
+++ DieselDragon +++

[ElectroGirl]

First concern. When you chose the film .What did you put for it's urgency. Just recieved mine yesterday and I asked for it on friday

[DieselDragn]

Originally Posted by ElectroGirl

First concern. When you chose the film .What did you put for it's urgency. Just recieved mine yesterday and I asked for it on friday

I highlighted that one as High priority as it was the first DVD that I wanted to receive. That said, I'm currently using the priority system to queue DVDs for dispatch in specific order, so all of my titles are set to medium priority as a matter of course...And once the current DVD's status shows as sent, I set the next title that I want to receive to high priority so that I'll receive that as my next DVD insted of a random title from my list.

On Sunday, I set The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (The 2005 remake) as my one high priority title. Once that was showing as "sent" on Monday night, I changed the priority against Saw I to high so that once I send TCM back, Saw'll be the next one sent out.

Thanks for posting the turnaround time though...So it looks like it does take 4-5 days for them to come through!
Can ye remember when that movie started showing a "sent" status though? If it was selected on Friday, it could've been posted either Saturday or Monday...And if it's the former, that would suggest that my "delay" is - In fact - A normal time for an LF rental.

[DieselDragn]

Well...The post has come today, but still no sign of my LoveFilm DVD. And I have to say that this four day "First Class" post is getting far beyond a f***ing joke!

I'm not doubting the LoveFilm service in any way, but it's clear to me now that my DVD's been stolen by one of the army of thieving b******* at the Royal Mail, and I'll no doubt be forced to pay for it. Some "free" trial this is turning out to be...

My sincere apologies to the few RM personnel who do actually do their jobs in an honest and reliable manner...But given my recent experiences with Royal Mail's "service" - Including the loss of no less than four items of mail during the last six weeks in differing locations - It's clear to me that ye are, very sadly, a very small minority...

[Djoscar]

Originally Posted by DieselDragn

Well...The post has come today, but still no sign of my LoveFilm DVD. And I have to say that this four day "First Class" post is getting far beyond a f***ing joke!

I'm not doubting the LoveFilm service in any way, but it's clear to me now that my DVD's been stolen by one of the army of thieving b******* at the Royal Mail, and I'll no doubt be forced to pay for it. Some "free" trial this is turning out to be...

My sincere apologies to the few RM personnel who do actually do their jobs in an honest and reliable manner...But given my recent experiences with Royal Mail's "service" - Including the loss of no less than four items of mail during the last six weeks in differing locations - It's clear to me that ye are, very sadly, a very small minority...

My mail sometimes comes as late as 2pm

try waiting before ranting

[dudemeistr]

DVDs are usually shipped in from Jersey for the service I use - what about LF?

Maybe its a similar distance or further.

[DieselDragn]

Originally Posted by dudemeistr

DVDs are usually shipped in from Jersey for the service I use - what about LF?

LF's registered offices and distribution depot are both in the greater London area, from what my own investigations tell me. If they came from Jersey, Id've expected them to make that fact clear on the website.

Originally Posted by Djoscar

My mail sometimes comes as late as 2pm / try waiting before ranting

I've already waited more than long enough to receive this first-class item! As it is, mail in my street is always delivered early morning as I'm relatively close to the local sorting office. That said, we tend to get a frequent variance of postmen on my route insted of the traditional "usual postman"...

...Anyhow: Post has come today - STILL no f***in' movie.
I've reported the loss to LoveFilm using the rental interface just now, but - Given that my first disc has gone walkabout already - I wouldn't be surprised if I find myself banned from using the LoveFilm service thanks to the dishonest actions of the sticky fingered idiots at Royal Mail.

Even if LoveFilm disregard the loss and resend the same or my next movie out, I've already lost a week of my trial entirely through no fault of my own, and I'm wondering where exactly I stand in this kind of scenario?
I was reasonably expecting to have two weeks to try out and enjoy two movies, and expecting no more than 48 hours on postal times in either direction. Thanks to Royal Mail's crushing incompetence and pathetic anti-theft measures however I've already lost the first week of my trial, and LoveFilm have most likely lost some of their property!

Given that the loss is though no fault of my own whatsoever, surely I have the right to have my LF trial extended by another week at no cost to make up for the time I've lost to Royal Mail's thievery? Though how would that affect my FJ offer status?

The bottom line of course is that LF should start using a different carrier immediateley: DHL are the worst of couriers IME, but I'd still trust even them to deliver a DVD to it's destination without too much trouble...On the other hand, I wouldn't trust Royal Mail with my used toilet paper after this episode!
Indeed...Royal mail should revert to doing the only two things they've ever been any good at over the past fourty years: Distributing postal spam, and running the telegraph service...

In the meantime, I'm off down the shops to find myself a nice and weighty sledgehammer. Should come in quite handy next time I pass a certain organisations head office...

[DieselDragn]

Hail again!
Please excuse the double post...Just making an update on this matter, and asking for advice as to what action I should take next.

As of today (A week since I signed up for LF) my first DVD still hasn't shown up, and the only logical conclusion that I can make is that it's been lost/stolen in the post. Worse still, I sent LF a message yesterday asking for my rental queue and my trial to be frozen whilst the issue was being resolved to reduce my liability to LF in the event that things went completely bottoms-up, but they say they've already sent my second DVD out and that it can't be held as requested.

Anyhow...Here's the relevant correspondance between myself and LoveFilm, edited where appropriate for confidentiality purposes:

Originally Posted by DieselDragon's request

Dear LoveFilm,
Many thanks for your automated e-mail which I have received just now (Sat 10th Jul 2010 - 14:45) about the procedure being taken with regard to my attempted rental of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)" which appears to have been lost or stolen whilst in transit.
In accordance with the instructions in this e-mail, I will keep an eye out for the P91 form that you are sending, and ensure that this is completed and returned to you as quickly as possible.

In the meantime however; Because I am currently most concerned about the unreliability of the Royal Mail that has been highlighted by this matter and do not wish to place myself at risk of incurring charges through the actions of dishonest postal employees, I wish to ask that you place my rental queue on hold until further notice, and instruct that you DO NOT send any further discs to myself until this postal matter has been resolved in full and to my complete satisfaction. This instruction applies to ALL currently queued discs including "Saw", which is currently showing as being queued for dispatch.

In addition; Because of this matter and the strong distrust within myself that this has raised with regard to the trustworthiness of Royal Mail, I would also like to ask that you provide me with:

1. All information that you have entered onto the P91 form that you are sending me along with field names, so that in the event I do not receive this P91 form before Tuesday, I may obtain a blank form from a local Post Office branch and complete this with the relevant information to prevent any further delays, and
2. An e-mail address to which I may send high resolution scans of the completed P91 form and certificate of posting (Estimated size ~6MB in total) to ensure that you still have copies of the relevant documents, in the event that the completed P91 form is lost or misdelivered whilst being sent back to yourselves.

Finally: Given that I should have received my first DVD by Wednesday 8th July at the latest and this would have been posted back to you yesterday, I would like to ask how my current trial of the LoveFilm service is being adjusted to compensate for these delays, given that they have been caused entirely through Royal Mail's failure to operate properly, and through absolutely no fault of my own?

Many thanks for your assistance in this difficult matter, and I hope to receive acknowlegement from yourselves of all points raised above as soon as possible.

Yours Faithfully,
- Mr. *. ************* -

Originally Posted by LoveFilm's response

Dear *************,
Thank you for your email. Please accept my sincere apologies for any inconvenience caused.

Please let me assure you that you will not be charged for any discs lost in the post. The reason we ask our customers to fill in the P91 form is to enable us to claim for the loss directly from the Royal Mail. Please don't worry if you have not received this very quickly, it takes up to 4-8 weeks for the P91 form to be sent from the day the title is reported as "lost in post". If you wish to send us a copy of the completed form, please do so to *************@*************.

Unfortunately, as we do not send out the form, I cannot advise you on the exact details required.

As per our Terms & Conditions we cannot be held responsible for any delays caused by the Royal Mail. Our turnaround promise to all our customers, is that we will dispatch your next rental within one working day, once we have received your previous rental at our Distribution Centre. If you feel there is a delay with the Royal Mail's service, please speak with your local sorting office and they will be happy to assist you where possible.

With regards to 'Saw', once allocated for dispatch, we are unable to stop it as by this time, it is in a Royal Mail bag along with hundreds of other discs. This disc was sent to you on 10/07/2010.

Please note however, that you haven't missed out on a disc as once a disc is reported lost, a replacement is sent out. You still have 1 title left to use before 18/07/2010.

Should you require any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Kind regards,
Karen

My main concern here is how this issue affects the time factor in relation to my trial. Had there been no delays or losses I would've received my DVD by Wednesday and returned it by last post on Friday, receiving my second disk hopefully by the following Tuesday, leaving ample time for me to return it before the end of my trial.

However, these delays mean that even if Saw does make it through the post fine (Which - Given that one disc has already gone walkabout - I do have my doubts) I'll be hard pressed to get it back to LF before the end of the original two-week trial.
Given that a delay has ocurred and that I havn't even received my first disc yet, surely my hope that the trial end date would be extended to compensate for these delays is not an unreasonable one?

The worst thing of all though is that it's already given me a hell of a lot of aggro as I've been continually worried over my liability toward LF regarding the lost disc, and thanks to this I'm only able to view the whole experience in a negative light. Considering how much I was really looking forward to having a near limitless supply of Horror and Gore movies on-tap, I have to say that this whole debacle is a real disappointment...Although I'll add that I don't consider this to be LoveFilm's fault.

Anyhow...If anyone could offer their advice on this and advise me as to how best I should proceed, then I would be most greatful.
+++ DieselDragon +++

[DieselDragn]

Please pardon the double-post, but just sticking a final one in to say that the problem's been resolved. The first DVD was honestly lost to the post, but Saw did make it through in the end...And LF resent TCM to me on top, which also arrived a day ago!

So thankfully it's more or less all squared-up now. Just got to find time to watch these and turn 'em around to make the most of next month's subscription!

Land of Gore and Bloodshed; Here I come!