Star Ledger No Longer Sucks on the Delivery Issue archived

I've had nothing but problems getting my paper delivered for the last 2 years. Missed deliveries, wet papers, missing circulars/coupons (truthfully, the ONLY reason I buy the Star Ledger). I call, ask for re-deliveries, never get them. And, for the biggest laugh of all time, the yearly envelope self-addressed (not stamped) from the delivery woman expecting a tip! After not getting my paper on Thursday, I asked for a re-delivery -- didn't get it. Called yesterday and spoke to a CSR who begged me not to cancel my subscription and swore she'd get me my paper yesterday -- didn't get it. Called today to re-cancel my subscription, and was told "OK, thank you for the opportunity to serve you". Huh? How exactly did you serve me? All along I've e-mailed the circulation manager, the editor, anybody there with an e-mail address about the horrible delivery service. Never received a reply.

I guess they're too big and arrogant to mind losing a customer. I guess that's another reason why newspapers are going out of business.

I'll get my news and circulars/coupons on the Internet from now on.

I dropped Star-Ledger a few months ago. NJ.com has the news if you need it.

we've gotten it delivered for years...and the very few days a year there is a problem, usually weather-related, they send an email apologizing and offering online access...and often that same day, we get a copy.

We have never had a problem receiving the Star Ledger home delivery. I suspect from your description that the problem was more with the delivery person than with the newspaper. Did you identify the newspaper delivery person when you called to complain about the delivery service?

joan_crystal said:

We have never had a problem receiving the Star Ledger home delivery. I suspect from your description that the problem was more with the delivery person than with the newspaper. Did you identify the newspaper delivery person when you called to complain about the delivery service?

Ditto ... JC and I live on the same street, so I suspect we have the same delivery person ... But yeah, no real problems to speak of ... Love reading a real paper every day ...

Ledger delivery has always sucked for us in maplewood. Try Suburban News Service, 973.228.5672

joan_crystal said:

We have never had a problem receiving the Star Ledger home delivery. I suspect from your description that the problem was more with the delivery person than with the newspaper. Did you identify the newspaper delivery person when you called to complain about the delivery service?

Absolutely. Most of the CSRs I spoke to (it turned out) never lodged my complaint or requests for re-delivery (even when I asked for one via their computerized telephone service). They're either unwilling or unable to control their delivery service. The woman I spoke to yesterday told me the delivery service gets fined every time they mis-deliver a paper, so they must be very rich to suffer all the fines due to just my account!

hankzona said:

we've gotten it delivered for years...and the very few days a year there is a problem, usually weather-related, they send an email apologizing and offering online access...and often that same day, we get a copy.

Hank -- how lucky are you! How do you get that kind of service? I've never received an email from them -- even when I've written to the editor and circulation manager. Geesh!

except around the holidays when they stuff the "tip envelope" in the paper....

Online_ID said:

except around the holidays when they stuff the "tip envelope" in the paper....

EXACTLY!

I didn't get delivery for years because of delivery problems. I started getting Thursday through Sunday delivery once A&P closed... All I wanted was Sunday's but they don't do that. I have had problems as well, but for the most part, I have at least gotten Sunday's paper.

we use Township Delivery (Saul Goldstein) in SO. saulball29@verizon.net. 973 493 5738. Extremely reliable.

Funny, they're extremely efficient at delivering those coupon flyers every week. I do not have and have never had a subscription to the newspaper.

My paper is always in the driveway before I get up at 6 am , even when the NY Times is not. Rain, snow, BLIZZARD the Star Ledger is always there.

I live on the West Orange/South Orange border so I suspect we have different delivery people.Can't blame the paper as much as the delivery service. Best bet is to contract with Saul or Township. Reading online is NOT the same as holding the paper, folding it just right, even being able to bring it into the bathroom.

Our paper would arrive around 7:45 - 8:00. First, I've already left for the train by then so it does me no good. More importantly, that means that the paper is sitting in my driveway as a sign to all that no one is home all day. When I called the Star Ledger, they offered another delivery. Um, duh ... even later than the first one ... so there would be two papers sitting out front ?? Then, I started getting unpleasant handwritten notes in our mailbox from the driver that he was getting charged extra because I called about a 'missed' paper. (I guess they penalize the driver if you get a second delivery as we did a couple of times) The notes said that I'd better stop complaining. That was enough for me. I'm not having a guy who knows when I'm home and when I'm not holding a grudge against me. And for the record, the Star Ledger could not have been less concerned about the problem. No follow up, no return calls, no action at all, no resolution. And I notice that the same guy is still delivering in our neighborhood and the same late times.

I guess it is your delivery man. I live in the Montrose area; right by Grove Park. Paper is there eary and everyday when I had the subscription. Just stopped as the promotion is over.

I would LOVE a way to get the coupons without having to deal with the actual paper. I read the Star Ledger online and don't particular want another bulky paper delivered. However I do use the coupons.

Jasmo gets the gold kazoo. The Ledger has it's own delivery service, but also uses independents such as Suburban who usually provide much better service. There was a lengthy discussion about that here a few years ago when The Ledger tried to undercut the independents.

It is inefficient I admit having two or three services serving the same block. This probably explains why two neighbors on the same block have different views of their delivery service.

We use Suburban News, too, for Star-Ledger delivery. They've been very good about replacing wet papers, rarely miss a delivery (except during monster snow storms). Only issue I have is that our paper was always here by 7 a.m., but lately it's been delivered at about 8:15, which is later than I'd like. With my prior schedule, I would have already have left for work, and I wouldn't want a paper sitting in the driveway all day, either.
Current schedule is more flexible, so it isn't a problem for me, but it might be for you if they can't set up an earlier delivery for you.

If you go with Suburban News or Saul Goldstein, do you have to pay extra for the delivery? Or do you order your subscription through them and they deliver it?

ceidefields said:

I would LOVE a way to get the coupons without having to deal with the actual paper. I read the Star Ledger online and don't particular want another bulky paper delivered. However I do use the coupons.

Frankly, the only reason why I subscribed to the paper was for the circulars/coupons. I'm now going to online coupon sites for what I want/need, and the Shop Rite circular was the only one I was interested in, so I'll get that online too.

Here are some coupon sites:

www.couponsuzy.com

www.grocerycouponcart.com

Just received the following e-mail (after writing to the owner, the publisher, the managing editor, the circulation manager, advertising, and two others I can't remember):

Please accept our sincere apologies for the inconvenience which caused you to contact us. Please be assured that we value your readership and certainly want to do everything possible to keep you as a subscriber. If you agree, I would like the opportunity to handle your account personally and see that we resolve the delivery issues to your satisfaction. For a start, I would like to offer you a 4 week extension to your account and I will follow up with you personally to assure all is well. I will be in the office on Monday, however if you wish to contact me, please feel free to email me.

I thank you for your time and I assure you we will make this right.

Sincerely,
Susan Snover-Probert
Subscriber Services Manager
973-392-1828
sprobert@starledger.com

Sounds as if you have their attention!

We have whatever carrier they assigned us, and except for one or two times, haven't had problems.

We only have it delivered 2x/week. The only issue I've had is during rain or snow, he doesn't have the sense to double bag the paper and often, it's soaked. I've complained, it gets better but...you know the pattern. I would like to keep the service because I really do enjoy the feel of a newspaper. I read many online so I figured the least I could do was subscribe to our local.

I ordered my star-ledger through Suburban News, not directly from the paper.

nohero said:

Sounds as if you have their attention!

Yes, and there's the problem -- LOL! I'm so sick of the whole thing I don't want to expend any more energy on it. But on the other hand, this is the first time anyone in authority has reached out to purportedly help me -- so should I deny them the effort? I'm gonna sleep on it.....

To follow-up: I received two calls from Star Ledger CSRs this morning (at 8:30am and 10:30am) to ask if my paper had been delivered. I went outside to look both times (even in the landscaping) and no paper was there. I checked my security camera beginning with daylight and saw no one but a squirrel, a bird, and a feral cat. Then around 11:20am I saw someone on my security camera coming up my stairs. By the time I got to the door she was at the curb and yelled at me "You got your paper. Now you got two."!! There were two papers on my top stair.

Really weird and now I'm worried about retaliation 'cause she was nasty. I wrote to the woman at the Star Ledger and said this is just too much and I no longer want my subscription. End of story -- I hope!

I've found that our service varies over time, presumably carrier by carrier.

My favorite was the carrier who left me a note asking me to call her cell rather than report it to the Star Ledger when I needed a missed delivery replaced, so that she wouldn't get fined. Um, no, I'm not calling her personal phone to keep her out of trouble when she misses a delivery -- I'm going to the SL website and reporting it as usual. That note actually cost her an end of year tip.

I subscribe to the Star Ledger for two reasons. The biggest one is that I don't trust anyone else to maintain a real investigative reporting effort in Trenton and Newark, and I think that this is crucial to have. So I suppose I'll be a subscriber for as long as the SL limps along and maintains an independent editorial voice.

But the secondary reason is for the coupons. Although I get some from the internet, I find a stack of recent circulars to be more efficient for me. And I'm really annoyed that I almost never get the set of circulars that tend to go out on Thursday, including the Red Plum circulars. The coupons I use should be subsidizing a chunk of my subscription cost, but don't when I only get half of them. I complained about this once, and never got an answer back...maybe time to rat on my carrier again!

I too am curious about the multiple delivery services and whether there are cost differences along with the quality differences.

For Emskware:

http://www.couponsuzy.com
http://www.grocerycouponcart.com

I didn't realize people still get newspaper deliveries.

So quaint and backwards. To get all that paper printed and delivered just to be read once. That's as environmentally backwards as one can get considering the news and columns are easily gotten on the internet.

Imagine if books were printed to be read only once.

In this day and age to use up and print all that paper, the same volume as in a book to be used one day seems so wasteful.

That could be said for text books, instruction manuals and contracts. I don't find it backwards at all. In our new world of instant downloads, it's still can be enjoyable to feel a book or a newspaper, get that smell and that ink smear on your hands and experience the paper. Don't get me wrong - I LOVE the technology but I really enjoy the sound of opening a new book and washing my hands after reading the paper. I'm so old school ;-)