11/11/2022.
The Gullen’s wedding date has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?
But Kathryn and the new Anna Gullen almost didn’t have one of their rings in time for their ceremony.
“I need it in eight days, like I need it in my hand,” Kathryn said.
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Just days before their wedding, the West Hartford couple discovered that Kathryn’s custom-made band, which they paid for with United Parcel Service expedited shipping, was lost in transit.
“I contacted customer service through one of their chats and they basically told me, ‘Oh we can’t really give me any more information,” said Kathryn.
So, with time ticking to walk down the aisle, Kathryn threw a Hail Mary, asking for advice on a community Facebook page.
NBC CT Responds
She wrote in part, “This is a long shot, but does anyone here work at UPS in Hartford? ... I was hoping maybe someone here somehow has a UPS connection that could help me.”
“If someone could give me the harsh truth of, ‘Look you’re not getting this ring, you’re going to have to go find at least a temporary replacement on the day of ceremony,’” Kathryn said.
A concerned community member forwarded her post to the NBC CT Responds team.
We wanted to help them tie the knot with all rings in hand.
“It made us just feel kind of like someone was on our side to back us up a little bit which was great because we were so stressed out and didn’t know what to do,” Anna said.
After NBC CT Responds got involved, UPS stepped up its communication with the couple.
“We actually got a person on the phone at UPS to give us information that they told us we couldn’t get,” Kathryn said.
While UPS said it was investigating the package status, the company reached out to the seller in Texas who made the ring to see if she was willing to swiftly re-create another.
She was willing and UPS paid for overnight shipping.
“She wanted to make sure that we had it for our special day,” Anna said.
“And that was the one thing UPS did do that was helpful,” Kathryn said.
That ring arrived with time to spare for their special day.
In a statement about the Gullen’s situation, the company tells NBC CT Responds:
“Meeting our service commitments is UPS’s first priority. UPS worked alongside the customer to resolve the issue and we’re happy to report the special package was received this week.”
But the couple feels bad for the ring creator who went above and beyond.
“She did custom make it. So for her to get profit off of that, she would have to wait for someone else who has a size six blue ring which could be tomorrow, could be months from now, and that just doesn’t seem fair,” Kathryn said.
UPS told us over the phone that if the original package is never recovered, the seller can submit a claim to UPS.
In the meantime, if you’re planning a wedding, the newlyweds have some advice.
“Definitely don’t order your rings super close to the date of your wedding in case one of them gets lost in the mail or who even knows what else,” Kathryn said, laughing.
But the couple is thankful for NBC CT Responds for making their wedding ring woes come full circle, after a stressful test of sorts before their lifetime commitment to each other.
“I’m glad that we at least have each other to go through the really crazy parts [of life],” Anna said.
If you’re frustrated with a consumer problem, submit your complaint here.
