UPS offering delivery options

NEW YORK – UPS is hoping “sorry we missed you” notices will soon be a thing of the past. It’s unveiling a delivery-notification service aimed at not missing you at all.

Called My Choice, the basic free membership service allows package recipients to be notified of incoming shipments and provided an approximate arrival time the night before delivery.

Delivery alerts will be offered through email, text or phone calls. For packages that require signatures, members can electronically sign for packages on their computers or mobile phones.

For $5 per package, members can also choose to re-route the package to another address or a UPS Store in real time rather than waiting to get a “delivery attempt” notice on your door.

A premium version of the service costs $40 per year and provides delivery alerts, a delivery planner and the ability to leave driver special instructions. Premium members also are offered a two-hour delivery window, compared with the four-hour window offered for free.

The service starts Oct. 3, in time for the peak holiday shipping season. Customers can register before then at www.ups.com/mychoice/pr.

UPS said it’s developing the service to accommodate the growing segment of customers that shop online. Shoppers spent $32.6 billion online during the holidays in 2010, a 12 percent increase from the year before, according to comScore. Besides giving customers more clarity about when their package will be delivered, the service will cut down on UPS drivers’ wasted trips. The company already makes a number of adjustments in a driver’s route to be more efficient, like making only right turns.