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insurance and shipping with UPS

I recently shipped a Levinson 432 amplifier with UPS.I brought it to UPS and requested that they box it. It was insured. During transit UPS dropped the amplifier and pretty much destroyed it. I offered to pay for repairs, however the buyer had no interest in purchasing the item. UPS inspected the damaged amplifier and denied my claim, insisting  the  amplifier was not properly packaged. Corporate denied responsibility and said the issue was between myself and the UPS franchise that shipped it. I've been dealing with the franchise for a month and they are fighting with corporate in an attempt to adjudicate the issue. Meanwhile, I've repaid the buyer and have had  no relief from UPS. The UPS website clearly states that if a franchise boxed the item they are responsible. Does anyone have a suggestion on how to resolve this issue, other than hiring an attorney? UPS seems to be somewhat of a scam operation. I did not realize that all UPS offices were franchises and am wondering why anyone would ship anything of value with them.
catsally1
kqvkq9's avatar
kqvkq9
122 posts
 
Uberwaltz--
Thank you. Nobody else mentioned using the Post Office. I have made over 300 tube amps from scratch. I'm also a retired Postmaster. The amps I mailed went through the Post Office. Never an issue.
Then again, i always did double box and significantly over pack.
It's much easier to spend a little time and effort on bulletproof packingthan dealing with a long distance claim.

spin4cards's avatar
spin4cards
55 posts
 
If it is not considered too off topic, I have a question that may be best addressed by the retired postmaster kqvkq9 although I certainly welcome comments by anyone who cares to chime in. I have a small brick and mortar sports collectible business that I have owned and operated in the same location for 28 years. Naturally, I have insurance for my business and I pay a premium for that insurance. I must repeat, I pay for the insurance for my business. I use the USPS on a daily basis shipping mostly small, First Class packages and a few Priority Mail packages that can weigh up to 20 pounds . These type packages are very easy to package safely. The values on these packages range from $10.00 to $4,000.00. My question is this...If I pay the USPS their fee, which is based on weight and distance, to deliver a package, which is their job, why must I pay them extra to "Insure" that they do the job that I just paid them to do?! This of course holds true also for UPS, FedEx etc..
mdiaz
63 posts
 
I recently had a similar problem with FedEx but I had done all the packing myself. I was able to sell the item that had slight damage but lost $2K in the deal. My packing was actually overdone but "gorillas" must have handled it in transit. 
uberwaltz's avatar
uberwaltz
13,381 posts
 
While I agree with some of the comments here regarding going nuclear on the packaging somebody has to pay for it.
In todays market try asking the buyer to pay an extra $150 to help protect his purchase, they are just going to move right along 99% of the time.
So now the seller has to stump up and this cuts into an already greatly reduced baseline due to the terrible selling conditions in the market right now. Lets face it about the only way anything is selling is on price period, does not really matter what it is.
Yes what cost to protect the goods being shipped is the moral story here and again agreed on principle.
But when it boils down to a deal where you are likely already bleeding money it may just not be financially viable.
dmid
5 posts
 
I have currently been dealing with UPS shipping around 19 years and have learned some very valuable lessons during that time. First of all if something has value over $100 dollars you need to insure for over the based value of what you are shipping or they absolutely will not cover it, also always pack the item yourself and never trust anyone to do it for you. If the item has a lot of weight I would simply not ship UPS as it will get damaged or destroyed. If I am forced to ship a heavy item with them pack it like it is being protected from a nuclear blast! We will pack the box inside another box padding all with no room for movement of the item and that way it has a buffer. Also the UPS area you are in will have a rep you can reach out to and this may help you with dealing with the franchise since they are representing their company. Good Luck!
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