Question about shipping damage

Problem is, many original packing boxes are entirely inadequate. I think many packages are designed to be shipped palletized in a large bundle and that's a different kettle of fish from shipping a single item. Marantz, Cambridge, & PS Audio are brands I've bought with woefully poor transport boxes. UPS says packaging needs to be stout enough to survive a 4 foot drop onto bare concrete, so think about how that relates to what's needed for a heavy amp, etc. I'm lucky in that I have access to very good packing materials through my job and I make most of my own shipping boxes from double wall corrugated cardboard. I glue the corners with wood glue and reinforce them. As Elizabeth mentioned, surrounding equipment with foam of adequate density is vastly better than bubble wrap. It is hard to source unless you have a Uline store close by and it costs too much. If you do use bubble wrap, use the heavy duty variety with fat 1" bubbles, not the thin stuff with 1/3" bubbles. Peanuts have no place at all in packing heavy audio equipment. When I need to fill the space between a double box, I use pieces of expanded polystyrene sheet that's used for wall insulation.

Retired now, but worked in the A/V industry for 20 years, and it is possible to ship 60lb amps with nothing but bubble wrap and peanuts in a single box. I did this many times, and never had a problem. You must use the heavy duty bubble wrap and the type peanuts that are difficult to compress. What is most important is that packing is extremely tight with absolutely NO internal movement when the box is shaken as hard as you can. Even the slightest amount will increase as the package travels due to shifting and damage to the actual packing. Enough movement will eventually cause the damage to the equipment with no evidence to the outside of the box.

I'm guessing the amp was a little loose inside the inner box, then increasing as it traveled causing the damage.

I do agree that it is better, safer, and more foolproof to use the methods stated by the other posters.

The attendant used 3 layers of thin foam and then three more layers of the large bubble wrap. She placed it in a tight fitting box. Then placed that box into a larger one filled with peanuts.

I thought it seemed well packed however as Elizabeth and the others said, it was not enough.

Just a thought, and I'm not trying to accuse anyone, but the buyer may have damaged the amp while unpacking or installing in his system, and now he's trying to cover the problem. I'm sure things like this happen, but there is no way to ever know. Best to just care of it as soon as possible, and then forget about it. Good luck!