Extra Shipping Insurance: Worth it?

Discussion in 'Trade Talk' started by ukwildcat1995, Jun 19, 2016.

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  1. ukwildcat1995

    ukwildcat1995 Initiate (0) May 24, 2015 Florida

    I've never taken out extra insurance when trading. Always just assumed that if a package was damaged, and since it was beer, that I would never be able to file a claim if damage occurred.

    Lately, though, I've heard of people getting claims paid for damage. I just wondered if the cost of the extra insurance would be worth it. The last box I sent had a value of over $200. And that was my cost, not the inflated value we sometimes see with some beers.

    So, any thoughts?
     
  2. Yohann

    Yohann Zealot (744) Apr 29, 2014 Wisconsin
    Trader

    Insurance won't be worth anything if you can't collect on it, and you won't be able to collect if you tell them (or they find out) you were shipping beer, since that's against their regulations (or the law, in the case of the USPS).

    So: If the box goes missing or is destroyed and you make a claim, what information will they request about its contents (e.g. will they ask you to somehow substantiate the value), and what will you tell them?
     
    Adrena1ine, ttp86 and ukwildcat1995 like this.
  3. beernuts

    beernuts Initiate (0) Jan 23, 2014 Virginia

    I've thought about doing this just so that they'll be more careful with my package, but I doubt it helps.
     
    ukwildcat1995 likes this.
  4. mikevanatta

    mikevanatta Initiate (0) Sep 29, 2014 Minnesota

    The folks who handle boxes don't know you have insurance on a package. It's all managed electronically through the computer system. There is typically nothing on a box that denotes whether or not it has insurance on it.
     
    mythaeus likes this.
  5. mythaeus

    mythaeus Pooh-Bah (2,074) Jul 22, 2013 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    My understanding is that some people say "collectible glassware", "crystals", or other gifts. I've seen people on BA saying they got insurance payout without having to file a claim as well. Breakages may be harder to claim insurance on, but if a box is missing in transit (typically due to label falling off), it's a little easier to file claim. Even if you claimed beer, without the box they wouldn't know whether or not you shipped it with proper labeling (the reason for violating the shipping policy is mainly "Improper Alcohol Shipment"). If anything, you can also claim ignorance of the policy if bottles break.

    Personally, I usually don't add extra insurance, but sometimes if it's a bigger box with more "valuable" bottles, I'll add to cover an extra $100 on top of the default $100. It doesn't cost that much more.
     
  6. pmoney

    pmoney Initiate (0) Apr 15, 2011 Illinois

    @hustadaj recently had success getting the standard $100 insurance for a box that was mis-delivered and lost. He could probably provide a little insight about how that process went. Unfortunately the $100 didn't cover the "secondary value" of the lost beer, but it was better than nothing at all.
     
  7. ifican

    ifican Initiate (0) Aug 15, 2013 California

    Take this for what its worth, i read somewhere on here if you package it in such a way that you can drop it from 10ft and not worry about the contents then you have nothing to worry about. Now 10ft is a bit extreme for me but in the early days i have drop tested from my waist as if i was carrying and it slipped. Have since refined my packing to such a way i dont worry about breakage. It would take a serious, i mean serious incident to cause any damage to anything i pack. Just remember its your beer until its safely received. Keep that in mind and you wont have any issues with how you package.
     
  8. hustadaj

    hustadaj Zealot (540) Dec 30, 2014 Wisconsin
    Trader

    I recently claimed insurance. Lucky or unlucky, the package was lost and not damaged (so they couldn't really prove what was in there). I claimed "collectible glassware". They asked for pictures, but I waited it out a couple days, and then they just sent the check without asking for pictures again. I probably have a couple hundred shipments under my account on fedex, so they might have just taken my word for $100 since it was the first time.

    On some big bottles, I have put a much higher value on them and paid the insurance, but after this happening, I second guess doing that. I don't think it would be that easy to recover say $500+ from them without giving some decent backup as to the value of what you sent. I believe fedex charges $2 per $100 of insurance. That's not real expensive, but I'm not sure the odds that they would actually honor the request even if something happened.
     
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  9. beernuts

    beernuts Initiate (0) Jan 23, 2014 Virginia

    If your package is lost and you have extra insurance on it, you could always just take pictures of something valuable that you own and say it was in there.
     
  10. SammyJaxxxx

    SammyJaxxxx Initiate (0) Feb 23, 2012 New Jersey

    You don't want to get into the realm of insurance fraud.
     
  11. hustadaj

    hustadaj Zealot (540) Dec 30, 2014 Wisconsin
    Trader

    Exactly, certainly not worth a couple hundred bucks.
     
    SammyJaxxxx likes this.
  12. cl3

    cl3 Savant (1,244) Aug 16, 2013 Wisconsin
    Trader

    That is some next-level bad advice.
     
    ukwildcat1995 likes this.
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