Cana Posted August 17, 2021 Report Share Posted August 17, 2021 Hello everyone! This is my first post but I am in desperate situation. UPS lost my two boxes (of eleven) that I sent to my customer. While sending, I stated that they are ceramics and I indicated that I want full insurance. Now, after so many mails, they tell me that according to their terms and conditions any ceramic shipment is at shipper's risk. I cannot get any insurance although they are fully insured. They tell me that I had to get pre-approval -which I do not know what it is- before sending those pieces. Have you ever been in such situation? Do you all take pre-approval before shipping your pieces? I also want to warn everyone since I believe this is a serious issue. Now, I do not have any right on my 900$ missing shipment which I fully insured. Best regards, Cana Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted August 18, 2021 Report Share Posted August 18, 2021 I have had lost packages but they found them If you paid extra for insurance (per100$ is the usual thing )and they lost them they need to pay no mater what the item was. For example -UPS covers the 1st 100$ and if the value is stated was at 400$ you pay extra for that value-this is the amout you get when lost or destroyed. The pre approval you speak is this the amount beyond the 1st $100?? If it is then yes I do that all the time . also how long have they been missing and did they trace the packages? Does this answer any of your questions? Welcome to the forum sorry its under these circumstances Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cana Posted August 18, 2021 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2021 Hi Mark, thank you for your response. Yes, me too! I insured them for the extra amount beyond the $100. I insured first box for $400 and the other one for $500 which is the amount of the pieces inside. Yet, they told me that according to their terms and conditions if they are ceramics(or any artwork) and even if they are insured for the full amount, they do not take any responsibility unless if there is no pre-approval document from UPS team. I sent them an email saying that this situation is so deceptive since there is no such information written anywhere (even if there is one, in one document that I cannot find, this is so indirect and misleading). If there is such situation, that means that even if you are fully insuring your boxes, if you are sending ceramics they do not take any responsibility at the end. I will inform you about the process. I just wanted to see if anyone had a similar issue and wanted to learn if this pre-approval document is something everyone knows. Also regarding your questions, it has been one month. They traced the packages and told me that they are totally lost with no chance of being found. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted August 18, 2021 Report Share Posted August 18, 2021 Ok -let us know how this turns out-it sucks so far. I never heard about art in ceramics. I sell a mug for 25$ and sent out 10 thats 250$ and not art value. Its retail value. I have seem to have a UPS agaent call me every 3 months or so so next time I'll ask about this as aI ship out a lot with them..I need to get to the bottom of it .Why insure the value if its bogus in the end? They found my package in a few weeks last lost one at xmas time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted August 18, 2021 Report Share Posted August 18, 2021 It's my understanding that UPS covers for loss and damage for fragile items, including ceramics, only if the items goes with their "Pack & Ship" method of shipping. If you pack it yourself it isn't covered for damage. If the parcels are lost then it seems strange you can't file a loss for them, regardless of what is inside the parcels. Perhaps it's a different policy in the U.S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted August 19, 2021 Report Share Posted August 19, 2021 Was this an international or domestic shipment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted August 19, 2021 Report Share Posted August 19, 2021 So I notice your location states you’re in Montreal, and Canadian services can vary from US offerings. I went and checked out the UPS website, looking for information specifically on shipping ceramic items with a combined value of $1000. It wasn’t pretty. Because my husband has been in shipping for the better part of 20 years, I know some questions to ask, and about the careful phrasing they use. UPS states that they don’t insure ANYTHING in house with a declared value of more than $100 if you don’t use Pack and Ship. You need to purchase 3rd party insurance if you want money back for any lost or damaged packages. Long story short, you either have to buy third party insurance, or use their Pack and Ship guarantee (they pack it with new material purchased from them at a UPS store). Otherwise, you’re SOL. As a heads up to other readers, at the time of this writing, the third party company that UPS has linked to for valuable/breakage insurance over $100 is no longer offering that service. However a quick google search of “Third party package insurance” comes up with a number of providers that seem very affordable. Most quick quotes seemed to be in the <$10 range for a 1K value. There are mentions that things classified as artworks aren’t covered for damages, but are covered for loss or theft, so more in-depth inquiries may be needed before purchase. For the money, if you’re sending domestically, I have found you’re better off sticking with Canada Post. If you sign up for a free business account that requires no proof of business numbers, etc to do, you get access to Tracked Packet level shipping. It’s usually quite close in price to the business rate parcel package, is usually a couple of days faster and has a tracking number. And at least they’re up front about not covering breakables past that $100. If you’re shipping internationally, I’d choose your carrier and buy 3rd party insurance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cana Posted August 24, 2021 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2021 Hi everyone again! I wanted to wait till I get a final answer from UPS. Yes, I live in Canada so I talk according to their terms and conditions. Thus, they rejected my claim and refuse to pay me. They lost two boxes which I fully insured (I declared value of) for 900$. They say, according to their terms and conditions, although if you had an insurance and declared value, they do not take any responsibility for ceramics. The are at your risk unless if you have pre-approval document (which is a document from UPS representative that they accept the risks and they take responsibility which does not make any sense and there is no further information about it on their website.) That means that many ceramic artist around Canada are paying the insurance money to UPS for nothing. Also, while you are filling the shipping documents nobody warns you. I filled the documents in UPS store I told them they are ceramics and I told them I want full insurance. The owner of the store, the UPS representative did not tell me anything. Thank you very much for your responses. I just feel like I have to warn every ceramic artist about this situation because they make us pay for a service that they do not provide. Please share this if you can and please let me know if somebody had a similar issue and found a way out. Best regards, Cana https://www.instagram.com/canadaiceramics/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cana Posted August 24, 2021 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2021 On 8/19/2021 at 11:51 AM, Callie Beller Diesel said: Was this an international or domestic shipment? It was a domestic shipment but things I indicated in the previous post are also the same for the international shipment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cana Posted August 24, 2021 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2021 On 8/18/2021 at 4:12 PM, Min said: It's my understanding that UPS covers for loss and damage for fragile items, including ceramics, only if the items goes with their "Pack & Ship" method of shipping. If you pack it yourself it isn't covered for damage. If the parcels are lost then it seems strange you can't file a loss for them, regardless of what is inside the parcels. Perhaps it's a different policy in the U.S. Yes, that means that if you declare that they are ceramics, they do not take any responsibility and you have no right on anything in Canada (I did not read US Terms and Conditions). What I get is that the items must go with their "Pack & Ship" method of shipping and you have to have a pre-approval document that says they accept the risks, which, I believe, is nonsense. That means you have to have a UPS person at your studio at least once a week to pack (if you make regular shipping) and one another huge step in which they have to check your boxes to give you the pre-approval document every time you send something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted August 24, 2021 Report Share Posted August 24, 2021 Sounds like Callie's third party insurance would be something to look into. Thanks for getting the word out about UPS and lack of accountability for insured lost packages containing ceramics and null and void issue when shipped without their pre-approval documentation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted August 24, 2021 Report Share Posted August 24, 2021 3 hours ago, Cana said: many ceramic artist around Canada are paying the insurance money to UPS for nothing. It sucks this happened to you. I’ve been harping on this for years, but no one listens. It is absolutely wasted money to purchase additional insurance from postal services for ceramics or glass. In Canada at any rate, you should spend it on packing materials: prevention is your only option. In the past, I have had a successful claim with FedEx for a maximum of $100 for general merchandise value on breakables, plus the cost of the shipment. That’s included in the base price, and isn’t extra. However I would strongly recommend re-reading terms and conditions from both shippers and third party insurance providers at this point! There have been a number of policy changes in the past year. All levels of shipping, logistics and freight have been heavily affected by the pandemic, and they’re seeking to protect themselves. If a shipping company can find the slightest way to get out of having to pay out for lost or damaged freight, they will. Every. Last. Single. One of them. None of them are any better than the other. If you are shipping internationally, unless it’s a really small order of a piece or two, you should send it via ground rate courier, and not with any governmental postal service. If you ship with FedEx or whoever, the chain of custody isn’t broken. If they loose it or break it, it’s on them. If something happens with national post services, because the chain of custody is broken when a package crosses the border, each country’s service will blame the other for the mistake, and you have zero chance of seeing compensation. Yes, this will be more expensive. Yes, the customer gets to pay shipping. It’s part of your cost of goods sold, and should be factored into your pricing if you’re shipping is part of your business model. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted August 24, 2021 Report Share Posted August 24, 2021 3 hours ago, Cana said: That means you have to have a UPS person at your studio The way it’s written, I think you actually have to bring the stuff to them, and they pack it there. The whole point is to make it such a PIA that it’s a deterrent to businesses, and it’s only supposed to be for occasional personal use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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