So, about a month ago I bought a vintage bracelet for my 69 Speedmaster and it got lost in DHL's Leipzig hub. Well, ok, things happen, especially in December. It was the DHL Express service. The seller did not insure nor declare the value of the package. He had a good experience with DHL before and he has sent out many much more expensive packages with DHL. Anyway, he contacted DHL and sent them info about my payment and the contents. It did not make any difference at all. DHL just won't compensate a dime. How is this possible? I mean it doesn't matter what the value was, they lost it, it's their fault. But, they act like it's something their clients should consider when buying their service. They won't even compensate for the cost of the shipping. Have you guys have had a similar experience?
I all comes down to what service the seller used , as to whether there is any compensation. If they used a service with nil compensation, or 30 euro compensation then why would they pay out anything (more) ? Whilst DHL lost the package, the fault lies with the seller (they took the risk, unless you agreed to how they would send it etc to avoid fees/shipping costs). Using DHL in the UK, additional insurance is quoted at £12, or 1.5% of the insured value (whichever is greater) - i'd assume something similar sending from the EU Royal Mail has as standard a pretty low compensation value, ca £20 off the top of my head - you can increase the insurance to cover up to £2k from recollection for an additional premium. Sending my Speedy 2 for service across the UK was about £13, delivered before 1pm next day with additonal insurance to cover £1500 loss. I have known sellers to deliberately use low cost, nil compensation shipping services as a means to not highlight valuable items to the courier/shipping employees. My speedy 2 initially arrived in a jiffy envelope with a first class mail stamp on it, no special insurance, no quick ship service etc. For the very reason of high traffic / Christmas chaos I asked the retailer on my ST1 to hold shipping until today - I'm not sure what Fedex service they are using, but again the risk is there's if it doesn't make it inside my front door, Unless you agreed to the shipping service as part of the deal, then the seller should refund your payment.
DHL may not compensate you, but the seller should (unless you asked for it to be sent via a non-insured service because you wanted to save on postage).
This is, as they say, not rocket science. Know the terms of service before shipping, and such "surprises" will never occur.
You could try approaching the "The Electricity Board", I suppose Some of the Brits may remember these guys in the seventies... Cheers, Chris
Yeah, I get it. My mistake was not specifying with the seller that it must be insured. I thought it was logical. I always insure. But the fact remains that DHL lost it. And they have no responsibility.
Insurance is there for a reason. Any time I send a package, the shipping company always make it very clear what level of compensation you can expect should something go wrong. It’s relatively rare for something bad to happen. If you don’t take insurance, why should they be expected to pay out, when the sender didn’t cover it correctly?
If the seller sent the package without insurance and without you knowing then they are responsible. Who is the seller?
I always give the buyer two options: 1) dhl is fast but not insured. If the package get lost, it's on you...; 2) insured shipment but that's slow. I've never lost a package through DHL. But shit happens. I disagree that only the seller is to blaim. There are two people involved. I would split the costs in this case (if both did'nt make any specific agreement)
But @Risto , you 're not new to the collectors game? Did'nt you know this about dhl? Still very unfortunate. Wish you the best!
All good points here. The seller is not new to me, I've bought 2 watches previously from him before and he has a good rep. I just did not even think that he wouldn't declare the value nor use the insurance. For my future dealings, I shall always ask that! But, I've had 0 bad exp with DHL before, I've sent about 20 watches worldwide. From Estonia. Always insured. There was a holdup for 1 day in DHL's Leipzig hub a few days before this shipment with my previous package that came from UK. Fortunately, it worked out. It was 69 Speedmaster.
They are to avoided no more, or less, than any other service - other couriers/shippers offer nil/minimal insurance services and also lose packages. The issue is the incorrect choice of shipping service, which may have been OK 99% of the time, but not this time.
It’s the smaller packages that are always lost in December or January. Ship a bracelet in a shoe box is my advice. Wouldn’t be surprised if it turned up in a few weeks. The amount of volume this time of the year dwarfs the next 6 months.
Did he inform you about this, prior shipping? Did you agree on that? Answer both questions and you've solved your problem. IMO that's wrong. If the package goes lost, they will refund the shipping costs + declared/insured value, if any. Good luck with your case, honestly, if you were aware of no declaration and no insurance this means you've accepted the risk. If the seller didn't declare/didn't insure and didn't even inform you about that, to me it's his own decision to bear the risk and you should claim your money back (goods & shipping costs).
