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PIP Insurance and Stamps.com

JJ_Colt45

JJ_Colt45

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I am looking for a better way to insure packages I ship through USPS ... I know of Stamps.com and of PIP insurance ...

but my question is can these by used for a personal delivery insurance on packages? ... Or is it geared only for businesses?

I have looked over both sites and I might be missing something but they seemed to be meant to be used by businesses only ...

if anyone has answers or even another option for a third party insurance to use when shipping through USPS instead of using their insurance ... which seems to be basically worthless as it seems they very very rarely ever payout.

Any help or recommendation will be greatly appreciated.

-JJ
 
I cannot answer your question. But there are some folks here who use Stamps.com, as occasionally when I buy a knife on the Exchange, I will receive a nearly instantaneous tracking number as soon as I submit payment.
I've purchased and sold quite a few knives over the yrs, but have NEVER had a knife lost via USPS, regardless of insurance. I suspect that the use of tracking numbers places a bit more "light" on the carrier.
 
JJ_Colt45 said:
I am looking for a better way to insure packages I ship through USPS ... I know of Stamps.com and of PIP insurance ...

but my question is can these by used for a personal delivery insurance on packages? ... Or is it geared only for businesses?

I have looked over both sites and I might be missing something but they seemed to be meant to be used by businesses only ...

if anyone has answers or even another option for a third party insurance to use when shipping through USPS instead of using their insurance ... which seems to be basically worthless as it seems they very very rarely ever payout.

Any help or recommendation will be greatly appreciated.

-JJ
Click to expand...

What are you sending me that requires insurance? It must be nice! :p
 
Sonnydaze said:
I cannot answer your question. But there are some folks here who use Stamps.com, as occasionally when I buy a knife on the Exchange, I will receive a nearly instantaneous tracking number as soon as I submit payment.
I've purchased and sold quite a few knives over the yrs, but have NEVER had a knife lost via USPS, regardless of insurance. I suspect that the use of tracking numbers places a bit more "light" on the carrier.
Click to expand...

I have never had a lost package but have had a couple friends that have and the insurance is next to worthless ...

stamps.com is a good base but seems geared towards businesses or at least high volume shipping for a monthly charge ... but I have heard great things about them settling claims quickly and easily.

might be worth the small monthly fee ... but I'll look around a bit more.
 
Registered mail would be idea if your worried about loosing packages.
 
Not so worried about losing packages specifically ... just looking for a better option for insuring packages ... that actually pays claims if there is lost or damaged items ...

not much sense in buying insurance if they only pay on a very small percent of any claims ... so decided to find an insurance that is better before I start to list and sell a good portion of my knives in the near future.

I know signature confirmations and registered mail can be a help but that still leaves you hanging in the odd chance something goes wrong ... just looking for a better third party insurance.
 
JJ_Colt45 said:
I am looking for a better way to insure packages I ship through USPS ... I know of Stamps.com and of PIP insurance ...

but my question is can these by used for a personal delivery insurance on packages? ... Or is it geared only for businesses?

I have looked over both sites and I might be missing something but they seemed to be meant to be used by businesses only ...

if anyone has answers or even another option for a third party insurance to use when shipping through USPS instead of using their insurance ... which seems to be basically worthless as it seems they very very rarely ever payout.

Any help or recommendation will be greatly appreciated.

-JJ
Click to expand...
PIP probably won't cover you below a certain amount of shipping, but whether you're a registered business or not probably won't matter. You will have to ask for a quote on their site. How much shipping in a year are you doing?

Zieg
 
JJ_Colt45 said:
Not so worried about losing packages specifically ... just looking for a better option for insuring packages ... that actually pays claims if there is lost or damaged items ...

not much sense in buying insurance if they only pay on a very small percent of any claims ... so decided to find an insurance that is better before I start to list and sell a good portion of my knives in the near future.

I know signature confirmations and registered mail can be a help but that still leaves you hanging in the odd chance something goes wrong ... just looking for a better third party insurance.
Click to expand...
They never will pay for claims on the first request and probably need some sort of evidence. Reason being, mail fraud. People make these claims just for the money. The post office would be broke if they just paid out every claim, legitimate or not. It's not right but that's the way I understand it. I've heard if you keep at it they will eventually pay out assuming everything looks right and there's enough to back it up.

Never happened to me but I've read a few stories about it.
 
Is your property covered under your homeowner’s? (And/or is it no longer yours —and covered—since you sold it?) Could you ask your home owner’s insurance carrier? (I have a separate policy on my items and don’t purchase insurance from the delivery service.)

People I know swear by UPS and FedEx as far as service and paying claims, and from what I can tell they are more expensive.
 
living in a very rural area Fedex and UPS are tougher to ship quickly and I haven't heard great thing about insurance claims through UPS either ...

In all honesty I have never needed to fie a claim and chances are I won't but after a couple people I know going through some nightmare claims processes being denied for what seems ridiculous reasons for high dollars packages sent during the holidays has just made me look into alternative options ...

My home owners doesn't cover shipped packages ... once it's out of my hands it's no longer covered except by the carrier of choice or as I'm doing and looking for a third part insurance.

Insure Post is a partner of Ship Insurance ... which is much like Stamps.com it seems ... looks to be more directed at single packages ... or low volume users I will have to look into it more ... but I've heard the best results with stamps.com ... it may well be worth the small monthly fee at least through a period of time where I may be shipping several packages.
 
There recently was a big thread about USPS insurance. Once side saying it's worthless, another saying it's legit. The same type of thread gets started every few months or so when the hubbub dies down on the most recent one.

Theft and legit loss is always gonna happen, but the way the shipper packs the blade + COMBINED with the service is the best insurance, IMHO.

Pack your blade in a nice cardboard box or USPS Priority Mailer, pack it well with peanuts or bubble wrap where nothing rattles or slides around, tape ALL the seams, and purchase Priority Mail postage with Signature Confirmation. If it's really expensive or you have a sneaking suspicion the recipient is being a little sketchy, opt with "Adult Restricted Signature Confirmation." Another little layer of protection is taping the edges with some sort of novelty tape. This can help keep honest postal workers honest. Another layer: pack the knife in a smaller inner box inside the outer box and tape it to one of the inner sides of the outside box. Every little layer adds up and helps. :thumbsup:

Make is so it can't be a quick smash and grab.

Think of it like a burglar casing a neighborhood. You don't have to live in Ft. Knox to deter the thief. You just need to be better lit up and locked down than your lazy neighbors. Make your parcel less "attractive" to sticky fingers.

I've had 2 blades shipped to me that got "lost" in transit. Both were shipped in small padded envelopes. Both were shipped First Class on the cheap. Both had the bottom corner seam slitted and I just received the empty envelope.

I ship like I described above and like Sonny, I've never had a blade I shipped fail to get delivered...knock on some wood. :oops:

At the end of 2019, take the funds you saved on private insurance and buy yourself a nice Spyderco Sprint or ZT. You can thank me next Christmas. ;)
 
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Maybe I'm lucky but 've never had an issue with USPS paying out on insurance. I've had three instances of stolen knives over the last fifteen years and all were paid out. You have to follow their rules, the payment doesn't happen as fast as you like, but they pay.
 
This is more a preventative measure ...I myself have never needed to even file a claim but in recent months know of two friends that had to and got nowhere ...

and although so far I have had good luck I am just exploring alternatives for when I get starting to thin out my knives which means I will be shipping more for awhile ...

I know most packages are fine and get where they are going and I take extra care in packing and taping extra to make damage or theft much harder .. but I am just hoping for a better alternative to USPS insurance ...

I have a couple options now to look into more so hopefully one of those will fit my needs ...

thanks for any suggestions that were given ...
 
Mo2 said:
They never will pay for claims on the first request and probably need some sort of evidence. Reason being, mail fraud. People make these claims just for the money. The post office would be broke if they just paid out every claim, legitimate or not. It's not right but that's the way I understand it. I've heard if you keep at it they will eventually pay out assuming everything looks right and there's enough to back it up. only to have a new person

Never happened to me but I've read a few stories about it.
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I think you hit on the 2 problems people have collecting
1. Proof of value on a collectable
2. Is amount of time and effort they have to put out to make a claim. At some point they feel they are putting in more time then the claim is worth and just give up. I don't know if it is on purpose or just PO/government.
I have never had a lost package claim, but did have to do a money order claim. Besides the time to get there, I must have spent 3 hours at the PO on a claim. I would give the story, and they would go to the back. A different person would come out and I repeated the story. After that a 3 month wait(I believe to get paid). This was with everything I needed ready to give.
 
Stamps.com is for personal use or businesses alike... It just costs $15/month. But both times I've had to file a claim was a dream with quick payout no questions asked And the 2 other times I've filed with usps was a nightmare - they covered one claim after 6 months of fighting, and would not cover the other even after fighting it
 
razor-edge-knives said:
Stamps.com is for personal use or businesses alike... It just costs $15/month. But both times I've had to file a claim was a dream with quick payout no questions asked And the 2 other times I've filed with usps was a nightmare - they covered one claim after 6 months of fighting, and would not cover the other even after fighting it
Click to expand...

That's basically the same experiences my friends both had ... even with pictures and all documentation they got nowhere with a USPS claim.
 
My experience with USPS insurance was extremely frustrating. I won’t go so far as to say is deliberate, but it definitely seems that they make the process difficult in order to keep people from collecting.
 
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