insurance and shipping with UPS

When I went into UPS I requested double boxing and they stated it wasn't necessary They claimed to have special boxes for shipping heavy, fragile items. I spent a half hour there explaining the fragility and cost of the amplifier. I thought okay, they are the experts. I think resolution depends upon the particular UPS franchise that one deals with. I paid an additional $200 for 'insurance.'  From what I've read it's not really insurance anyway. It's declared value, which is the maximum liability the franchise will provide. I've challenged corporate on this issue and they have no response. I guess real insurance would effect their bottom line too much. Almost as bad, my home owners insurance wants to pick up the amplifier and attempt to have it repaired. If you saw the amplifier, even if repaired, I wouldn't sell it to anybody. It's a Levinson 432, and the entire outer casing has been crushed. The face plate has come off. The handles on the back are bent.

I want to let everyone know that I spoke with UPS and they settled the claim in my favor. I haven't received a check yet. I didn't mention that my wife, who happens to be an attorney, had e-mailed a letter to the franchise owner letting him know that a lawsuit would be pending unless the issue was resolved. Thirty hours of aggravation, a wonderful amplifier destroyed, and probably two months will have gone by the time I'm compensated. The buyer went way out of his way to help me, taking pictures, and actually speaking with UPS several times on his own initiative.  What I've learned from this is that it's imperative to find a UPS franchise that you feel comfortable with. Talk directly with the owner. Let him inspect the packaging and sign off on it. Secondly, even if one does their own boxing, UPS will go out of their way to find some sort of flaw with the packaging. I actually think that the amplifier was properly packaged. Unfortunately, it was dropped off a truck. Unless one gets some sort of certification from UPS that your audio equipment was packaged properly, or even if they packaged it; Beware. What I've learned? There has got to be a better way. At any rate, thanks for all the help and encouragement. I'll let you know if and when I get compensated.

Thanks for all the responses. I think the primary reason my claim was resolved was due to  the letter my lawyer-wife sent to the owner of the franchise. I was also very lucky in that the buyer was so awesome. He was bummed about the amp, but was also really upset that it happened to me. He's still sitting around with the box and the amp, hopefully not in his living room, waiting for resolution. However, regardless of how well something is boxed, UPS will go way out of their way to deny liability, and even in my case, when they did the actual packaging. It's right on their website, if they packaged and it is damaged, they are liable.  Really, what is one supposed to do, go in to their store with a tape recorder to gather evidence in case something goes wrong. Can you imagine going into the franchise and asking them, "Do you mind me recording this conversation." But why should anyone ever have to go through the hassle of small claims court and the countless abusive phone calls between corporate UPS and the UPS franchise. What a waste of time and aggravation. We all have better things to do with our lives.

At any rate,  I'm liquidating all of my audio gear because I'm moving to Europe. I have very expensive speakers that I'm shipping to California and I'm having them crated for International shipping at the buyer's request. The buyer requested the ISPM label which I assume is a requirement for International.  My mover, Pickens-Kane uses Allied Van, and while they will crate they won't ship anything under 1000 lbs. I've spoken with Fed-Ex, and while they don't crate, they will box and inspect the crating, and if they feel the packaging is adequate they will then transport and guarantee against breakage. They have some sort of formula, in which they guarantee a dollar amount per pound. I spoke to them at length and they seem more reputable than UPS. Do you guys think Fed Ex is safe? If not what are the alternatives?

The crazy thing is that 4 months ago I sent a very expensive vintage watch for repair and used UPS. All I have to say is Thank God it wasn't damaged or lost. I don't think I would have ever recovered.

I actually thought that sfeay made a valid point. Personal comments on forums are never necessary, and I'm not talking about sfeay. We're all hear to learn and exchange ideas. I'll never understand why disparaging remarks are ever made and are usually precursors to food fights. These things really detract from the quality of the forum, and I'm sure discourage good people from ever posting. My takeaway from the posts and my personal experience is that regardless of how well something is packaged, if it falls off a truck or is run over by a forklift, it's going to be ruined. If an individual does his own packing, and even if it is packaged  properly, more often than not, UPS will find a way to deny the claim. There is actually a  greater likelihood of collecting what they call 'insurance' if you let them pack it. Okay, supervise the packing, but make sure they are involved.

The beat goes on. I recently posted that my UPS claim had been resolved with respect to my Levinson. The franchise manager said that corporate had mailed them a check and they were waiting to receive the check in order to pay me. None of this is true. UPS corporate called my poor buyer and requested even more photos than the ones he had already provided. They wanted him to take the amplifier apart and take additional photos of the interior. He responded that he did not have the tools and did not want to cause additional damage to the amplifier. Why they are even conversing with the buyer is beyond me. I'm the claimant and I've already reimbursed the buyer. Shortly thereafter, UPS responded that they wanted to pick up the amplifier. I told the buyer that under no circumstances allow them to pick up the amplifier. If they wanted additional photos, let their claim’s adjuster come back once again and take more photos.  Of course I notified the franchise owner that the store manager had been telling me for over a week that the 'check was in the mail' and that corporate had no idea that any claim had ever been resolved. My wife, as I previously stated is an attorney, e-mailed  Mr.  Franchise Owner to notify him that he was, in addition to  damages, also responsible for the actions of his employees. As I write this, my wife just received an e-mail from Franchise Owner asking for my phone number, saying there were things he wanted to talk about regarding UPS that he couldn't mention in an e-mail. Of course my wife refused, replying that a paper trail was necessary for any correspondence. This is probably far from over and unfortunately I'm forced to file a suit this week in small claim's court.

I also wanted to mention that until recently, I was using Chubb for my homeowner's policy and had two somewhat similar issues for substantially more money than the Levinson. Within a week a received both checks, no questions asked. One was for a gold Rolex, which was stolen during shipping, and I was reimbursed full replacement value.