FED EX Liability on used Electronics

heiney9

My new job is in the mail and parcel industry. I am the operations manager for a trade association that provides its members (small neighborhood mail and parcel centers) with resources, education, training, research, support and general good business practices to help them achieve success.

One of my tedious jobs is to scour the service manuals from the various carriers and analyze the tariff terms of shipping.

One in particular for FED EX that stands out and is of great importance here for sellers is this clause:

Liability for loss or damage to used electronic equipment shall be limited to $100, unless a higher value is declared on the FED EX Ground pick-up Record and applicable charges are paid. In those instances where the shipper declares a value in excess of $100, our liability shall be determined by the most recent edition of The Orion Blue Book series applicable to the specific item lost or damaged or the declared value, whichever is lower, but in no event will the liability exceed the declared value.

The bold part is the most important!!!!!! If you sell and declare a value higher than The Orion Blue Book you will only get compensation for the Orion Blue Book Value, not what you sold it for or what you declared the value to be.

Now, if you use a pack and ship place and declare a value higher than $100 (the std value all carriers give for most items) and they use a secondary insurance company (which is almost certain as carriers aren't in the insurance business) make sure you know the terms of the secondary insurance company.

This was something I did not know about shipping used electronic equipment and all should be aware. I haven't yet found what UPS tariffs are for this situation. But with FED EX GROUND the above limited liability is in effect.

FWIW

H9

dorokusai

Too bad there is no Orion Blue Book anymore.....they may need to update their verbage.

heiney9

dorokusai wrote: »

Too bad there is no Orion Blue Book anymore.....they may need to update their verbage.

Really??? This is the most recent service manual from Fed Ex with the last update done March 2008. Gotta love the small print, how can they enforce something that doesn't exist?

I find it quite funny that they put a very specific protective tariff on used electronics that is no longer valid.

H9

BaggedLancer

Better off if they use an older one....higher values on used equipment.

tugboat

You would think that for a one time insurance for shipping that they would allow you to insure for the price you paid for the item and not what anyone would value it. If I paid 500 for an amp, then that's what it is worth because of my out of pocket expense.

heiney9

tugboat wrote: »

You would think that for a one time insurance for shipping that they would allow you to insure for the price you paid for the item and not what anyone would value it. If I paid 500 for an amp, then that's what it is worth because of my out of pocket expense.

All I can say is ask a lot of questions and do a lot of research. All the carriers (FED EX GROUND; FED EX EXPRESS; UPS; DHL) have an automatic amount of $100 insurance in every single shipment. Anything over that you as a consumer decide to purchase is handled by a secondary insurance company and they all have their fine print as well.

I bring this all up because UPS "lost" a pair of LSi 7's I bought on E-bay and the seller insured them for the purchase price plus the cost to pack and ship them and I have no idea what the outcome is going to be.

The store connected with our trade organization pays the claim upfront and then negotiates with the carrier in hopes of receiving payment. That's one of HUGE advantages of having a pack and ship store do the work because they should stand behind the packing and shipping 110%. Not sure if my seller used a store like this or did it on his own.

All the carriers have enough protective tariffs to make your head spin!!!!!

H9

Ron Temple

One of my transportation partners won't allow any declared value for used electronics. It's not a parcel carrier and only deals with the corporate market, but there is just too much liability on used gear and values that may exceed $1M.

heiney9

Ron Temple wrote: »

One of my transportation partners won't allow any declared value for used electronics. It's not a parcel carrier and only deals with the corporate market, but there is just too much liability on used gear and values that may exceed $1M.

I can see that.

Really for consumer used electronics until you hit a certain value on declared value they pretty much will pay unless it's a very suspect situation. But, they have the protective tariff worded so they can get out of it at anytime.

I am just pointing it out so people are aware of it. Chances are if you declare a value of $500 because that's what the selling price was and it gets lost or damaged they will pay the claim for the declared value even if the value is $300.

H9

Ron Temple

heiney9 wrote: »

I can see that.

Really for consumer used electronics until you hit a certain value on declared value they pretty much will pay unless it's a very suspect situation. But, they have the protective tariff worded so they can get out of it at anytime.

I am just pointing it out so people are aware of it. Chances are if you declare a value of $500 because that's what the selling price was and it gets lost or damaged they will pay the claim for the declared value even if the value is $300.

H9

Yep, the fine print is structured to protect the carrier and insurer. The large integrated parcel and 3/4PL carriers are actually pretty good about handling the consumer level claims. However, corporate claims handling is a fine line balancing maintainence of good customer relations with minimal payout. Huge claims leveraged by deep pocket legal grunt can kill the slim margins of a transportation company. Apples and oranges and nearly off topic, but Claims departments are setup to protect the carrier not the injured party.

As a consumer I appreciate the update H9 .

snow

Thanks for the info, its certainly something to keep in mind. Usally I ship USPS simply due to where I live. It is so expensive to ship UPS or FEDEX simply because there is no true ground until it arrives in seattle. USPS will pay a claim for what you paid for an item up to the value of the insurance bought, but you have to have proof of purchase price and the package must have had adequate protection not packing peanuts thrown in a second hand box. It will take a while but they will pay including the cost of shipping.



REGARDS SNOW

Toy Maker

Orion BB was BS anyway to start... Those were always "Pawn Shop pricing" guidelines
Look into DHL... AMAZING service so far !!

reeltrouble1

The Fedex clause is not binding on the shipper and can be easily broken down by any 2nd year law student. When they accept the item a bailment is created and monies change hands, they are responsible to the shipper for any value loss incurred by the shipper as a result of their negligence. The value of an item in this case is determined by what a willing and able buyer will pay to a willing and able seller, its just a PITA fighting coporates but it can be done, its just whether the time and aggravation is worth it.

Of course the courts will apply some common sense so dont go insure a peanut for a million dollars that you sold to your club bud and then tell FEDEX they destroyed it because the shell is cracked. Just eat the peanut.

RT1

heiney9

Ted, I agree 100% but one shouldn't even have to consult a lawyer to get their fair value back. Let's face it the squeaky wheel always get the grease, but that process is becoming the norm rather than the exception in today's world.

Part of the reason is because of Las's friend who keeps committing fraud on UPS.

It comes down to this

1) read the fine print and be prepared with knowledge if something happens

2) don't skimp on declared value to save some $$$

3) pack things properly; don't cut corners (over pack if nec)

Follow these 3 rules and you will probably never have to have grease applied to your situation.

H9

NotaSuv

Toy Maker wrote: »

Orion BB was BS anyway to start... Those were always "Pawn Shop pricing" guidelines
Look into DHL... AMAZING service so far !!

I have had very good experinces so far with DHL, and yes there are horror stories with every shippin company.........
even shipped a pair of SDA 1's across country and they arrived just fine..have shipped some very heavy Jeep parts and never a problem and their prices can't be beat...