Is Shipping Insurance Obligatory For Seamless Delivery?

With world's major population online and all the seasonal offers at peak, it is time for the online seller to pull up the socks to meet customer’s expectation. With the majority of people booking orders online, courier companies are striving hard to fulfill the orders. Even with all the safety measures taken by the courier company, mishap may happen like damaged, stolen or lost parcel. Your shipment is not secure until it is passed on to your customer, as the shipment undergoes a various change of warehouse, mode of transportation, handlers etc., hence with insurance on shipping products you can reimburse on lost, damaged or missing parcels, thereby avoiding the seller's anxiety during shipment delivery.

It is inappropriate to ensure each and every product you ship. If you are shipping any high-priced product and if you are twitchy about it being robbed or getting lost, then it is suitable for you to go for it. But make sure that the amount spent on insurance is less than the value of the product. Some of the courier companies bare reimbursement for damaged or missing parcels up to a certain amount depending on value/weight. Not every item can get reimbursement; certain items such as money, jewelry etc., and rarely some of the international shipping locations are also not covered. Sometimes insurance claim can be rejected because of sub-standards of packaging.

Which Insurance to opt for?

Insurance can be categorized into carrier insurance and 3rd party insurance. Carrier insurance is given by the courier company through which you are shipping your products. They reimburse for the damages/missing/loss of the shipment. Certain carriers will be liable for declared value coverage for damaged/missing parcels up to a predefined amount of declared value of the shipments. They will reimburse if the damaged/loss has occurred by the negligence of the carrier. But this is an arduous process as you have to prove the negligence of carrier. If your declared value is above this, then you can go for supplementary insurance. But this process may delay as the seller has to surrender shipments evidence of loss. 3rd party insurance is another of its kind where insurance is availed by a private company. They provide service irrespective of the carrier used for shipping. This is relatively cheaper when compared to carrier insurance and it can be easily claimed through online and involves less processing time.

When and How to File Claim ?

Once you notice that you have not received your parcel even after the next day of the delivery due date, this means that the parcel is missing and you can file a claim immediately. The last day to file claim varies from courier companies. Filing claim is a prolonged process as it takes time to track the missing parcel, it can generally take 8-10 days. Only after this, the claim is approved and documentation takes place. Appropriate proof has to be submitted for damaged goods such as a real-time photo of the product, a copy of insurance and products value documents. A claim can be rejected if the shipment was not packaged properly. Hence make sure you pack the shipment in accordance with carrier’s standard.

Advantages of Shipping Insurance:

1.    It enables you to ship goods tension free, as you are prepared for the worst situation.

2.    If any damages/loss occurs during the journey of the shipment, you can raise a claim.

3.    It will to some extent save you from the loss incurred due to damages/loss of shipment

4.   Easy to file a claim with the private insurance company, since the majority of the private insurance companies are integrated with carrier companies, filing a claim can be done easily online.

Conclusion:

At the end of the day, customer satisfaction is what all companies strive for. Make sure you are not hindering their experience with issues during shipment delivery. Choose shipping insurance if you feel it's necessary. With proper choice of shipping insurance, you can focus on other aspects of business rather than taking stress about the delivery of the shipment.