Is it worth insuring a bass when sending through a courier

[PaulWarning]

as the title, is it worth paying out when sending a bass with a courier, don't they all exclude musical instrument from insurance?

BTW the bass is under £200

[Jakester]

Yes. IME UPS don’t exclude musical instruments. 

[dmccombe7]

I was recommended P4D by people on BC who insure the amount you select. Some don't cover musical instruments or electronic equipment, some up to value of £100. 

For a bass at less than £200 it won't cost that much but you should advertise that postage incl insurance is extra unless you want to cover that cost.

I would always insure a bass or an amp.

Dave 

[Jakester]

I should also say that just because it’s insured, it doesn’t mean they’ll pay out. I recently bought some studio speakers which were damaged in transit. The seller refunded me in full, but the courier refused to pay the seller for the damage. 

[Dad3353]

To me, insurance is a form of betting. It's laying odds on the transaction going badly, at whatever to one. Sometimes the bet pays off, sometimes the bet is welshed. For my part, I never take out insurance, and have not lost out as a consequence. I'd say that, in general, if the item is of such high value, it's worth a personal delivery. Just my tuppence-worth. 

[Lozz196]

I’ve never sent anything without insurance, luckily had no issues so never had to try and call on it.

[chris_b]

IMO if the item is less than £200, I'll "insure" it myself, ie I'll write off any damage or loss. As I said in another thread, my insurance is to package a bass so that a tank can run over it. I know basses can get lost etc, but IMO the odds are in my favour. More than £500 and I'll probably be insuring it.

[MacDaddy]

Depends, what's your peace of mind worth?

[Frank Blank]

2 minutes ago, MacDaddy said:

Depends, what's your peace of mind worth?

0.38p

[la bam]

UPS is the way to go. Same price as other companies, but the bass is insured, and I've found them excellent service too.

[PaulWarning]

cheers guys, I'll check out UPS

[Owen]

I always hate insuring. But i would have hated paying the £800 repair cost on the last bass I shipped even more. Make sure your packing fits their criteria. They will use ANY excuse to wriggle out of liability. 

[PaulWarning]

18 minutes ago, owen said:

I always hate insuring. But i would have hated paying the £800 repair cost on the last bass I shipped even more. Make sure your packing fits their criteria. They will use ANY excuse to wriggle out of liability. 

that's part of the problem, I think they insist on a hard case, but it's not worth getting one for a sub £200 bass

[Drax]

It’s just a personal choice based on your own circumstance - your judgement on how likely the worst is to happen, your ability to cover the cost if it did vs the cost of the insurance. 

I’d be comfortable sending a £200 bass without insurance , but if it was a marginal cost you might just take it anyway. 

I shipped 3 basses at once last year, collective value £3K, astronomical insurance quote which I didn’t pay. Packed the basses so they could be thrown off a roof, crossed my fingers and didn’t sleep well. All was totally fine. 

[la bam]

39 minutes ago, PaulWarning said:

that's part of the problem, I think they insist on a hard case, but it's not worth getting one for a sub £200 bass

UPS distribute for Thomann amongst others. Pretty much every bass I've had from Thomann and Andertons contain a cardboard guitar box with a larger rectangular box. Albeit that's not packaging everyone has available.

You could argue thats what they use if they then demand a hard case.

It might sound daft, but I think cardboard is also used as if its dented or damaged upon arrival you have visible proof it's been mishandled, rather than just for its protective qualities.

 

[PaulWarning]

1 minute ago, la bam said:

UPS distribute for Thomann amongst others. Pretty much every bass I've had from Thomann and Andertons contain a cardboard guitar box with a larger rectangular box. Albeit that's not packaging everyone has available.

You could argue thats what they use if they then demand a hard case.

It might sound daft, but I think cardboard is also used as if its dented or damaged upon arrival you have visible proof it's been mishandled, rather than just for its protective qualities.

 

new basses do come in just the cardboard box, but are they insured? Also I would imagine that the courier would look far more kindly on a claim from a major retailer who gives them loads of business than little old me

[dmccombe7]

That's why i checked with fellow BC'ers as to who was reckoned best to use both for ease of use and cost and if any issues how they were dealt with and whether or not the item was actually insured for the full value.

Some companies take your insurance money and then fire you the small print that says no musical instruments or electronic goods and don't pay out.

P4D came out best for everything and i've had no issues using them. They are a middle man and use different couriers but they do the insurance themselves and you would claim P4D rather than the courier.

I have to say i don't post many items tho. I'm still paranoid and would rather drive couple hundred miles and meet up if its possible.

Dave

[Drax]

1 hour ago, PaulWarning said:

new basses do come in just the cardboard box, but are they insured? Also I would imagine that the courier would look far more kindly on a claim from a major retailer who gives them loads of business than little old me

Would assume not insured. Working on scale it's usually much cheaper to find the replacement (wholesale) cost on the rare time something bad happens, than to pay for every instance to be insured. 

Company cars are often the same - brand new cars on third party only. Crashes are rare enough to make fully comp not worthwhile. Different when it's your own risk and cash though. 

[dmccombe7]

Maybe the larger shops have a blanket insurance covering damage in shop or during postage for a sale.

Dave

[PaulWarning]

In the end I sent it by parcelforce (as cheap as anyone) via Parcels2Go because it agave the option to drop it off at the local Post Office, an option which wasn't offered by P4G, you had to take it to one of their main depots.

Didn't bother with insurance apart from 74p to guarantee delivery in 3 days, (parcelforce 48), figuring that would at least guarantee it against get lost

Thankfully it arrived safe and sound in 2 days to a delighted buyer 

[Dan Dare]

On 20/06/2020 at 07:28, PaulWarning said:

cheers guys, I'll check out UPS

If you use UPS, don't seal the parcel. They insist on seeing what's in it so they can check it isn't anything dodgy (which is fair enough). They have parcel tape so you can seal it at the depot - my local one does, at any rate.