Couriers (yet again)... a new one on me - handling charges.

[warwickhunt]

Sent a bass 2 weeks ago with Evri 48hr, booked through Interparcel (but insured via Securus).  

 

The bass was double boxed in 'exactly' the same double walled (x2) boxes that the manufacturer delivered in.  It went off no probs via my selection in Interparcel and was delivered FIVE days later.  Now that 3 day delay isn't the issue; I was miffed at the service but the buyer received it safe and sound and was over the moon with the bass.

 

Fast forward 2 weeks and I receive an email from Interparcel stating I owed £25 because: 

 

"An additional charge has been applied due to non-standard packaging, which required manual handling by the carrier.

This includes items that are irregularly shaped, cylindrical (e.g. tubes, carpets), packaged with cling film, bubble wrap, string, or excessive tape, or placed in bags or sacks. These types of packaging do not meet the carrier’s automated processing requirements."

 

At first I thought 'scam' but the address to reply/pay looked right.  I contacted Interparcel and they say the claim is brought by Evri against me.  I'm obviously going to contest it but it might be worth folk being aware that these are not phishing scams but appear to be Evri chancing their arm for extra fees.  

 

Oh and here is the irregular packaging.

 

 

[ossyrocks]

I thought basses in boxes were too big for EVRI? It's one of the reasons I don't use them, but not the main reason.

 

"Evri (formerly Hermes) has a maximum parcel length of 120cm for most services. Additionally, the combined length and girth (circumference) of a parcel cannot exceed 245cm."

 

I suspect Interparcel disregarded EVRI's rules and mis-sold you the service.

 

Parcelforce 24 has been good for me for a while now, I say that, because at some point, they are bound to f**k up too.

 

Rob

Edited Tuesday at 18:01 by ossyrocks

[warwickhunt]

I input the dimensions of the outer packaging (short scale bass) and Interparcel gave me the option of Evri.  If they have mis sold me their service it'll be interesting to see where they go with this one. 

 

We'll see what they say.    

[warwickhunt]

I went back to check my invoice Rob and I should apologise to Evri as it was Parcelforce 48 that I booked and the dimensions were 110 x 48 x 13

[ossyrocks]

1 minute ago, warwickhunt said:

I went back to check my invoice Rob and I should apologise to Evri as it was Parcelforce 48 that I booked and the dimensions were 110 x 48 x 13

 

Very puzzling indeed

[JJMotown]

Had the same thing with ParcelForce earlier this month, claiming the parcel was larger than it actually was, saying I incurred a £45 additional charge. Unfortunately for them the delivery driver took a photo of the delivery, which showed their claims were incorrect. Took almost 3 weeks to sort, saying the error was with the courier. Yes, themselves!

[Downunderwonder]

232 is less than 245.

 

If you add 1cm to each dimension it is still less than 245.

 

Ombudsman time.

[JJMotown]

@warwickhunt your parcel didn't go to Suffork did it?

[warwickhunt]

3 minutes ago, JJMotown said:

@warwickhunt your parcel didn't go to Suffork did it?

 

Bournemouth

[fleabag]

Strange.

Parcel Farce used to state in their T&C's that they dont insure guitars, though they will still accept your parcel, but wont pay out if damaged or lost.

 

Have their excluded items changed to now accept guitars

[hiram.k.hackenbacker]

Every single interaction I’ve had with ParcelFarce has been negative. Wouldn’t use them if it was free to do so.

[chris_b]

In March I sent a bass via Interparcel/Parcelforce and used a heavy duty bicycle box (130cm x 40cm x 20cm if I remember correctly) with no extra charges.

[tauzero]

5 hours ago, warwickhunt said:

Sent a bass 2 weeks ago with Evri 48hr, booked through Interparcel (but insured via Securus).  

 

The bass was double boxed in 'exactly' the same double walled (x2) boxes that the manufacturer delivered in.  It went off no probs via my selection in Interparcel and was delivered FIVE days later.  Now that 3 day delay isn't the issue; I was miffed at the service but the buyer received it safe and sound and was over the moon with the bass.

 

Fast forward 2 weeks and I receive an email from Interparcel stating I owed £25 because: 

 

"An additional charge has been applied due to non-standard packaging, which required manual handling by the carrier.

This includes items that are irregularly shaped, cylindrical (e.g. tubes, carpets), packaged with cling film, bubble wrap, string, or excessive tape, or placed in bags or sacks. These types of packaging do not meet the carrier’s automated processing requirements."

 

At first I thought 'scam' but the address to reply/pay looked right.  I contacted Interparcel and they say the claim is brought by Evri against me.  I'm obviously going to contest it but it might be worth folk being aware that these are not phishing scams but appear to be Evri chancing their arm for extra fees.  

 

Oh and here is the irregular packaging.

 

 

 

Perhaps it's on the basis that it's not exactly rectangular, but does it say in the T&C that all sides must be parallel? It's not exactly wildly away from being a rectangle.

[warwickhunt]

I've used Interparcel for years and recently I've used PF as I don't use their insurance (I take out 3rd party) and I've had no issues with almost identical items. 

 

I did have a thought last night; I dropped this off at my local post office and when I did so the teller asked me to stand the box off to one side of the counter (public side) as they didn't have room for boxes of that size (there was another cuboid large box already where she indicated).  I do wonder if that is where their claim is coming from.  I think I'm on safe ground as that PO was the nearest suggested by Interparcel on the booking site and the staff member scanned in and accepted the package. 

 

I could be wrong and it might be unrelated.  I'll update as and when.

 

This is probably more of a warning to always photograph your package before sending it (luckily the recipient had the box I used, so we could prove how it was packaged).    

[Happy Jack]

DPD.

 

Always always always use DPD.

[fretmeister]

18 hours ago, fleabag said:

Strange.

Parcel Farce used to state in their T&C's that they dont insure guitars, though they will still accept your parcel, but wont pay out if damaged or lost.

 

Have their excluded items changed to now accept guitars

 

No.

 

They still won't pay out even if their own additional insurance is purchased.

 

The guys on thefretboard seem to use Overland Express - they were set up by a guitarist who is a member over there. I've not needed to use them as I haven't sold anything bass sized for ages, but the f'boarders seem pleased.

[warwickhunt]

6 minutes ago, fretmeister said:

 

No.

 

They still won't pay out even if their own additional insurance is purchased.

 

The guys on thefretboard seem to use Overland Express - they were set up by a guitarist who is a member over there. I've not needed to use them as I haven't sold anything bass sized for ages, but the f'boarders seem pleased.

 

They will ship guitars in cases but I do not take out insurance with them regardless.  Third Party companies give you a far better deal; I've just sent a bass insured for £500 with Securus and the premium was £5... £22 if I took it with PF but I'd have reservations of them even paying out.  

 

[fretmeister]

1 minute ago, warwickhunt said:

 

They will ship guitars in cases but I do not take out insurance with them regardless.  Third Party companies give you a far better deal; I've just sent a bass insured for £500 with Securus and the premium was £5... £22 if I took it with PF but I'd have reservations of them even paying out.  

 

 

Yeah - they'll accept them. They just won't pay out. Dodgy practice if you ask me.

[kodiakblair]

14 hours ago, warwickhunt said:

Third Party companies give you a far better deal; I've just sent a bass insured for £500 with Securus and the premium was £5.

Thanks for that wee bit info 👍

[warwickhunt]

https://www.secursus.com/en-gb/#

 

So long as the courier has a tracking system (most do), you book the courier and then put the tracking number into the Securus system... that's pretty much it!  

[Burns-bass]

36 minutes ago, warwickhunt said:

https://www.secursus.com/en-gb/#

 

So long as the courier has a tracking system (most do), you book the courier and then put the tracking number into the Securus system... that's pretty much it!  

You’ll need to ensure you have photos of everything including how you pack the bass and so on. It’s part of their terms and conditions and they’ll likely look for any way to wriggle out of paying you.

 

While I’ve not used them, it’s truism that its a lot easier to buy insurance than claim on it.

[warwickhunt]

1 hour ago, Burns-bass said:

You’ll need to ensure you have photos of everything including how you pack the bass and so on. It’s part of their terms and conditions and they’ll likely look for any way to wriggle out of paying you.

 

While I’ve not used them, it’s truism that its a lot easier to buy insurance than claim on it.

 

As you say, none of them would 'happily' pay out on insurance but PF extract the urine as they'll take your premium for a guitar/bass and categorically exclude instruments in the small print. 

[Burns-bass]

13 minutes ago, warwickhunt said:

 

As you say, none of them would 'happily' pay out on insurance but PF extract the urine as they'll take your premium for a guitar/bass and categorically exclude instruments in the small print. 

Totally agree.

 

I read the insurance small print when I was going to send a vintage Fender jazz and, in the end, it was easier and safer for me to drive it to Cardiff.

 

In my most recent sales on here I’ve taken images as the bass has been packed and images of the box (like you have!)

 

I guess the insurers will say the onus is on you to prove that the bass was in good condition before it was sent and that’s what the images do. You also need to establish a fair value and so on.

 

Insurance is always a gamble, but if you follow their rules you give yourself the best chance. I say this after toe convoluted, but ultimately successful, insurance claims this year. (One we had to get the UK consulate involved, but that’s another story.)

[Beedster]

On 29/07/2025 at 18:38, warwickhunt said:

Sent a bass 2 weeks ago with Evri 48hr, booked through Interparcel (but insured via Securus).  

 

The bass was double boxed in 'exactly' the same double walled (x2) boxes that the manufacturer delivered in.  It went off no probs via my selection in Interparcel and was delivered FIVE days later.  Now that 3 day delay isn't the issue; I was miffed at the service but the buyer received it safe and sound and was over the moon with the bass.

 

Fast forward 2 weeks and I receive an email from Interparcel stating I owed £25 because: 

 

"An additional charge has been applied due to non-standard packaging, which required manual handling by the carrier.

This includes items that are irregularly shaped, cylindrical (e.g. tubes, carpets), packaged with cling film, bubble wrap, string, or excessive tape, or placed in bags or sacks. These types of packaging do not meet the carrier’s automated processing requirements."

 

At first I thought 'scam' but the address to reply/pay looked right.  I contacted Interparcel and they say the claim is brought by Evri against me.  I'm obviously going to contest it but it might be worth folk being aware that these are not phishing scams but appear to be Evri chancing their arm for extra fees.  

 

Oh and here is the irregular packaging.

 

 

 

I've had this several times with Interparcel and will no longer use them because they apply handling charges that the courier themselves do not - that is two identical parcels sent via Parcelforce, one via a direct booking with Parcelforce and the other via an indirect booking via Interparcel will only attract the fee via Interparcel (I can be pretty confident about this having used both many times with similarly wrapped parcels). While I challenged Interparcel each time and won, the last time it happened I simply decided to vote with my feet and not use a business that cynically exploits unnecessary small print conditions for profit, in fact I'd go so far to say that the small print conditions in question were developed with exactly that in mind. 

[chris_b]

Insuring basses is a pain, so I insure myself.

 

My boxes are bombproof so I'll stand any losses. I haven't had to payout so far.