Question: Minor Disaster! Has this happened to you?

[Marcus Hunt]

I just got an email from a coin collector who says he just received the package but could not find the coin! I'd like to say at this point that I have no reason whatsoever to doubt the word of the collector or to think there is anything underhand going on.

Usually I tape the coin holder to a card but there was one coin recently where I didn't have the tape to hand and I slipped the coin and holder into the envelope along side the card and I've a feeling it might've been this one. I've asked him to double check the package and see whether or not there are signs of tampering or whether it's stuck to the bubble stuff inside the envelope.

I have insured the coin but here's the question; I sent the coin by International Signed For and it's been delivered so will the insurance cover any loss through tampering or am I going to be told "tough luck, it's been delivered so take a hike" ??? Have any of you had anything similar happen to you?

I've offered to give a refund via the insurance or to carve another similar coin. Either way it's bloody annoying but not the end of the world. This is the coin that appears to be missing so if it turns up anywhere it shouldn't be, please let me know.

 

[KCSteve]

Marcus

I've been following the way Billzach packaged the sample coin he so kindly sent me.

The coin is in a holder (I use the fold over cardboard kind with the coin's number, name, and my signature on it).

I take a piece of cardboard (cereal box or something similar) cut to be a bit bigger than the coin holder when folded in half and put the coin inside that. The cardboard gets taped on the open sides with packing tape.

The coin and one of my cards go in a small, sealed envelope. I put the sealed small envelope, and a 'thank you for your patronage' letter go inside a regular envelope which I seal and then tape the seal shut.

Hope your coin turns up - like most of yours it's a fine piece.

Sudden side soliquy - one thing that strikes me about Hobo Nickels is that they're a way for folks to have an example of engraving by high-end engravers like yourself in a more affordable form. The fact that you can carry it around and have a conversation piece pretty much anywhere doesn't hurt either.

 

[Kevin P.]

Sorry for your misfortune. It's the little details (didn't have the tape to hand) that trip us up. Also people are careless sometimes and don't carefully check the packaging material.
Hope that's the case here.
Kevin P.

 

[canadian]

Marcus,
Sorry about your loss!

I am not sure how thing are with the Mail in the US but I had some bad experiences with the Canadian mail.
I would suggest that anyone mailing anything valuable has it insured for the full value. Otherwise, they will not be able to recover the loss other than the amount it was insured for. The Post office is big on assurances before you mail but they go buy the letter of the law once something is damaged or lost.
I had a sizable loss as a result of that.
Please beware.
Boris

 

[AndrosCreations]

Yeash, that news is enough to make you instantly ill.

I'm sorry for your loss, Marcus. I haven't shipped out many hobo nickels yet, but I have shipped out allot of jewelry through the mail (nearly 1,000 pieces). Fortunately, there hasn't been any mishaps of this nature.

I wish I had something useful to say! But, I will be shipping coins a little differently in light of this mishap.

Please let us know what happens!

Andy

 

[Christopher Malouf]

Just a few tips for the general readership ...

Omit anything in your return address that might suggest there is something of value inside .... ie: "XYZ Jewelers" or "ABC Engraving" or "Solid Gold Widgets LLC".

When it comes to the United States Post Office .... packaging should be idiot proof and able to withstand the weight of a mail truck.

When the mail clerk asks if there is anything dangerous or perishable in the package, it puzzles me when people have to announce to everyone what is actually inside and who it is for when all they should be saying is "NO". A guy like me might have to follow the truck full of granny's fresh baked cookies :big grin:

Seriously .... how quickly you get reimbursed depends on how much is declared a loss (% damage vs. theft) and how valuable that item actually is. Things under $500 are fast .... things over could take weeks or months.

 

[Mario Sarto]

Hello Marcus, i am not experienced enough by sending these things into the U.S. (only send one so far), so i wont be able to give a good tip.
But perhaps it is an idea, if you use packthread (cord) in combination with a wax seal. I used three packings, one for the coin itself, a second inner one and a outer packing. Next time i am gonna send one, i will do the thing with the wax seal on the inner packing. The charge will be the same for it.

It's wise to omit anything in your return address that might suggest there is something of value inside .... ie: "XYZ Jewelers" or "ABC Engraving" or "Solid Gold Widgets LLC".

Chris, this was the same i thought by myself - but then i asked the clerk at the post office and he give me a warning. He said, it is possible that the U.S. customs open the package and if the content is not accurate described on the customs declaration inclusive its worth, i will have lots of trouble. Same trouble i would have with the insurance, too.
So what to do?

 

[Christopher Malouf]

Hi Mario,

The Custom's declaration is different than omitting the name of your business in the return address on the package. You need to be very accurate on that form .... it is after the package enters the country (or before it leaves yours). It passes through many sorting systems and many hands before getting to the final destination. If I'm shipping something of value, I leave off any reference to "engraving" and just use my name on the envelope or package.

Sometimes I order coins, the dealer is good about not announcing who is sending the package but if the package is heavy and obviously the same size as a roll of Morgan dollars, then I ask the dealer to split the shipment into two separate packages.

Paranoia can work to your advantage because it forces you to think creatively and outsmart the thieves.

 

[fegarex]

What Chris said is a good point. It also applies to gun engraving as well. I've told newer gunsmiths or engravers never to use a name like "Bob's Gunshop" or "Bob's Gun Engraving". Even many of the major companies do this. Browning shipments would always come to me with the label saying "B A Co." and a return address. Shortly after the 1968 Gun Control Act in the US the Post Office decided that you must print the word "FIREARMS" in one inch letters on the outside of the box. They ended up losing about 1000 guns a month through the Chicago Post Office alone.......

 

[Mario Sarto]

As Marcus lives in the UK i believe he has to use a similar customs declaration. So at the end everyone who read the form, knows, what the content is.
A few years ago here in Germany the police blow up a ring of post offices clerks, who was specialized on little valuable things.

 

[Christopher Malouf]

Exactly Rex .... and if it is just a part, pre-99 receiver or black powder frame (anything not requiring an FFL and not traveling to a restricted state) then it is nothing more than a "Machined steel component" going out for finishing or plating. Try explaining your way out of telling a clerk that "gun parts" like a grip strap and trigger guard are not a firearm.

 

[Hora]

Marcus,

In Holland we can make a declaration for broken or damaged mail/enveloppes and packages delivered at the mailbox without signing for it. Even the ones that are signed for are subject to that as the packages are not opened in the doorstands. I would sugest to tri anyway as the "mail-contract" is made in England and they have garanteed to deliver undamaged.

 

[diandwill]

As a jewelry store owner, we recieve and ship diamonds on memorandum, a short term loan paying only for the shipping unless sold. Most of the diamonds are shipped FEDEX overnight, with the innermost package wrapped and sealed, an outer fedex package folded in half and sealed, and the final fedex outer packaging. The overnight is expensive, but it moves too fast for most people to stop and notice what might be in it. It is obvious if ANY of the layers have been tampered with. And of course, you don't put Jewelers, Diamonds or obvious tags on the outside.
Our insurance carrier will cover the value, so no insurance value need be declared (that too is a tip off).
For lower value items, we ship first class with delivery confirmation, and use an automated postal machine for the transaction. No way for anyone to have any ideas about contents.
Sorry about the loss, hope it turns out well.

Will

 

[Sandy]

Marcus,
You need to start a trace through the postal system of England and have your client start a trace at his end. Here in the US registered or insured mail is a controlled item and is scanned with each change of location. This will also show who handled the item. The only thing is no telling where or how the item left the package. You will still be at the mercy of the postal systems for your claim. Hope this helps.

Sandy

 

[Marrinan]

I knew this thread was here somewhere! Fot the thrid time USPS has managed to lose track of of registered package. This one with seven pounds of silver bulion and and i/2 oz of scrape gold wire. They cant even find out where it went after it left my local main post office for Atlanta. Fred

 

[Mike Cirelli]

If the reciepient didn't declare the package damaged or tampered with when delivered, you will have a hard time collecting the insurance.

 

[Marrinan]

In none of the three have the packages been found. So far the USPC has cost me about seven ground-Fred

 

[Mike Cirelli]

This is a tape to use if you can.

 

[Marrinan]

Thanks Mike. I will try to find that tape-will assume an office depot type purchase? Fred

 

[Paulie]

Marcus, this must be very sad to hear that coin is disappeared! Until now, I had (some sort of) confidence in all those shipping companies who are well known for their worldwide registered & insured parcel service. But (if I remember good) this reminds me on another, earlier thread from you about an insured (coin) package that got lost? So a problem like this is not as 'rare' as I was thinking/hoping:thinking:?! Greetings, Paulie