UPS Shipping

[Michael Chu]

I had some prints done and I sent them via UPS to a customer. The prints arrived at his house bent, and creased noticably. Anyone ever have trouble with sending prints via UPS?

[Todd Corzett]

The prints that I've sent via UPS arrived fine, but I had them sandwiched between two layers of corrugated cardboard.

-Todd...

Question: if the photos were insurred for their value... could you file a claim, reprint them (at cost), and pocket the rest? I always write the value of the prints on the insurance, not the cost...

[Erik Anderson]

I use USPS and have had a rash of bent prints despite being in hard mailers. Overall, I'd be out money if I bought insurance on every print I sent. It stinks to get the call/email about a bent print, but the goodwill on spending another $5 to print an image for the customer goes along way. I had a customer casually mention that the last 8x10 I sent was bent when the mailman wedged it into the mailbox. He wasn't blaming me at all, just conveying his dissappointment since he liked the photo so much. I added a reprint of that one to his new order and you'd thought I'd handed him a winning lottery ticket. They don't sell that kind of advertisement! :)

[John Jovic]

In Australia we have solid card board "tubes", with end caps, in various sizes. If you drove over it with a truck then you'd damage it, but I'm not sure what else would though. They are ideal for prints/posters, etc. Just a thought.

JJ

[Erik Anderson]

I use tubes for posters (anything over 11x14). I've considering using them for smaller stuff but the additional cost of the tube plus the extra cost to ship the heavier tube is more than the cost for reprints.

[Jim Sykes]

Yup, I just use USPS and I just eat anything that is damaged as its not worth the expense of insurance to cover them most of the time.

Yes, Todd, if you ensure for value, you get that full amount back, so you can insure for $50 and collect that full amount and reprint for $5.