Postage, packing and what to do when it arrives broken
What a seller controls, what the courier controls, and the few minutes of care that decide who pays.
Almost every broken-in-transit argument is really an argument about evidence, and the evidence is decided
in the first ten minutes after the parcel arrives.
WHAT TO DO BEFORE YOU OPEN IT PROPERLY
If the box is damaged, photograph it before you open it. If it is badly damaged, you are entitled to
refuse the delivery, and that is cleaner than accepting it and arguing later.
Keep the packaging until the matter is closed. A courier claim is frequently refused for want of the box,
and the seller cannot claim without it either — so throwing it away can cost you the refund even when you
are plainly in the right.
WHOSE PROBLEM IS IT
Yours to report, the seller's to resolve. The seller has the contract with the courier, not you, so you
do not chase the courier yourself — you tell the seller, with photographs, and they claim. A seller who
tells you to take it up with the courier has misunderstood their own obligation.
WHAT GOOD PACKING LOOKS LIKE, SO YOU CAN JUDGE IT
Nothing touching the outer wall of the box. Anything heavy suspended in the middle. Glass and ceramics
double-boxed. A screen with something rigid across it. If your item arrived wrapped in one layer of
bubble wrap in a bag, the seller's packing was the cause and they know it.
THE ONE THING WORTH ASKING BEFORE YOU BUY
For anything fragile, heavy or awkward: "how will you pack it?" A seller who answers with specifics has
done it before. A seller who says "carefully" has not.
COMBINED POSTAGE
Ask, and ask before you bid. It is normal and most sellers are glad to, but it has to be arranged before
invoicing and it is much harder afterwards.