What if my goods arrive damaged?

The last words you want to hear when trusting a courier with your pallet is ‘damaged goods’, but unfortunately, accidents sometimes happen when we least expect them to.

It is crucial that you know what your next steps are in order to get the compensation you deserve.

As a reputable and well-established pallet courier, we completely understand the frustration that follows being informed of damage to your pallet upon delivery - or worse, discovering the damage yourself.

To help you understand what you need to do if your pallet arrives damaged, we have put our experience and knowledge to good use.

Thoroughly Inspect Your Pallet and Goods

When you send a pallet it should be properly packed and wrapped to help prevent any damage from occurring during transit. If there is damage, you should take the time to thoroughly inspect the pallet - this way, you will hopefully be able to distinguish what caused the damage in the first place.

If the pallet itself is damaged and the goods are packed well in boxes, there may be a chance that these are not affected. It’s always worth checking everything over if you have any suspicion that your items are not in pristine condition, as this will help clear a few things up before contacting anybody for a resolution. If your goods are damaged, then you must contact the courier whom you arranged to deliver the goods to discuss.

Contact the Pallet Courier Immediately

Of course, if your goods are damaged during their journey then you should contact the pallet courier immediately. They will be able to help you move past the damage and find a resolution, but also, pallet delivery companies are always open and happy to discuss how they can improve their delivery service - this is the perfect opportunity to be honest with them and share any suggestions or helpful feedback.

Talk Insurance: Find Out How Much is Covered

The chances are, if you chose reputable courier services to handle your pallet delivery then the goods will be insured for any loss and damage. Courier insurance is crucial when sending items to any location, as this ensures that should the worst happen, you will receive the compensation you very much deserve.

With goods in transit, insurance is the only way you will be able to claim for any items that arrived damaged or not at all.

However, one thing to keep in mind is that some pallet couriers offer different types of haulage insurance; for example, some offer standard insurance cover and others allow you to upgrade cover to increase potential compensation.

Most of them base their insurance rates on weight rather than value, so it may be worth checking the courier insurance quotes you got before arranging the delivery.

Gather Sufficient Proof of Damaged Goods

If damage happens during pallet shipping, the first thing the courier will ask you for is sufficient proof of the damaged goods. This is to certify that your goods are actually in the condition you are claiming them to be. They cannot action anything without evidence to back the claim up.

You will need to provide them with proof of cost price, proof of purchase price, proof of weight, photos of the damage, any details of mitigation/salvage or repair and any further information you can offer surrounding the damage. For example, if you know how the goods became damaged or details of your delivery experience.

Make a Claim for the Damage with the Courier

In the unfortunate event of your pallet arriving damaged, it is always recommended that you still sign for them as 'damaged' when accepting the delivery. If this is not noted, your claim for damage could be rejected and the entire process could become more complicated.

Once you have signed for the damaged goods, you should contact the courier immediately and inform them of the incident and they will advise you of their claims process. Usually, this involves writing an email to the claims department, detailing the damage caused and your overall experience, too. They may ask you to send your documents directly over, or they may request that you attach supporting documents to the initial claims email.

As mentioned above, the courier will want to know certain details, i.e. the condition the pallet arrived in and whether you have images to show as proof of this as well. They may request additional bits of proof, but if they need to, you will know about it immediately.

After your email reaches the right team, you should receive a response promptly. Usually, through the process of making a claim for damage or loss, you will be kept up-to-date from start to finish.

For more information about claims at PalletOnline, please get in touch with us directly. You can contact us via Live Chat or by calling 0845 658 0049 and speaking with someone from our friendly customer support team.