Insurance For Russian Shipment

[gmarguli]

I have a package going to Russia with a value of $1,800. Anyone know of any service that will insure it?

 

The USPS cannot insure it. Not even their Express Mail service as coins are excluded.

 

I can do FedEx/UPS/DHL, but the cost is about $140 which is out of line.

[TwoKopeiki]

Independent courier may be your only choices for Russia, if you want insurance.

[bsshog40]

They don't have USSRPS here Greg. Sorry, I have no idea!!

[IGWT]

Putin will be visiting Maine (at the Bush compound in Kennebunkport) at the beginning of next month. My brother in law is in the Secret Service. I'm sure we can make some arrangements.

[RUSS BEGA]

more like ruiskieps

[JamminJ]

Why don't you just ship it to me. Wouldn't you rather have it stolen by a friend than a complete stranger in a foregin country?

[rrantique]

Why don't you just ship it to me. Wouldn't you rather have it stolen by a friend than a complete stranger in a foregin country?

 

[WoodenJefferson]

I bought some really neat looking stamps with ducks on them form a guy located just outside of Moscow.

 

He told me there was no such thing as insurance for packages sent from there or even sent in and around the Soviet Union, anything of real value is hand carried...so I had to take the chance.

 

They arrived and even the stamps on the envelope were really cool, so I kept them too.

 

Good luck with insuring packages going past the now defunct Berlin Wall. There is so much graft and corruption now days in this part of the world, a package like your about to mail is likely to arouse suspicion and just disappear off the face of the earth.

 

I'm pretty sure the handlers will not assume that it contains cookies.

[just-john]

make sure your paid in full before shipping anything to the USSR.

[gmarguli]

Buyer paid with PayPal.

 

He has so-so feedback. A couple of mentions of lost packages, but overall not too bad.

[PerryHall]

I can do FedEx/UPS/DHL, but the cost is about $140 which is out of line.

 

The high cost of insurance reflects the high risk associated with shipping to Russia. Let us know what you decide and how you make out with this transaction.

[bsshog40]

I think I would tell the buyer of your problems with ins. and make sure he fully understands that you may not be responsible if it gets lost in the mail. I would do it via/email so there is records in case a problem does arise. JMO

[braddick]

I've lost two packages to Canada this year along with one to Portugal.

I no longer ship outside of the U.S. and can't image shipping to Russia!

Good luck with your sitsuation.

[Bruceswar]

We ship worldwide and only have had a few problems. Never a lost package, but damaged.

[gmarguli]

I've lost two packages to Canada this year along with one to Portugal.

I no longer ship outside of the U.S. and can't image shipping to Russia!

Good luck with your sitsuation.

 

Overall I've had pretty good luck shipping outside the US - including to some places you'd expect problems. The few countries I've had trouble with are known problem countries (Italy, Greece, Cyprus, and China). All packages to these countries must go Registered Mail. My last package to Russia worth ~$200 went Registered Mail and took close to two months, but it arrived safe.

 

Consider getting a private insurance policy for packages shipped outside the US. I use DSI (www.dsiins.com) and pay $1 per $100 of insurance for outside the US. For domestic shipments it is 50c-70c per $100. There is also U-Pic which was a little more expensive, but I may switch to them since their list of excluded countries is much smaller than DSI. And it looks like U-Pic will insure coins mailed to Russia. It's about $38, but well worth it. I'll call them later today to confirm.

[JamminJ]

problem countries (... Greece, ...).

 

The bane of my ebay life.

[World Colonial]

I've lost two packages to Canada this year along with one to Portugal.

I no longer ship outside of the U.S. and can't image shipping to Russia!

Good luck with your sitsuation.

 

Overall I've had pretty good luck shipping outside the US - including to some places you'd expect problems. The few countries I've had trouble with are known problem countries (Italy, Greece, Cyprus, and China). All packages to these countries must go Registered Mail. My last package to Russia worth ~$200 went Registered Mail and took close to two months, but it arrived safe.

 

Consider getting a private insurance policy for packages shipped outside the US. I use DSI (www.dsiins.com) and pay $1 per $100 of insurance for outside the US. For domestic shipments it is 50c-70c per $100. There is also U-Pic which was a little more expensive, but I may switch to them since their list of excluded countries is much smaller than DSI. And it looks like U-Pic will insure coins mailed to Russia. It's about $38, but well worth it. I'll call them later today to confirm.

 

This is really useful information. I only sell world coins on eBay and it has been a pain trying to figure out what the Post Office will and will not cover and which shipping method goes with it. The clerks at the Post Office do not always know either and I have been given conflicting information many times. Nothing ever got lost, but it makes me wonder whether I would have been able to collect if I had a problem.

 

One of the things I do is restrict where I will accept bidders from depending upon what I am selling. So for example, when I am selling certified South Africa ZAR, I will only accept bids from the US and South Africa with an option for a bidder in another country to contact me for approval. It is a common sense risk management technique that businesses in other fields use everyday. The reason for this is because the incremental selling price I might receive is not offset by the increased risk. These coins are easy to sell and I know I can get a good price using this approach.

 

If a coin is harder to sell, like most raw coins, I will expand the geogrpahy but still limit it. I see no point in accepting any bids from some places like the rest of Africa or much of Asia outside the far east. So unless I recognize a bidder, the chances are I would say no if they asked.

[World Colonial]

I've lost two packages to Canada this year along with one to Portugal.

I no longer ship outside of the U.S. and can't image shipping to Russia!

Good luck with your sitsuation.

 

One option you might consider is selling to these countries but not accepting Paypal. I've seen some sellers do this though most will only require insurance with registered mail. This might not help increase your sales price if you don't get additional bids but it puts the risk on the buyer.

[Larry Dreher]

Buyer paid with PayPal.

 

He has so-so feedback. A couple of mentions of lost packages, but overall not too bad.

 

 

RED FLAG!!

 

Here's my story... Sold a coin to a person in China ($500 value). My auction clearly stated that if I shipped international, I would accept no responsibility for lost packages. Mail the coin using USPS ems with tracking.

 

Buyer sent a note a few weeks later asking for a status. I checked the usps online site and the tracking info just showed it left the country. A few weeks later he said he had still not gotten it and I told him there was nothing I could do. I sent him a scan of the receipt I got from the post office and the receipt from the customs form.

 

A few days later, the buyer files a dispute with paypal. Because paypal requires transactions over $200 to be sent via a fully traceable mechanism and because the package wasn't traceable one it left the US, I lost. I even showed them the auction with my explicit denial of assuming liability for shipments out the country. They said it doesn't matter what the auction says. Shippers are responsible if the package can't be tracked. Paypal took the money back out of my account.

 

I have since learned this happens a lot. I will not ship out of the country to paypal buyers any more.

[gmarguli]

Update:

 

The buyer emailed me a few days ago asking for a tracking number as the package had not yet arrived. Even though I paid for the insurance thru U-Pic, I still worried about it as getting an insurance company to pay a claim can be a problem.

 

Good news, the buyer left positive feedback for me today. The package arrived safely.

 

I've changed my auction policies to not allow PayPal from countries that my private insurance policy does not cover. Too much worry and added expense for me.

[MikeKing]

I've bought and sold clocks to people from Germany, Switzerland and France, and I've found major issues with not just shipping, but payment as well. I'll spell them out just fyi.

 

Paypal can be great for foreign transactions, but I've also sent money by registered mail (cash), which can be dangerous, but has worked for me many times, or by wiring, which is just as dangerous and I've actually lost some money (not much) that way.

 

Forget about insurance to foreign countries, but if you ship by registered mail, fedex, ups or gobal priority, it's likely things will go well.

 

I think there's an inherent risk in shipping to foreign countries, but what are you going to do?

 

oh...I've had some major issues with DHL and found its worth the expense of Fedex and if you want to go cheaply, US registered mail seems like a good deal.

[MikeKing]

Independent courier may be your only choices for Russia, if you want insurance.

 

I volunteer

[MikeKing]

Buyer paid with PayPal.

 

He has so-so feedback. A couple of mentions of lost packages, but overall not too bad.

 

 

RED FLAG!!>>>>>A few days later, the buyer files a dispute with paypal. Because paypal requires transactions over $200 to be sent via a fully traceable mechanism and because the package wasn't traceable one it left the US, I lost. I even showed them the auction with my explicit denial of assuming liability for shipments out the country. They said it doesn't matter what the auction says. Shippers are responsible if the package can't be tracked. Paypal took the money back out of my account.

 

I have since learned this happens a lot. I will not ship out of the country to paypal buyers any more.

 

I take back my paypal statement!

[JamminJ]

I've changed my auction policies to not allow PayPal from countries that my private insurance policy does not cover. Too much worry and added expense for me.

 

Today many Greeks are drinking ouzo and cursing you.

[wayneherndon]

We ship several packages a week internationally and the loss rate is about the same as for domestic shipments. The only country that I regularly have problems with is India. I have shipped to Russia a few times without problems. I ship lots of packages to Italy and have never had a problem. China and Malaysia have not been problems either.

 

I have international (and domestic) shipping insurance through Lloyds but keep a pretty high deductible. I typically eat most losses as a service to my international customers. Thanks to the fact that so few people will ship internationally, I do an extensive amount of international business and my customers like the fact that I will make good on lost packages. The additional business it has earned me has more than made up for the occasional losses I have to absorb.

 

The problem in India appears to be with customs and I am in discussions with a couple of my better Indian customers about alternative package delivery options. If nothing is available, I may have to discontinue shipments to India.

 

WH

[rickert50-migration]

I travel to Russia on a yearly basis..Trust me there is absolutely no cheap way to send anything safe. DHL and FedEx are the best,but expensive..USPS can get it there but there is a good chance that it will wind up in someone else's hands,ie:postal people..Good luck my friend..

[MAULEMALL]

I travel to Russia on a yearly basis..Trust me there is absolutely no cheap way to send anything safe. DHL and FedEx are the best,but expensive..USPS can get it there but there is a good chance that it will wind up in someone else's hands,ie:postal people..Good luck my friend..

What do you do in Russia??

 

I have always wanted to go to St Petersburg...Czar Peter Rocked ..he Did as much or more for his Country as did any of our founding fathers..

[rickert50-migration]

Mostly business.Moscow and St.Petes..Have made some friends there now I spend more time just for fun..For all the single guys its a GREAT place to meet absolutely beautiful women..In fact I'm headed for Odessa in the Ukraine in one week..Coins are fairly tough to grab hold of though..Its a paper market economy

which doesn't mint many coins..I try to grab what I can,hate to say it but the larger size coins make for interesting golf ball marks..If you ever get a chance go to St.Petes,it is fantastic..