Best way to ship camera/lens with insurance?

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bozwellox

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Hi guys,

I need to send my camera and a lens to Sigma for calibration but I'm struggling to find a reasonably priced way of sending it to them with enough insurance to cover the value (£2700). Most couriers seem to go up to £2500 maximum, and are hideously expensive!

Wondering if anyone has any suggestions, as at the moment it looks like I'll be taking a drive to Sigma HQ tomorrow!

Cheers,

Paul
 
I sent a camera (worth £900 admittedly) via the Royal Mail and it was insured & delivered for £12. The cheapest quote I could find from a courier was £45. I don't know if RM cover that much, but if they don't just send them separately? I'm sure it'd save you a bunch of cash..
 
The RMSD insurance limit is £2500, pricing is dependant on weight
 
admirable said:
The RMSD insurance limit is £2500, pricing is dependant on weight
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Then I would recommend he does as Omar suggests and send them both separately. RMSD gets very expensive over 2kg weight anyway.
 
I personally would NOT send them separately- you'll be separating body and lens - twice the risk of damage and twice the risk of loss

Les
 
Intres
Lez325 said:
I personally would NOT send them separately- you'll be separating body and lens - twice the risk of damage and twice the risk of loss

Les
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Interesting theory :)
 
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I send and receive literally thousands of cameras and lenses via RMSD each year, and in 7 years I think we've only lost one. That was during some exceptionally bad weather (2009 I think) when they had stuff piling up all over the country that couldn't be delivered. RMSD is incredibly reliable.

If both the items are under 2kg each when packed, but putting them together takes the packed weight over 2kg, then send them separately. It will be cheaper that way and they can be fully insured.

Otherwise send them together and don't worry about the difference between £2700 value and £2500 insurance. That's the kind of difference that can easily get swallowed up when you buy something anyway, if there are sales / cashback deals / favourable exchange rates etc.
 
Check out the T's and C's of the insurance VERY carefully. Most couriers do not cover anything containing glass (thus ruling out lenses (obviously), and also SLR cameras, due to the mirror). Knowing insurance, even if it ends up lost in the post, rather than broken, it probably still won't pay out.
Last lens I posted out, I marked the package as having 80 pounds worth of curtain making material in it. Doesn't help if it gets broken, but at least if it doesn't turn up I'd still be able to claim.
 
All my gear is covered with cliik insurance and that also includes postal delivery so I can send my goods at normal postage as insurance already covered :)

You might want to check your own equipment cover .. if postage is covered then your trying to pay twice ..
 
gramps said:
Fraudulently!
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Maybe, but perhaps if insurers were more reasonable with their terms then they wouldn't bring this on themselves! If the courier loses it, what difference does it make whether or not it had glass in it? It's the loss that's supposed to be insured and the risk of that is exactly the same whether it has curtains, glass or absolutely nothing at all in it.

Anyway, I didn't have to claim, and I'm sure the buyer is currently taking lovely pictures with his new curtains. :)
 
Halfcharged said:
Maybe, but perhaps if insurers were more reasonable with their terms then they wouldn't bring this on themselves! If the courier loses it, what difference does it make whether or not it had glass in it? It's the loss that's supposed to be insured and the risk of that is exactly the same whether it has curtains, glass or absolutely nothing at all in it.

Anyway, I didn't have to claim, and I'm sure the buyer is currently taking lovely pictures with his new curtains. :)
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Made me chuckle but I thought most couriers made the distinction between an item they won't cover for damage but will still cover for loss?
 
Halfcharged said:
Maybe, but perhaps if insurers were more reasonable with their terms then they wouldn't bring this on themselves! If the courier loses it, what difference does it make whether or not it had glass in it? It's the loss that's supposed to be insured and the risk of that is exactly the same whether it has curtains, glass or absolutely nothing at all in it.

Anyway, I didn't have to claim, and I'm sure the buyer is currently taking lovely pictures with his new curtains. :)
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No "maybe" about it and quite obviously curtains do not have the same risks in transportation as does glass!
 
simonbarker said:
Made me chuckle but I thought most couriers made the distinction between an item they won't cover for damage but will still cover for loss?
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They do, restrictions for fragile items are for damage only, loss is usually covered.
 
gramps said:
No "maybe" about it and quite obviously curtains do not have the same risks in transportation as does glass!
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That's not quite what I meant. There are indeed different risks for damage between glass and curtains, and I can understand why, for DAMAGE, glass is not insured - that's fair enough.
However, the risk of LOSS is exactly the same. I don't see how it matters what is in the package if they lose it. But I am assuming they would not cover the loss, if it had glass in it, even though it doesn't change anything - it would have got lost anyway whatever was in the box.

However, if that ISN'T the case and they will pay out for LOSS of a package even though it had glass in it, then that's reasonable, and next time I will send a lens, instead of curtains!

Back to the OP's point though, regardless of the level of cover for loss, it will probably still not be insured for any breakages, so if the OP was assuming it would cover both then he may still want to drive it there himself... either that or invest in A LOT of bubble wrap!
 
Halfcharged said:
the OP... may still want to drive it there himself... either that or invest in A LOT of bubble wrap!
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The total number of lenses and cameras which I've sent and received via the postal and courier networks is approaching 100,000. One hundred thousand.

Number of breakages: Zero.
 
StewartR said:
I send and receive literally thousands of cameras and lenses via RMSD each year, and in 7 years I think we've only lost one. That was during some exceptionally bad weather (2009 I think) when they had stuff piling up all over the country that couldn't be delivered. RMSD is incredibly reliable.
.
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Didnt you also have the 'terribly unlucky' guy a while back who at least alledgedly had a return go missding in transit ;)
 
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