More than a bit concerned
#11
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: In the beautiful hills of northwest Connecticut.
Posts: 2,580
Your quilt is quite amazing! And, yes, you will need receipts in order to place an insurance claim, if that a becomes necessary. Shipping a quilt is a daunting project!
#12
Super Member
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Snowy Minnesota
Posts: 1,378
Having heard many post office employees over the years talk about orphan packages, my/their advice is to tuck a copy of the mailing label inside the quilt inside the plastic bag inside the box. It doesn't have to be another mailing label, per se. A piece of paper with identical info will do the trick.
FWIW, post office employees feel absolutely awful when they must deal with an obviously treasured object that they simply can't deliver. They beg us all to include a copy of the mailing label info inside every package we ship.
FWIW, post office employees feel absolutely awful when they must deal with an obviously treasured object that they simply can't deliver. They beg us all to include a copy of the mailing label info inside every package we ship.
#13
Super Member
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Illinois
Posts: 2,140
1) Take lots of photos & get an AQS appraisal.
2) Sign up for package tracking. Insurers rarely pay out unless they know where the package was lost/stolen.
3) Buy at least enough shipping insurance to cover my homeowner's deductible. UPS rate is $0.90/$100.
4) Check homeowner's policy to see what's covered.*
*I have a home & home business policy that covers my quilts up to $10K without a Fine Arts Rider. It also covers up to a set amount of damage/loss from shipping. You will want to check that (a) it's covered at your home, (b) it's covered both domestically & internationally in transit [shipping & customs], and (c) whether it covers the full replacement value of the quilt.
With Declared Value insurance, your best bet is to have them pack the quilt. Otherwise, unless damage to the box is noted when delivery is accepted, they are not liable for any damages. This option does cost more so you will have to weigh out the risk vs. benefit. My grandmother found in addition to the added insurance coverage, fewer items were lost or damaged when she paid for this service. Here's the link to UPS's Pack & Ship Artwork service: https://www.theupsstore.com/pack-shi...ch_phr=artwork
By the way, stunning quilt! Reminds me of my favorite quilt artist, Caryl Bryer Fallert-Gentry.
2) Sign up for package tracking. Insurers rarely pay out unless they know where the package was lost/stolen.
3) Buy at least enough shipping insurance to cover my homeowner's deductible. UPS rate is $0.90/$100.
4) Check homeowner's policy to see what's covered.*
*I have a home & home business policy that covers my quilts up to $10K without a Fine Arts Rider. It also covers up to a set amount of damage/loss from shipping. You will want to check that (a) it's covered at your home, (b) it's covered both domestically & internationally in transit [shipping & customs], and (c) whether it covers the full replacement value of the quilt.
With Declared Value insurance, your best bet is to have them pack the quilt. Otherwise, unless damage to the box is noted when delivery is accepted, they are not liable for any damages. This option does cost more so you will have to weigh out the risk vs. benefit. My grandmother found in addition to the added insurance coverage, fewer items were lost or damaged when she paid for this service. Here's the link to UPS's Pack & Ship Artwork service: https://www.theupsstore.com/pack-shi...ch_phr=artwork
By the way, stunning quilt! Reminds me of my favorite quilt artist, Caryl Bryer Fallert-Gentry.
#15
This happened to my sister in Kentucky. She made a quilt and sent it to her daughter in Texas,had it insured with the post office for $200.( the max there )Her daughter didn't get the package, they traced the package in Memphis with nothing in it. She didn't save every stinking little receipt for the fabric ,through the years(who does?)So there was nothing they could do.So why pay for insurance when they don't give you all the details before hand.some one in Memphis made off with a beautiful hand made,hand quilted quilt.
#17
Keep in mind, the receiver in New Zealand (or any foreign country) will have to pay customs duty on the value you put on the customs form. It can sometimes be as high as the value of the object. Talk it over with your receiver...a higher value item, even when marked as a gift can still be required to pay the import fees...
And beware sending by fedex or ups type shippers, they will also charge the recipient a brokerage fee. I have a friend in Canada that had to pay a $40.00 brokerage fee for a box of two battings
And beware sending by fedex or ups type shippers, they will also charge the recipient a brokerage fee. I have a friend in Canada that had to pay a $40.00 brokerage fee for a box of two battings
Last edited by KalamaQuilts; 03-05-2016 at 07:24 AM.
#18
Thanks for the compliments!
This quilt was a personal test of my resolve to create something colorful, super complex and challenging to my relatively inexperinced quilting knowledge. I used over 100 fabrics, an expensive batting and when I mentioned a HEFTY custom quilting charge, months later I am still suffering from sticker shock as to the cost. It sounds to me that unless you are willing to surrender your quilt to the subjective taste of an arbitrary appraiser, deal with the fact that it might be valued at far less than the cost to make it and still possibly have someone in the process refusing to pay for a possible loss...that this is still largely a roll of the dice. Especially for a guy, who is not a name brand quilter, just trying to get most of his money back in fixed costs and charge a few dollars per hour for the sewing.
Out of curiosity, I went to the post office and for a 9 pound quilt, insured... but not excessively compared to actual costs, without any AQS appraisal...the total cost was a staggering $450. I get the feeling that either I am incredibly too slow a quilter, pay too much for high end materials, have an invisible target on me when it comes to being seriosly overcharged for outside labor, naieve as to pricing and quite likely guilty of everything I have previously mentioned.
Someone mentioned keeping it...if it weren't for the fact that this does not "fit" in my home...it would never be even considered for sale.
This quilt was a personal test of my resolve to create something colorful, super complex and challenging to my relatively inexperinced quilting knowledge. I used over 100 fabrics, an expensive batting and when I mentioned a HEFTY custom quilting charge, months later I am still suffering from sticker shock as to the cost. It sounds to me that unless you are willing to surrender your quilt to the subjective taste of an arbitrary appraiser, deal with the fact that it might be valued at far less than the cost to make it and still possibly have someone in the process refusing to pay for a possible loss...that this is still largely a roll of the dice. Especially for a guy, who is not a name brand quilter, just trying to get most of his money back in fixed costs and charge a few dollars per hour for the sewing.
Out of curiosity, I went to the post office and for a 9 pound quilt, insured... but not excessively compared to actual costs, without any AQS appraisal...the total cost was a staggering $450. I get the feeling that either I am incredibly too slow a quilter, pay too much for high end materials, have an invisible target on me when it comes to being seriosly overcharged for outside labor, naieve as to pricing and quite likely guilty of everything I have previously mentioned.
Someone mentioned keeping it...if it weren't for the fact that this does not "fit" in my home...it would never be even considered for sale.
#19
The appraisals are for the replacement value of the quilt, so it shouldn't be for less than it cost you to make the quilt. The appraisals on my quilts all took into consideration the materials, the amount of time, and the value I added to it with the quilting. The amount they appraise for is considerably more than I paid - I can't afford myself.
Janet
Janet
#20
Just make sure you package the quilt securely and attach your address along with whom it is going to onto the quilt. My friends sent a quilt for when her great nephew was born in a priority envelope but unfortunately, all that arrived was the label off the envelope. I always use stick glue first and then tape the label securely to the package.
that gave me a laugh.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Mrs. SewNSew
For Vintage & Antique Machine Enthusiasts
47
08-24-2015 08:08 AM
sguillot
Main
11
07-23-2012 09:23 AM
grann of 6
Pictures
24
08-23-2010 03:26 AM