Damaged in Transit - Insurance Claim

QuirkyChemistry

Hi,

Sorry that this isn't really in the right place as it isn't related to eBay but I thought you guys would have the most relevant experience.

I recently sent a laptop away for repair and yesterday it was redelivered by Business Post but was damaged in transit and does not work at all. It must have been dropped with a lot of force because the casing is completely cracked and bits are embedded in the box. I phoned the repair company, who have put in a claim on Business Post's insurance and the laptop was collected today and taken to their Bristol depot to be assessed as part of the claim.

What I really want to know is how long this is likely to take. I haven't really been told anything by the repairer or the courier. Thank you for any help you can give and I would advise you to avoid Business Post if you can.

ArmitageShanks

Don't mean to be the bearer of bad news, but it's pretty unlikely you'll win. They will probably ask for photos of the packaging inside and out, and then come to the conclusion that it was insufficient.

The reality with couriers is that the onus is on you to pack very well, rather than for them to treat it well.

Edit: If it was damaged in return to yourself, just let the laptop people sort it out. You may have to pester a bit though.

vaio

Either way you’ll be ok, if it was damaged in transit the courier company will pay, if it wasn’t packed properly then the repair company will pay.

Don’t forget your claim is against the repairers, whether they can get the couriers to pay shouldn’t delay you getting a replacement/repair

QuirkyChemistry

Thank you for your reply. It's good to know that I'm likely to be covered by one of the companies. It does seem ridiculous though that the couriers are unlikely to be held responsible for their carelessness. Fortunately I have a temporary loan laptop from the repair company to keep me going for the moment. It would just be great to have my own laptop back.

Just to add: Does anyone know how long it is likely to take for a decision to be reached?

vaio

QuirkyChemistry wrote: »

Thank you for your reply. It's good to know that I'm likely to be covered by one of the companies. It does seem ridiculous though that the couriers are unlikely to be held responsible for their carelessness. Fortunately I have a temporary loan laptop from the repair company to keep me going for the moment. It would just be great to have my own laptop back.

Just to add: Does anyone know how long it is likely to take for a decision to be reached?

I suspect the time taken to resolve it will depend on how hard you push, if it’s damaged beyond repair then the laptop company have no excuse no to just source a replacement immediately, if it is repairable then some delay is inevitable whilst the couriers examine it and think about arguing it was badly packed but that is not really your problem, sourcing the parts to repair it could maybe take a few weeks.

What do the laptop company say?

Is it a high valve model?

QuirkyChemistry

It cost £850 2 years ago, although to replace it now with the same spec would be a lot cheaper. The outside casing would need replacing and the internal problem fixed but I have no idea if that is possible and it's the courier company that has it at the moment so would probably be a while before the laptop got assessed for repair. The laptop company haven't really said anything. I guess they need to wait for an answer from the couriers. There is also some expensive software and all my data, music, etc on it but I'm not sure how that affects anything.

vaio

As I said previously your beef is with the laptop company, if they can recover some costs from the couriers then bully for them but that shouldn’t delay you getting a repair/replacement.

I’d be tempted to drop them a line gently reminding them of this and asking for a timescale.

I assume you have all your stuff backed up….if not I’d get the laptop company to lift a copy of the hard disc as a matter of urgency

QuirkyChemistry

Thank you. I think I will ask them on Monday and see what they say. I created a disk image of my hard drive before I sent it in for my initial repair so I should have everything but it creates more hassle.

vaio

QuirkyChemistry wrote: »

Thank you. I think I will ask them on Monday and see what they say. I created a disk image of my hard drive before I sent it in for my initial repair so I should have everything but it creates more hassle.

Any feedback?

QuirkyChemistry

Sorry for the delay in replying. I got my laptop back today. I do not know exactly what happened but it was fixed by the laptop company, requiring a new casing, screen and keyboard. Unfortunately Business Post delivered it back to me and apologised for their lateness in delivering by saying it had fallen behind some other boxes and they couldn't find it. Nice to know nothing has changed!

vaio

nice happy ending