Items stolen while in Hermes care

Lap

After some advice, 

Posted an item with Hermes paid for extra cover on insurance so it was insured to the the correct value.
Somewhere between it being dropped off at the Hermes drop of point & being delivered someone has opened the box stolen the contents (I had even secured it in another plain box so you couldn't see what the actual contents were) all that turned up at the recipients house was an empty box with some packaging in.

Obviously raised this with Hermes, filled in a claims form & then waited & waited & waited.........
The only time Hermes seem to do anything is when you phone up and start complaining, so after several phone calls & 5 weeks passing. I got an email yesterday saying they couldn't continue with my claim as it had gone through their system ok & been delivered (just an empty box)
I'm obviously not very happy about this outcome as I've had to refund the buyer (after doing alot of due diligence to make sure he was genuine) so now I'm out of pocket a few hundred pounds. 

So hermes seem to think it's ok for items to be stolen while in their care with no consequences.

So the question is where do I go from here? Any advice would be much appreciated 

Cheers Martyn 

cx6

You are what is known as a victim of a crime.

Report it to the Police (they may not be very interested)

Raise a claim against you  insurance. If they don't play ball put in a complaint (against the insurance provider). It they reject your claim go to the insurance ombudsman.

Lap

Thanks, 
Already reported to the police & as you say not really that interested as they don't know in which county the crime took place. 
The trouble is the insurance is through Hermes & they have already pretty much washed their hands of it & make it extremely hard to contact them or get any further than customer services 

lisyloo

Raise a formal complaint.
email should do (ideally with receipts) but you could also send a letter by recorded delivery if you want to be 100% sure.
after 8 weeks you can go to the insurance ombudsman if they haven’t replied.
it’s best to start ASAP to start the clock ticking.

LaDerniereSemaine

cx6 said:

You are what is known as a victim of a crime.

Report it to the Police (they may not be very interested)

Raise a claim against you  insurance. If they don't play ball put in a complaint (against the insurance provider). It they reject your claim go to the insurance ombudsman.

I'd be very surprised if the "insurance" provided on this package is actually a genuine insurance product provided by an FCA regulated insurer.

Lap

LaDerniereSemaine 

I'd be very surprised if the "insurance" provided on this package is actually a genuine insurance product provided by an FCA regulated insurer.

This exactly what I thought, its cover that Hermes themselves provide, so I doubt it's covered by any governing body..... 

What other routes do I have? 

molerat

Lap said:

LaDerniereSemaine 

I'd be very surprised if the "insurance" provided on this package is actually a genuine insurance product provided by an FCA regulated insurer.

This exactly what I thought, its cover that Hermes themselves provide, so I doubt it's covered by any governing body..... 

What other routes do I have? 

Small claims ?

lisyloo

you could take Hermes to the small claims court.

do you have proof that an unopened box arrived?
e.g. pictures of untampered box on a set of scales showing a weight?
The case will be judged on the “balance of probabilities” when Hermes say they delivered a full box and your seller says an empty box.

Do you have any legal cover on your house insurance?
was it a sale of a personal item or are you running a business?

did you pay by credit card or debit card?
Im wondering whether you can chargeback the delivery and the insurance (although that doesn’t cover loss of the item).

Lap

lisyloo said:

you could take Hermes to the small claims court.

do you have proof that an unopened box arrived?
e.g. pictures of untampered box on a set of scales showing a weight?
The case will be judged on the “balance of probabilities” when Hermes say they delivered a full box and your seller says an empty box.

I was thinking about the small claims court, but again if I loose that I'll be even more money out of pocket...... 🤔

The only evidence I have is from a pic of the box after it was opened by the recipient, he did have the Hermes delivery driver wait to witness the box being opened, as he knew something was wrong by how much it weighed. 
I'm trying to get the weight of the box off of Hermes as it must have been weighed somewhere in their system, so that would give me some indication of when the items were taken, but not really holding out much hope. 

Cheers Martyn 

TadleyBaggie

Should have been weighed when it was handed over and noted.

Lap

TadleyBaggie said:

Should have been weighed when it was handed over and noted.

Never known Hermes to weigh anything when handed over (I've actually had several successful deliveries with them) they just scan & give you pre printed receipt.
Funny thing is the first Hermes drop off point (fuel station) wouldn't take it as they only deal with items under 10kg (my item weighed 12kg)
So took it to another drop off point & then had to take it out back myself as it was an elderly lady on the till & she couldn't manage it.