How to deliver very expensive items

[scm5436]

I've just found a quite small but very exclusive - and expensive - range of items, that might possibly sell online.

They've got an rrp of £8000-9000, and I'd be looking to sell for close to that. The markup is amazing so if I managed to sell a couple of year through a website it would be easy cash. (I'd have to sell 300-1000 of my normal 'good margin' products just to equal one sale of these items!)

So I don't think I'd sell loads, but I can just set up a site and let it sit there taking an order once in a blue moon and it'll be a nice little earner.

The only problem I forsee (apart from would people buy these online, even from a very classy, reputable and secure website) would be how to get it to the customer... I don't have premises, so it would have to be delivered. But this isn't the sort of thing I'd want a regular courier to deliver (and leave with a neighbour!)

Due to the price I'd need some kind of specialist courier - one that's insured, and one that would only put it in the hands of the recipient. And I guess they'd need to see the persons proof of ID.

Is anyone aware of such a service? or think of another way of dealing with it? Maybe striking a deal with a Bricks and Mortar business in a similar field and cutting them in on the deal in exchange for using their staff/premises?

 

[iwgraphics]

most of the main courier firms offer such services eg. citylink, but you'd need to be doing some volume to get a bespoke contract for checking customer ID i would think. you would also need to pay for the extra insurance they offer.

if you make as much money as you said, then would it justify you delivering it yourself by car?

 

[RBS]

OP,

If its in UK, why not drive to customer yourself? With your big profit margin you can do that. Imagine how special he would feel!

 

[Liybpg]

I'm not sure about driving yourself. Come on, if your are somewhere in Bristol and your customer is in Glasgow or something, how can you drive there yourself? If it is within London, that shouldn't be a problem, on the other hand.
But either way, the man seems to have a business going on, so having a back up plan for delivery is essential. You can be way to busy to spend half day in a car to deliver an item, plus the buyer can be too far, so going there wouldn't make any sense.

 

[scm5436]

yes, I'm much too busy to deliver it myself - not to mention the security aspects of wandering around with £8000 worth of luxury item on my person!

 

[sysops]

yes, I'm much too busy to deliver it myself - not to mention the security aspects of wandering around with £8000 worth of luxury item on my person!

You're making this out to be more complicated than it actually is. If you're selling at £8000 inc VAT, presumably you're buying at say £4000? Send it Royal Mail Special Delivery, which will cover you up to £2500, and self-insure for the remaining £1500.

The problem you will have with this is fraud. There is no delivery service that will check IDs in the way you want (the liability shift can't be achieved), so unless you run your own delivery service, you will have to have sufficient security at the payment stage (3DS and only deliver to card address).

 

[FoxTopper]

yes, I'm much too busy to deliver it myself - not to mention the security aspects of wandering around with £8000 worth of luxury item on my person!

I agree with this point. Can relate to it

 

[scm5436]

You're making this out to be more complicated than it actually is. If you're selling at £8000 inc VAT, presumably you're buying at say £4000? Send it Royal Mail Special Delivery, which will cover you up to £2500, and self-insure for the remaining £1500.

The problem you will have with this is fraud. There is no delivery service that will check IDs in the way you want (the liability shift can't be achieved), so unless you run your own delivery service, you will have to have sufficient security at the payment stage (3DS and only deliver to card address).

The payment isn't the problem I'm worried about - it's more the "but I didn't receive it" fraud. ie. courier (or royal mail) says they delivered it, customer (fraudulently) says they didn't receive it...

Or of course some theiving postie steals it and forges a signature - but how do I prove that!

 

[sysops]

The payment isn't the problem I'm worried about - it's more the "but I didn't receive it" fraud. ie. courier (or royal mail) says they delivered it, customer (fraudulently) says they didn't receive it...

You should be worrying about the payment, as it is directly linked to the above.

Or of course some theiving postie steals it and forges a signature - but how do I prove that!

Whatever you send, some will vanish. If you send it RM Special Delivery with extra insurance you reduce this number, and get some compensation when one does vanish.

 

[scm5436]

You should be worrying about the payment, as it is directly linked to the above.

I would only accept payment in advance by BACS, therefore I would have the cash and it could only be revoked if they had fraudulantly used someone elses account. But if they claim they haven't received the item I must legally send another or refund them the money. Therefore, it's vitally important to establish that it genuinely has been recived.

Whatever you send, some will vanish. If you send it RM Special Delivery with extra insurance you reduce this number, and get some compensation when one does vanish.

I belive the insurance would only kick in if the item is lost - not if the postie swears he has delivered it and has some illegable scraw on a piece of paper to 'prove' it.

 

[sysops]

I would only accept payment in advance by BACS, therefore I would have the cash and it could only be revoked if they had fraudulantly used someone elses account. But if they claim they haven't received the item I must legally send another or refund them the money. Therefore, it's vitally important to establish that it genuinely has been recived.

Ok, BACS does cover you better than CC, but it's still not as tight as you think it is.

As for the "I didn't receive it, it wasn't my signature" issue, there is no way around this using any of the main parcel carriers. A courier company would be able to check ID, but they are not going to accept a liability shift based on this check - it's still going to be you footing the bill.

 

[scm5436]

Ok, BACS does cover you better than CC, but it's still not as tight as you think it is.

oh I don't think it's tight at all, I have another post knocking about somewhere about the lack of any reliable, irrevokable payment method...

As for the "I didn't receive it, it wasn't my signature" issue, there is no way around this using any of the main parcel carriers. A courier company would be able to check ID, but they are not going to accept a liability shift based on this check - it's still going to be you footing the bill.

I'm not necessarily looking for a liabilty shift, just a higher burden of proof required over the receivers identity before handing it over. Just wondered if there were any specialist couriers out there...

 

[KidsBeeHappy]

You should deliver it with a same day courier. The point that is being missed is that customers paying £9000 for an item don't expect it to turn up in a city link van, or in a special delivery. You choose one (or maybe 3or 4) courier companies local to you, and you give the customer the service that they are looking for and expecting. And if the delivery costs you potentially a couple of hundred quid, as opposed to the £50 or £60 you'll be paying with a parcel carrier after they've added on additional insurance, it will be worth it because it is part of the luxury product that you are selling.

Also, with using a sameday courier firm you can have tracking, you can inspect their goods in transit certificates, you can do all necessary credit rating checks etc.

But the point is - what do your customers expect? DHL on a £9k item - no thank you!!

 

[sysops]

The point that is being missed is that customers paying £9000 for an item don't expect it to turn up in a city link van

I routinely have £20k worth of hardware delivered by City Link. There are usually footprints on the boxes, but I don't mind too much.

Customers don't know or care who is delivering. Most of them don't know the difference between Royal Mail and parcel carriers (no joke).

 

[RBS]

OP,

cant you put huge red label on parcel: ID must be checked before handover.

?

 

[KidsBeeHappy]

I guess it depends on the nature of the item. If it's a £9k watch, or diamond ring etc. then it's a personal item of sentiment and emotional value, and people like to think that it's being valued. Think of all those expensive jewellers, the white gloves, the locked doors etc are more about making the customer feel that they are getting value for money, that their purchase is significant and being valued. The delivery is part and parcel of all of that. The same way that if you spend £9k on a luxury item you expect proper boxes, packaging etc, not a tatty brown box.

Whereas yes, if it's hardware then you would probably be less emotionally attached to it

It depends on the item.

 

[sysops]

I do know what you're saying, I just don't think it's that much money, I wouldn't expect anything special.

 

[trendy kid]

As far as delivery goes you can just organise a same day courier. They all carry goods in transit insurance and you will be able to get them to ring you when they have dropped off. If you where that concerned about it you could even give your punter a ring once the courier has rang you.

 

[CourierCompare]

You should use a sameday courier who has a goods in transit insurance of at least £10,000 and this is usually the minimmum amount a courier would have.

When using a same day dedicated courier you will ensure security and safety of your goods being transported, as the same courier who collects will be the same courier who delivers and the journey starts from collection to delivery with no detours or other collections or deliveries.

 

[alphanumeric]

Try these: http://www.asgreenas.com/

they do quite a bit of high value same day stuff, just let them know i passed on your details

 

[scm5436]

I routinely have £20k worth of hardware delivered by City Link. There are usually footprints on the boxes, but I don't mind too much.

Indeed, me too, but you're a business and the supplier is a business and no doubt you have some sort of trading history - but if you had to send out something worth 20k to a consumer you'd never done business with before, at a residential address, would you be happy to just whack it on a citylink van and hope it got to the right person? and that the right person wasn't a fraudster?

That's the problem I have here. The customers would be consumers, probably at residential addresses. And the item would probably be easy to flog on...

 

[Autoline]

Find yourself a good owner driver, who needs more work, you only really need to have it photographed at the hand over point if your that concerned, delivery companies deliver expensive stuff everyday, without any problems.

 

[KateCB]

Whatever you send, some will vanish. If you send it RM Special Delivery with extra insurance you reduce this number, and get some compensation when one does vanish.

Not always true sadly - I had around £1000 of jewellery delivered to me from my jeweller - Special delivery, signed for by god knows who...signature is NOT mine, nor anyone else who lives in my house....Royal Mail have asked me to complete a form......and they will look into it - they have 'looking into it' since last September 21......

 

[KDMINX]

Not always true sadly - I had around £1000 of jewellery delivered to me from my jeweller - Special delivery, signed for by god knows who...signature is NOT mine, nor anyone else who lives in my house....Royal Mail have asked me to complete a form......and they will look into it - they have 'looking into it' since last September 21......

It's not your job to be chasing RM it's the senders!

The sender needs to refund you the cost, if they don't just phone the bank / CC company and get them to recharge your card (assuming sender is a retailer).

Either way it isn't your problem!

 

[scm5436]

delivery companies deliver expensive stuff everyday, without any problems.

yes, and parcels also go missing everyday, or damaged, or delivered to the wrong address, or a host of other things that can go wrong with deliveries...

 

[Autoline]

Yes thats the problem, you used RM, as I said, and it was aimed at the origonal thread, for bigger items, get yourself a local man, owner driver, I would not send anything of value, with any of the big players, I've been in transport 40 years and have worked for some of them mentioned and your right goods goes missing.

 

[Frankus]

Same Day is the way, definitely. I am a same day courier and I know a number of others. Same day couriers take pride in their work and cannot and will not sully their reputation by not providing a top class secure service. You want photos of recipient accepting goods - why not, we all have camera phones. Signatures? sight of passport? Shouldn't be a problem.

Where are you? I might know some one near you.

Cheers

 

[JEREMY HAWKE]

Same Day is the way, definitely. I am a same day courier and I know a number of others. Same day couriers take pride in their work and cannot and will not sully their reputation by not providing a top class secure service. You want photos of recipient accepting goods - why not, we all have camera phones. Signatures? sight of passport? Shouldn't be a problem.

Where are you? I might know some one near you.

Cheers

Its against the data protection act to photograph a person or persons private address/property while acting on behalf of a company.

 

[Frankus]

That's right - unless you ask their permission to do so.
Anyone who intends to defraud would refuse. A genuine recipient would be happy to oblige.

I wasn't suggesting a 'sneaky snap'!

 

[SillyJokes]

I think you already said it would be easy to sell these high value goods on.

I would be really worried about this to be honest. I can see you only delivering to the verified billing address but for the sort of money you are talking about you will certainly be targeted by some v. sophisticated fraudsters I'd imagine.

It would be a realy worry to me to be honest, although I can see the allure of selling high ticket value goods. Perhaps have a look at how some other stores selling truly high value goods arrange delivery.