Help - packaging a ring for shipment

[IceExplorer]

I''ve search the board and can''t seem to find what I''m looking for.
I want to know the best way to ship a diamond ring back to the vendor. Do you include the original ring box? Is it better to just ship the ring in bubble pack inside a FedEx envelope?

Could one of the vendors post a tutorial on how to package a ring when shipping it back for resizing?

Thanks!

 

[yssie]

tape the ring box to the inside of one of the boxes so it doesn''t rattle around - or add lots of bubble wrap for padding.


usually vendors will have a preferred method that''s worked well for them depending on location, carrier, etc.. may want to call and ask

 

[Dreamer_D]

Yes call and ask.

With WF and BGD I have put the ring inside its ring box, then inside a medium shipping box from FedEx that I stuff with paper so the box doesn''t rattle around, then the medium box goes inside a large box.

 

[HVVS]

How valuable is the ring? USPS Registered Mail might be what you need to use to be insured. Read their packaging requirements. I'll warn you that USPS won't accept white filament tape or anything else except that wide brown tape, like 4" wide. You can get a big roll of it at Staples for about $8. So, if you filament-tape your box, then also be sure to tape over it completely with that brown tape. USPS has to stamp all of the tape seams with a red stamp, to prove that the package has not been tampered with. That is why they don't want any other tape.

You DO NOT have to declare what's in there, even if the nosy post office asks, lol.

Check out this thread: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/why-do-most-vendors-prefer-usps-for-returns-rather-than-fedex-or-ups.126613/
There are problems with insurance limits with other carriers.

Registered mail is signed for at every stop. It adds maybe two days from Ohio to either NYC or Houston. I've found it to be pretty fast. I send mine out on a Monday so it's not lying in a post office all weekend.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 4/14/2010 11:06:14 AM
Author: dreamer_d
Yes call and ask.

With WF and BGD I have put the ring inside its ring box, then inside a medium shipping box from FedEx that I stuff with paper so the box doesn't rattle around, then the medium box goes inside a large box.

Definitely, the vendor will give you instructions on how to package the ring and what to put on the box. USPS Registered Mail is normally the preferred method of returning a ring but get instructions from the vendor and follow them to the letter.

 

[HVVS]

here''s the tape: brown paper tape

The post office used to be helpful and re-do it for customers. Now, they tell you come back with it packaged correctly.

(I am assuming that you are in the USA.)

 

[Hest88]

I''m not suggesting this...but this is what I do:

I figure I want to A) minimize the possibility that it will look valuable enough to steal and B) maximize the chances of it getting safely to its destination.

So I remove gems or jewelry from their boxes, wrap them securely in something small, padded and soft (like a small layer of bubble wrap), with an eye toward the likelihood of crushing or bumping causing damage, put that in something flat but small and protective (often one of those Chinese jewelry bags or a regular letter-sized envelope folded up a few times and taped), stick it in a flat-rate Overnight USPS letter envelope, stick THAT in a flat-rate Overnight USPS "Tyvek" letter envelope, and send off for overnight delivery.

The logic being that gems and jewelry are small and light enough so it''s rather easy to protect them even if they''re dropped or crushed, and that with overnight delivery the tracking and delivery is better, BUT the flat envelope makes it look like nothing more valuable than a set of documents.

 

[HVVS]

Express Mail might be an option, since insurance goes up to $5000. limits

But I'd still ship it Registered Mail, just to keep everyone on their toes. There were reportedly some problems (reported on eBay discussion boards around Christmas,) with USPS insured packages with Signature Confirmation disappearing at some major cities where lots of temporary help had been hired.

Added: But those were just regular mail, not Registered Mail. I don't think you need to worry about theft of Registered Mail. There are too many tracking procedures built in. I've bought & shipped several rings valued at $10k or more, and they always arrived at their destinations with no tampering.

UPS and FedEx, I would not use for returning a ring.

 

[HVVS]

Don't insure it for more than you actually paid. If they have to pay a claim, you only get what you can prove that you paid. Insuring for anything over that amount is a waste of money.

I always get a return receipt, that green post card thing, too. It's probably not required. But I am redundantly paranoid.