A quick note about postal insurance - the FACTS:

Many people charge extra for postal insurance, and many are happy to pay - but are you really covered???

1st & 2nd Class Standard Post: You can claim compensation of up to £32 for lost or damaged items. Remember you'll need a certificate of posting (the printed postage receipt) to make a claim, which the seller should retain until the buyer confirms delivery.

Recorded Delivery is NOT insurance! As with Standard post, you can claim compensation of up to £32 for lost or damaged items, subject to a minimum payment of 12 First Class stamps. The person who signs for the package is not necessarily the person named on the address label.

To make a claim, pick up a P58 form from your Post Office. For compensation, you will need to:

Include the receipt showing your Recorded item reference number

Provide any inner or outer packaging. The customer services team may ask for it while processing your claim

Remember that it takes 2-4 weeks to process claims.

Many buyers & sellers make the mistake of thinking recorded delivery is "insurance". It is not. If you purchase an item for £50 and pay extra for Recorded delivery, your item is NOT insured!

If you pay £2.00 for "insurance" and the item arrives by Recorded Delivery, you have every right to be cheesed off - it costs 68p and would give you no more cover than standard 1st or 2nd class standard post. Obviously some sellers will disagree as they make a handsome profit out of it!

For insurance of high value items, you must either use Special delivery which has insurance incrememts up to a maximum of £2500 compensation, or for larger items, Standard Parcels, which has insurance increments up to a maximum of £500 compensation, or for large high value items which are needed quickly, use Parcelforce 24 or 48, which has insurance increments up to £500 (or £2500 for account holders).

These options are more costly, but if you've just spent a small fortune on something - it's worth paying a bit extra for peace of mind!

Again, costs & compensation, along with FAQ's are readily available on the Royal Mail & Parcelforce websites. 

If you feel this information has helped you in any way, please vote YES

Thank you

Obviously, I'll not be getting any thanks from sellers who make massive profits from selling over priced insurance!!