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I sent a non-fragile package from Bris to Melb via Australia Post.
I was a 15kg, steel bodied water dispenser.
When it arrived at the destination it was totally destroyed, with MANY loose bits floating around inside the box.
The item was a retail value of $600 & it WAS insured for the full amount.
I happened to be in Melbourne soon after so I brought the unit home with me on the plane. In Brisbane I submitted an insurance claim.
AU Post refused the claim saying that they don't provide a "fragile" service.
I went to the ombudsman. They took 3mths to investigate.
In the end the insurance claim was refused. The ombudsman found that I had used an old 2nd hand box to pack it in & was not packaged suitably.
This was determined by the OBM talking to an AU Post worker via the ph who was verbally relaying what the damaged box looked like.
I offered to take a brand new machine to the OBM office so that they could compare the packaging & so they could see that the damaged packaging was the same as the new. But they declined this offer.
This is total crap. The carton was the original SHIPPING carton of the unit as packed at the manufacturers. It was strapped & had styrofoam inside. It LOOKED 2nd had after flamin AU POst had finished with it.
AU Post were also VERY much relying on the fact that they specifically say that they do not provide a fragile service. I was adamant that my item was NOT fragile, but yet it was still destroyed.
To explain this - By my own fault, while transporting these same units on a trailer, a unit fell of onto the road while driving. (my fault, didn't tie on correctly). The unit fell from a height of approx 1.8m onto the bitumen while travelling at approx 35klm/hr going around a cnr. This unit was scratched & had a dent on the cnr where it landed on the road, but that's it. AND, the unit still worked perfectly.
So good old AU Post must have really gone to town on my item to totally destroy it.
So my comment is;
Just because your item is insured, don't expect it to be repaired or replaced. They can still refuse the insurance claim.
And most of all - DO NOT USE AUSTRALIA POST
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