Safety Tips for Shipping Coins — Welcome to the CAC Educational Forum

Safety Tips for Shipping Coins

1. Always write "Do Not Forward" by the sender's and addressee's addresses.
2. To verify contents, make a video recording whenever a package is opened or sealed. If you still lose a credit card (or other) dispute despite showing them the recording, submit the video to the recipient's county detectives and pursue criminal charges (you could also file a lawsuit if reasonably local).
3. Use extremely safe Registered Mail whenever possible. Always use a very large box to greatly speed up transit time (post offices hate having space-hogs in their safes).
4. Always pay extra for Signature Confirmation, even for Registered Mail, whose included signature is strictly internal and will not be accepted by online platforms.
5. Use a box in a box with lots of filler paper or other material.
6. Use fiberglass-reinforced packing tape. And lots of it, sealing every crack and opening.

INSERT OTHER TIPS BELOW!
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Comments

  • Thank you for this information.
  • Great tips thank you 
    especially the space hog makes perfect sense. 
  • Does usps registered mail insurance cover coins?
  • sparky64 said:

    Does usps registered mail insurance cover coins?

    Yes, only registered mail covers coins and there is a $25K maximum payout no matter how much you insure the package.

    The package must be taped on all “open” seams with post office approved tape that can be postmarked for security. To be safe I completely cover my packages in fiber mailing tape.
  • I thought USPS Registered mail insured up to $50k.? Has anyone here ever had to file a claim due to loss or theft using USPS Registered? That's my worst nightmare. Not long ago I sent a package with $8k insurance registered mail and it sat for a week with tracking saying that it had been accepted, but with no movement. I started getting worried, and the the next day boom it was 1 step away from its destination. It skipped like 3 or 4 steps that I was accustomed to seeing when sending to the same destination.
  • INSERT OTHER TIPS BELOW!

    I forgot to add that if a Registered mailing is not delivered within seven days after its postmark date, a Missing Mail Search (MMS) should immediately be filed online. If after three days the mailing is still stuck somewhere, file another MMS and continue to do so every three days until delivery. Man, do MMS's speed up the process!

    Over the years, I have sent tens of thousands Registered mailings yet never experienced even a single loss of any kind.
  • edited February 2022
    The Registered Mail insurance limit increased to $50,000 in June 2016 but forms printed before then list the old $25,000 limit.

    And what is "fiber mailing tape"?. I think that you meant "fiberglass".
  • Great thread for reference. I'll add a few soon!
  • CAC_Team said:

    Great thread for reference. I'll add a few soon!

    Please don't. Unwrapping one of your packages takes an hour and is like breaking into Fort Knox, LOL.
  • CACfan said:

    CAC_Team said:

    Great thread for reference. I'll add a few soon!

    Please don't. Unwrapping one of your packages takes an hour and is like breaking into Fort Knox, LOL.
    Thanks! I'll pass it along ;)
  • CAC_Team said:

    CACfan said:

    CAC_Team said:

    Great thread for reference. I'll add a few soon!

    Please don't. Unwrapping one of your packages takes an hour and is like breaking into Fort Knox, LOL.
    Thanks! I'll pass it along ;)
    I was joking, of course, LOL.
  • Other tricks our firm uses to beat postal thieves:

    After making video recordings of the packing and sealing process, we also record the drawing of lines with ultraviolet ink around every package. These lines prove tampering and come in handy for law enforcement officers.

    We affix a proprietary security sticker to each box.

    We use the fastest mailing method possible to decrease the time of USPS possession and thus the chance of theft.

    We handwrite the addresses to make packages seem less important and thus less valuable.

    We use other tricks but I have probably revealed too many already just in case a crook is reading this.



  • Someday you should ask me the story behind that us mail flat rate box with the stab wound. I’ll tell you how every horror story about their buyer protection is true, how a guy from Irvine tried to rip off a 1oz gold buffalo using the well known scam cookbook (“it’s damaged” “I want refund”, eBay sends a label he returns an empty box) and of eBay orders me to refund the guy/ takes it out of my funds. Luckily there is a half awake high value anti-fraud group or it might have ended there. After I figured out his identity and handed It over to them. I won the appeal. And they covered my loss.
  • Someday you should ask me the story behind that us mail flat rate box with the stab wound. I’ll tell you how every horror story about their buyer protection is true, how a guy from Irvine tried to rip off a 1oz gold buffalo using the well known scam cookbook (“it’s damaged” “I want refund”, eBay sends a label he returns an empty box) and of eBay orders me to refund the guy/ takes it out of my funds. Luckily there is a half awake high value anti-fraud group or it might have ended there. After I figured out his identity and handed It over to them. I won the appeal. And they covered my loss.

    "...he returns an empty box..."

    Let him try that with our firm. We make a video recording whenever a package is opened or sealed. His fraud will be reported to -- and investigated by -- law enforcement authorities. You would be surprised if you saw how crooks react after a cop or postal inspector contacts them about their fraud.

    FYI, bullion gold is a common target for crooks.
  • edited February 2022
    CACfan said:

    1. Always write "Do Not Forward" by the sender's and addressee's addresses.
    2. To verify contents, make a video recording whenever a package is opened or sealed. If you still lose a credit card (or other) dispute despite showing them the recording, submit the video to the recipient's county detectives and pursue criminal charges (you could also file a lawsuit if reasonably local).
    3. Use extremely safe Registered Mail whenever possible. Always use a very large box to greatly speed up transit time (post offices hate having space-hogs in their safes).
    4. Always pay extra for Signature Confirmation, even for Registered Mail, whose included signature is strictly internal and will not be accepted by online platforms.
    5. Use a box in a box with lots of filler paper or other material.
    6. Use fiberglass-reinforced packing tape. And lots of it, sealing every crack and opening.

    INSERT OTHER TIPS BELOW!

    Thanks CACfan for the reminder!

    Questioin: Do you need to mark DO NOT FORWARD if you ask for Signature Confirmation?
  • edited February 2022
    CACfan:

    Another three questions:

    1}The nature of registered mail is very slow and secure mailing. How can you speed it up? Doesn't sending it by 2 day priority mail or even priority mail overnight conflict with registered mail?

    2)Also it seems overnight mail never arrives on time to destinations and my accounting clients end up getting refunds on full cost of overnight mail. Would that also work for overnight registered mail?

    3)You stated: "We affix a proprietary security sticker to each box."
    What do you mean by proprietary security stickers?
  • Hi oreville,

    Always write "Do Not Forward" by the sender's AND addressee's addresses whether or not Signature Confirmation is included. Doing so will protect you for several reasons.

    As noted in my original post, using a large box speeds up Registered Mail transit time. As will filing an online Missing Mail Search every three days starting seven days after the postmark date.

    Last year, we neglected to use a large box and instead used a small envelope because it had to travel merely 30 miles. That Registered package took 4.5 months to arrive! The customer made a post about it on coincommunity.com. I think the coin sent was a PR66RB PCGS CAC matte proof Lincoln penny.

    USPS claims that Priority versus First Class does not effect Registered Mail transit time. Express cannot be used for Registered Mail.

    Our security stickers are one of our trade secrets. But you can use your imagination to devise your own. You might want to include "law enforcement authorities" on the stickers.

    You can also hide an inexpensive tracking device in an item of value, such as a $29 Apple AirTag. You can even include a postpaid envelope to allow the customer to return the device to you.

    David Akers stated that his firm (Paramount) had sent MILLIONS of Registered mailings yet never lost even a single one!

    Thus far this year, most of our Registered packages arrived at their destinations in one to four days, a quick speed to which we attribute to the use of huge boxes. Those delayed were sped up via the aforementioned Missing Mail Searches.

  • One extremely important tip not mentioned above is to use a large box (at least 10 X 8 X 6) regardless of the shipping method used. Doing so speeds up transit time and greatly reduces the risk of theft, loss, or damage. The extra dollar or so incurred per shipment will greatly offset the costs and aggravation associated with problem packages.
  • Thanks CACfan - these are great tips. I use a lot of large recycled Amazon boxes which I stuff with packing paper to prevent rattling. Sometimes I double box as well. I think the recycled Amazon boxes give the perception that the contents are low value. I always use Priority or faster and use registered for anything over a few hundred dollars. Haven’t had any losses yet. 
  • Thanks for the tips. I agree with the large box and box within a box. I had a 78CC GSA Morgan stolen and it was in the Priority envelope. So easy for someone in the process chain to stick it under their shirt or rip open.
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