Insuring Shipments

Ship Essential has partnered with Shipsurance to provide you with discounted insurance rates for parcel and freight. While many carriers offer their own form of declared value coverage, they charge inordinate fees and have tiresome claims processes. Our partnership with Shipsurance will lower your coverage costs, speed up the claims process, and improve your customers’ post-purchase experience.

For a seamless shipping experience, we highly suggest selecting a dollar threshold over which all orders will be insured. That way, you won’t have to spend time manually insuring your orders. If you would like to set this up, or have questions about how the automation works, email us at support@shipessential.com.

We can also insure individual shipments that fall within the coverage guidelines. To insure single shipments, email us at support@shipessential.com before the order ships, and provide us with the order number.

All domestic shipments $1,000 in value or over require a signature confirmation purchased through the carrier. Signature confirmation will automatically be purchased for shipments that require it, and the fees will be added to your end of month bill.

Shipsurance does not provide coverage for the following:

A. Accounts, bills, currency, cash in transit, evidence of debt, checks, money orders, cash on delivery (COD) payments, coins (collectible coins are not excluded), securities and other negotiable papers, tickets, deeds, notes, gift cards, manuscripts, documents, neon items, hazardous material (per UPS Hazardous Materials List), LCD monitors or screens, televisions (including LCD, plasma, CRT, projection, and similar), perishable cargo or similar property, eggs, any stone or ceramic slabs, automobiles, motorcycles, live animals, flowers, plants, seeds, cigarettes/cigars, cotton, tobacco, windows, plate glass, stained glass, float glass.

B. Shipments sent to Afghanistan, Angola, Bolivia, Burma, Congo, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire), Liberia, Nigeria, North Korea, Paraguay, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela. Any location that would be in violation of any U.S. economic or trade sanctions including OFAC Restricted Countries. For shipments to Russian and other Commonwealth of Independent States countries (includes Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia,Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan) coverage ceases upon touchdown of the aircraft at the airport of destination or upon discharge from the overseas vessel at the destination discharge port.

C. Parcel(s) or freight that require a signature confirmation or signature required service that are not sent using the required signature service are excluded from coverage.

D. Loss, damage, shortage, or non-arrival of any parcel or freight and its contents which is addressed incorrectly or packed insufficiently to withstand the normal rigors of transit.

E. International shipments that contain customs declarations are NOT excluded from coverage.

F. Loss, damage, shortage, or non-arrival of any parcel or freight and the contents when it is obtained by trick, false pretense, or other fraudulent schemes.

G. Loss, damage, shortage arising out of loss of market, delay, loss of use, clean-up costs, decay, inherent vice, or other deterioration, any remote or consequential loss, whether or not arising out of a peril insured against or changes in temperature or humidity.

H. War Exclusion, Atomic and Nuclear Exclusion:

In no case shall this Certificate cover loss damage or expense caused by:

1. War, civil war, revolution, rebellion, insurrection, or civil strife arising from, or any hostile act by or against a belligerent power;

2. Capture, seizure, arrest, restraint or detainment (piracy excepted), and the consequences of or any attempt of;

3. Derelict mines, torpedoes, bombs, or other derelict weapons of war. In no case shall this Certificate cover loss damage or expense arising from the use of any weapon of war employing atomic or nuclear fission, fusion or other like reaction or radioactive force or matter.

I. Mechanical and Electrical Derangement or Mechanical Breakdown - Loss of or damage due to mechanical, electrical, electronic derangement or refrigerated breakdown unless there is evidence of external damage to the parcel or freight or its packaging. Data files and installed computer programs are not covered for erasure, corruption, or loss.

J. American Institute of Marine Underwriters Extended Radioactive Contamination Exclusion clause.

K. American Institute of Marine Underwriters Chemical, Biological, Bio-Chemical, Electromagnetic, and Cyber Weapons Exclusion clause.

L. Shipments involving illegal or controlled substances are excluded from coverage.

M. Commodity Specific Exclusions

1. Jewelry (includes necklaces, earrings, watches, rings, bracelets, broaches, etc.) valued in excess of $5,000.00 per parcel, $25,000.00 per shipment (Per Conveyance Limit of Liability).

2. Cell phones valued in excess of $2,500.00 per shipment (Per Conveyance Limit of Liability).

3. Household Goods & Personal Effects: Valued in excess of $2,500.00 per shipment (Per Conveyance Limit of Liability). Loss or damage due to domestic or foreign animals, moths, vermin, wear and tear, and gradual deterioration. Loss or damage due to climatic or atmospheric conditions or extremes of temperatures. Shipments that are owner packed (must be professionally packed for coverage). Shipments sent without a valued itemized inventory list.

4. Steel Products – Rust, oxidation, and discoloration. Non-crated pipe, tube, rods, beams or similar exclude the risk of bending, twisting, and end damage.

N. Pollution

This Certificate does not apply to any damage, expense, cost, loss, liability or legal obligation arising out of or in any way related to pollution, however caused. Pollution includes the actual, alleged or potential presence in or introduction into the environment of any substance if such substance has or is alleged to have, the effect of making the environment impure, harmful, or dangerous. Environment includes any air, land, structure or the air therein, watercourse or water, including underground water. We will have no duty to defend any suit arising out of or in any way related to pollution.

O. Shipments sent through owned, leased or rented vehicles that are not commercial parcel or freight businesses.

Filing Claims

To request that we file a claim with Shipsurance, please send the following information to support@shipessential.com:

• Order number

• Tracking number

• Retail invoice (ex: a pdf of the order page from Shopify)

• A brief summary of the situation

We ask for a retail invoice because Shipsurance requires proof of payment and item value to proceed with claims. Including this in the claim request will speed up the process. Once we’ve reviewed your request and filed a claim, our customer support team will be in touch to update you on the status of your submission.

We will file claims for shipments that meet one or more of these requirements:

• Shipments that are insured through Shipsurance

• Shipments that have been shipped using a service that provides end-to-end tracking (ex: UPS Ground, 2nd Day, Next Day Air)

• Shipment arrived to customer damaged (external damage to box or mailer)

• Shipment was delivered to an address other than the one printed on the label

• Package is apparently lost in transit

We are unable to file claims in these cases:

• Shipments marked as Delivered or that have a final scan

• Shipments that have been stolen after the final scan

• International or domestic shipments sent via UPS Mail Innovations or APC

• Shipments with tracking information that says Arrival in Destination Country

• Shipments older than 90 days

• The loss or damage to goods is not apparent (concealed), at the time of delivery