Hi I’m getting ready to open a shop on Etsy and have been back and
forth on what to do for a shipping policy. It looks like some
jewelers are not charging for insurance and some are. My rings will
be from $450 to $650 US. Just wondered if anyone has any good
counsel on this?
Thanks
Brett Garrett
brettgarrettstudios.com
I would recommend including insurance and priority shipping in the
cost, and then offering free shipping. That way your costs are
covered, if anything happens you are covered, and the customer thinks
it is free… always a good thing! I charge shipping on my
inexpensive pieces, but do it free with everything included on the
expensive ones. If you purchase your shipping online with usps they
will also offer really cheap tracking, and send an e-mail shipping
notification to your customer.
Beth Wicker
the customer thinks it is free.
I wonder how many customers are really that naive.
Al Balmer
Pine City, NY
Hi Brett. I decided early on to ship via insured Priority Mail
through their Click-N-Ship program, so I can mail from home. It was
a big weight off my mind not to have to worry about it anymore, and
customers have been fine with it too. Good luck with your shop!
Allan
My Jewelers Block insurance is thru Federated Insurance, and they
cover my shipped packages at no extra cost. This feature just about
pays my premium each month since I don’t have to pay UPS or the post
office. Then, I don’t have to charge my customers for insurance!
Peggy Wilson
I mail expensive goods via registered mail (USPS). If it’s good
enough for the Hope Diamond, it’s good enough for me. Bump up your
prices to cover shipping and offer “free shipping”.
Jewelers Mutual has an added feature if you’re insured with them,
they will cover your insurance on mailed packages at no extra charge.
David Geller
via insured Priority Mail through their Click-N-Ship program, so I can mail from home.
I won’t get into the other options, since this thread has focused on
USPS. And of course “higher end” is a relative term. To me, that
means $20k…
Something that’s pretty essential to know, though. ALL mail -
insured, certified, priority - goes into the same bag. Your insured
box gets thrown on the same truck as Billy’s postcard from Bolivia.
Once you mail it, it’s just another piece of mail in the pile.
The only exception to that is registered mail. Registered mail is
logged and (internally) tracked. It travels in it’s own containers
under lock and key and usually armed guards. It’s the only real
level of security USPS offers beyond the honor system. If your
insured box is lost, they will pay for it, yes. They are good about
that. But there’s no real system in place to keep it from happening,
beyond employee honesty, either.
I’d like to apply this question to international shipping. What
experiences have you had? What about Customs declarations, or
countries that will not allow precious metal jewelry under some
circumstances. I am really confused about it. I recently had a
request from Malta. Has anyone shipped a highend piece there?
Sandra
Elegant Insects Jewelry
There are countries that have restrictions on jewelry, metal, gems
and/or diamonds…either do not allow or have restrictions as to
declared amount. Every country is different and you need to check to
make sure you can ship your line of work there. We use FedEx for the
shipping and ParcelPro for the insurance. Both companies have a list
of countries they ship to…if not on that list do not ship/mail
items there because their experience states it is too high risk. In
terms of what is allowed both the US Postal Service and FedEx (and I
would assume UPS) have for each country and you can
review what is allowed/not allowed/restrictions. If shipping to
Canada due to NAFTA there are forms you can complete (easy) that
allow no custom/duty be applied if made in USA (however their other
taxes do apply). I would recommend that any international client
understands that duty/custom/taxes are their responsibility and they
should check with local authorities.
Also when shipping internationally you do not want anything on the
label that indicates jewelry/gold/gems, etc. For instance you may
want to state your company is Elegant Insects or Elegant Insects J.
However you do need to be specific for the commercial invoice that
customs sees, otherwise the package can get delayed in customs.
Mrs. Terry Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts, LLC
The only exception to that is registered mail. Registered mail is logged and (internally) tracked. It travels in it's own containers under lock and key and usually armed guards. It's the only real level of security USPS offers beyond the honor system. If your insured box is lost, they will pay for it, yes. They are good about that. But there's no real system in place to keep it from happening, beyond employee honesty, either.
The other thing to note about USPS registered mail is that since it
is more secure the insurance rate is lower than if you send just
insured mail. It can be quite a difference, especially if it is a
higher insured amount. Also you can send Registered Priority Mail so
you have a bit more speed but still have the security of registered
mail.
Mrs. Terry Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts, LLC
Malta?
I looked into moving to Malta once, a long long time ago. Turns out
they will welcome you (me) with open arms as a new a resident, as
long as you can prove one teeny tiny clerical requirement… I had
to prove I had $1,000,000 (one million USD) in CASH!
sigh.
I never made it to Malta.
Beautiful place, however.
Maybe I’ll go visit and say “hi” to some ex-pats 
Can’t help with the shipping personally, but I always default to the
most options when shipping over seas.
hth,
me