A little 'wisdom" when shipping a handgun back to manufacturer

[FLA2760]

always insure for what it cost to replace today.

Hi
I recently had to ship back my NAA mini revolver for repair. I have had the gun for ten years. I went on their website and saw that the price to replace my gun was of course more than I paid for it. It is wise to take the shipping insurance for what it would cost to replace.

Steve

 

[DPris]

The Fedex and UPS contract/franchise stations (like the mall one you refer to)
are not supposed to accept guns for shipping, neither Fedex nor UPS at the corporate level allows it. Occasionally you find a counter person who doesn't know that.
Aside from the anti-gun perception you picked up, you're required to advise them that you're shipping a firearm, and labeling the package Sporting Goods & being evasive with the people there about it can bite you.
Playing games when shipping a gun isn't particularly wise. People do get away with it, but there's a certain element of risk involved, especially if something goes wrong.
Denis

 

[darkvibe]

UPS accepts firearmshttp://www.ups.com/content/us/en/resources/prepare/guidelines/firearms.html

so does fedex
http://www.fedex.com/us/services/terms/popup_tc_us_body.html#firearms

 

[CabinJohn]

S&W advised me to ship by either UPS or FedEx, and label the contents "Sporting Goods".

What does either UPS or FedEx think that they are picking up when they are shipped back to us?

 

[CabinJohn]

Also - just checked the UPS site listed above... does not say that they will accept handguns from a "non-licensed" shipper.

 

[Eghad]

"and between persons not otherwise prohibited from shipping firearms by federal, state or local law and when such shipment complies with all applicable federal, state and local laws."

I would insure it........

The reasoning that I got from UPS behind shipping guns next day air is that it keeps employee theft of firearms down

I dont know what the validity of that statement is.....

 

[Hans]

I work for UPS, and you can ship handguns through the customer counter at the actual dispatch center/hubs, but you are not supposed to be able to ship them through the UPS Store outlets. They do have to be shipped NDA.

 

[USP45usp]

Honestly, I don't if I am doing wrong or not.

I ship handguns via USPS. I filled out the form, showed them my FFL03 (I think they just see the ATF logo and name) and they haven't given me any problems and they are alot cheaper.

All I've had to do was produce ID that had my name on it, they compared, and shipped.

If this is legal, then just spend the $30 for an FFL03 and go with USPS.

Wayne

 

[DPris]

Dark,
Not sure if you understood what I was saying.
Both companies accept firearms for shipment, neither company requires that the shipper be licensed. The small contract shipping hole-in-the-wall outfits and UPS franchises like the UPS Stores and other Fedex outlets are not supposed to accept firearms. Both companies require you to ship the gun at a main hub.
Counter people at some of the smaller places don't know that.

Cabin,
If S&W advised you to label a shipping invoice "Sporting Goods", they advised you wrong. You're required to tell the shipper that there's a gun in the package.
Denis

 

[mtnboomer]

Yes USP45usp, the U. S. Mail can and will ship your handguns (only) - it is legal as long as it's from one license holder to another. Long guns must be shipped UPS or FedEx.

 

[Zekewolf]

boomer: Maybe I'm missing something in your post, but one doesn't have to be licensed to send a long gun USPS, only handguns.

 

[brickeyee]

mtnboomer has it exactly backwards.
USPS will only accept handguns between licensed dealers.
USPS will accept long guns from anyone to a license holder (including manufacturers).

 

[Person of Interest]

Pistols may be sent via USPS only between FFLs (not C&Rs).

Long guns may be sent via USPS by anyone to a legal recipient, which includes oneself. You can send a gun to yourself at another address as long as you are the one to open the package at the other end.

Fed-Ex and UPS accept all guns from non-FFLs but as noted above the "outlet" locations aren't supposed to accept them. You should go to the main center. They do require overnight at high cost.

 

[mcole]

actually, i believe naa has a pretty much unlimited lifetime guarantee on their products. my understanding is that if you call them, they willl likely send a shipping ticket and it is likely to be repaired for no cost. mcole

 

[darkvibe]

Dark,
Not sure if you understood what I was saying.
Both companies accept firearms for shipment, neither company requires that the shipper be licensed. The small contract shipping hole-in-the-wall outfits and UPS franchises like the UPS Stores and other Fedex outlets are not supposed to accept firearms. Both companies require you to ship the gun at a main hub.
Counter people at some of the smaller places don't know that.

Yeah, I misunderstood you. Didnt pay enough attention and confused main hub with the contract stores.

 

[DPris]

The whole shipping thing with UPS & Fedex is constantly confusing. Between the counter people ignoring their company rules & making up new ones as they go along, it's hard to get the straight story.
I borrow guns for a living & return most of them. I ship more than most people do. I usually deal with Fedex and the post office nowdays, and I've gone on up to the corporate level to try to get the real policies from Fedex.
It continually amazes me to see the number of stories here & elsewhere about totally ignorant people behind the counters at some of these places.
Had one Fedex guy tell me they have to ship overnight priority because it's a federal law and he could be jailed for ten years & fined $10,000 if he didn't. Horse puckey.
Had another gal tell me guns have to be disassembled for shipping.
Bull puckey.
Had one counter guy tell me not to tell them when I was shipping a gun.
Brain dead.
Had one gal tell me I couldn't ship a gun in a Fedex box, even though I was trying to return it to Smith & Wesson using THE SAME FEDEX BOX IT CAME TO ME IN.
Weird.
There's no real consistency from place to place, and it's tough on the regular Joe just trying to get a gun shipped. It's always a nice relief when I get to the counter and find an employee who knows what they're doing & just gets business done.
The post office is usually pretty good on long guns, sometimes you have to educate them. Had one gal actually throw up her hands in horror, shake her head "No no no no oh no!" and step back from the box like it was a rattler getting ready to strike her when I told her I was shipping a gun. Took about five minutes for her to look up the regs. Most of the time I don't even get a raised eyebrow at any of the three POs I deal with.
Denis

 

[ShelbyV8]

DCM shipped my M1 to my home address by USPS and my 16 YOA son signed for it.

 

[KyJim]

Re-read the UPS and FedEx policies posted at the links provided by Darkvibe.

FedEx requires notice to counter worker that it is a firearm but outside package cannot be labeled in a manner indicating it is a firearm. Priority overnight service only.

UPS says to ship "UPS Next Day Air Early A.M.®, UPS Next Day Air®, or UPS Next Day Air Saver® services." Also, attach label requiring adult signature. Nothing about labeling package as firearms.

Therefore, S&W employee who said to label as sporting goods and ship either UPS or FedEx was correct.

 

[DPris]

Jim,
Not necessarily.
You don't label ANY contents directly on the package itself with either company. Neither company will label the package itself, nor require you to. The Fedex shipping invoice that goes with the package has a space for value, no space for contents. Been a while since I shipped UPS, but I believe their shipping invoice does still have a spot for contents.
If the S&W advice was "Tell the counter people at UPS it's a gun & mark the invoice 'sporting goods' ", then that could work. If the advice was "Don't tell the UPS people it's a gun, just mark the shipping invoice 'sporting goods', then that's bad advice. My assumption in reading the comment was that S&W was adising to not tell the shipper it was a gun, and if my inference was incorrect, I apologise.
One of my main concerns with people trying to be tricky & slip guns on through in ways they shouldn't, aside from the legal liability if they get caught, is the potential loss of an insurance claim later on if the gun does get stolen in transit.
The company will most likely refuse a claim if you were deceptive in shipping it, and violated the company policy in doing so.
Denis

 

[Zekewolf]

Just so there's no misunderstanding about what a shipper's insurance will pay: What you declare the merchandise to be worth at time of shipping has little to do with what the insurance will pay, unless you undervalue your merchandise. If you declare that your handgun is worth $5000 and pay the premium for $5000, the insurance isn't going to pay you $5000 for a $200 handgun.