Advice on rod selling.

[Kevin Steele]

What’s the maximum length Royal mail will allow you to send via their special delivery

Edit .. just checked 104cm. Not a lot of use I’m afraid Kevin unless your sending out a 3 piece 10 footer.

Sorry, I got my Special Delivery and Parcelforce mixed up (easily done when both are Royal Mail and sent from a Post Office), but... just checked...

... Parcelforce 24 or 48, maximum length 2.5m. Enhanced compensation up to £2,500.00.

Hope that helps.
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[Kevin Steele]

Saying that if they're willing to sort out a courier service for themselves & cover the costs & risks themselves I'd opt for that.

This comes up a lot on eBay. Just be careful if you are buying and using your own courier. In UK law, the seller (even private sales) is responsible for ensuring timely and undamaged delivery. If, as a buyer, you organise your own courier to collect, you have no rights if the item is found to be damaged, even if the item was 'not as described', rather than damaged in transit.
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[Alec Hague]

My local fascists run the front desk and pharmacy at the doctor's surgery.
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My post office must be ex NHS trained receptionists

 

[Graham Elliott]

Like Graham I have had a bad experience posting an irreplaceable rod that ended up costing me a substantial amount of money. Since then if people want it bad enough they will have to make arrangements with me to meet up. I’m happy to make an effort if others are but I won’t hand them over to careless couriers.

Yes Richard. Its all fine until it happens and a good rod is smashed and £ssss lost with no recourse.

 

[Graham Elliott]

Kevin
Many couriers will cover your rod for loss,

BUT. not for damage......Parcelforce for example due to construction materials. so suggest you check.

 

[Alec Hague]

I'm with Graham here... If people want them that much, then they'll drive to ya, or you can arrange local pick up.
Saying that if they're willing to sort out a courier service for themselves & cover the costs & risks themselves I'd opt for that.
Just give a couple of choices, & let potential buyers make that decision for you.

Most of my collection are already in clear plastic tubes I got sized & ordererd. So when I come to sell, any buyer can pop round & pick the rod up and it'll be supplied in a tube.

Incidentally, I've done 5hr round trips before now to collect quality gear

Just a silly story on this subject, I had been looking for a shim aspire ultra feeder and float for years since I wouldn't afford them when current models 10 years or so ago. I found a new 13' float last year at Warrington , collection only. As that is 260+ miles I had my cousin collect who lives in N wales. It then went to her daughter in Lytham who, for work, was traveling to London. Met her after work, all went out for a meal etc... Afterwards I calculated it cost me the price when new. Oh yes, 2nd time out I broke 3 inches off tip. But it repaired well! Don't think I can afford the matching feeder but I still look! Love the rod too so a bit of adventure and fun.

 

[Richard Isaacs]

Kevin
Many couriers will cover your rod for loss,

BUT. not for damage......Parcelforce for example due to construction materials. so suggest you check.

And they tend not to lose them but they’ll happily drop kick them into the back of the van, then lay someone’s washing machine on top of them.

 

[Alec Hague]

And they tend not to lose them but they’ll happily drop kick them into the back of the van, then lay someone’s washing machine on top of them.

The reply from U P S to justify their enormous increase in charges in 2021 said the rod tubes got stuck at the angle changes on the conveyor belts. In future they would be personally walked through hence the extra cost of personal handling. I wonder if any have been damaged in the last 3 years?

 

[Alec Hague]

And they tend not to lose them but they’ll happily drop kick them into the back of the van, then lay someone’s washing machine on top of them.

About 10 years ago Richard I wondered whether the "we buy any car "methodology could be adopted by a rod manufacturer. I had in mind someone like middy/ north West etc. This afterall adapted the document exchange which was set up during a postal strike in the early 70''s. It later became DX.I prepared a business plan, showed it to a few tackle shops I knew but they reported it was too late to save them faced with the levels of competition from the sheds. I did let Sportex dl have a copy but they didn't take it up. Where this is leading is that it's not impossible for clubs to get together and use an informal shunting / carriage scheme for rods. Both spirit and flesh have to be willing though.

 

[Graham Elliott]

The reply from U P S to justify their enormous increase in charges in 2021 said the rod tubes got stuck at the angle changes on the conveyor belts. In future they would be personally walked through hence the extra cost of personal handling. I wonder if any have been damaged in the last 3 years?

Yes. Mine. Its was UPS and they do not cover you for damage whatever extra you pay to insure.

 

[Kevin Steele]

Kevin
Many couriers will cover your rod for loss,

BUT. not for damage......Parcelforce for example due to construction materials. so suggest you check.

Graham,

Parcelforce covers for loss, damage, or loss of contents. A quick Google pulls up the details, along with a list of excluded items - and fishing rods isn't one of them.

Same with UPS (they must have changed their policy), which has a web page on how to claim for loss, damage or damaged contents.

Same with DPD.... and so on....

I expect most of the reputable couriers offer similar, as they're competing with each other for the same business.
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[Alan Rose]

This courier discussion is very relevant to me today. Because I work from home in a converted stand-alone garage most of the time, I put a large sign on the front door of the house with instructions for deliveries (walk down the drive and knock on the large garage window, basically). As it happens I was expecting a delivery today, scheduled for 10:25-11:25 this morning with Parcelforce. I was in, I was listening carefully, and I had the live tracker on the computer to watch where the van was. About 11:35 I popped outside to find a "Sorry we missed you" card jammed into the frame of our back door So having paid for 24hr express delivery, I find myself having to go to our local post office and collect the parcel because my Parcelfarce driver appears to be unable to read.

And while I'm on about Parcelfarce, don't even think about trying to speak to a human being if you call them. I tried, and when I was asked to press "2" to speak to an advisor, it kept asking me again and again, before just hanging up

So yes, Parcelfarce... not too impressed today. The rod had better be in one piece after all this!

 

[Alec Hague]

Yes. Mine. Its was UPS and they do not cover you for damage whatever extra you pay to insure.

I found out the above when I was stupid enough to send a hardy in its cordura tube thinking that would protect it

 

[Graham Elliott]

Graham,

Parcelforce covers for loss, damage, or loss of contents. A quick Google pulls up the details, along with a list of excluded items - and fishing rods isn't one of them.

Same with UPS (they must have changed their policy), which has a web page on how to claim for loss, damage or damaged contents.

Same with DPD.... and so on....

I expect most of the reputable couriers offer similar, as they're competing with each other for the same business.
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https://www.parcelforce.com/help-and-advice/sending/items-we-exclude-compensation

Arguable re exclusions

 

[Kevin Steele]

So yes, Parcelfarce... not too impressed today. The rod had better be in one piece after all this!

At least they are not Evri. Every (no pun intended) time I've received a package from someone who used them, the parcel has been damaged. This was last Saturday, with a £500.00 telescope enclosed. Spiteful of me, but I made the seller sweat for a day before informing him that the scope was fine... I paid for Royal Mail Special Delivery (as per his eBay listing), but he chose Evri because he thought it was a better service! Yeah, right.

 

[Kevin Steele]

https://www.parcelforce.com/help-and-advice/sending/items-we-exclude-compensation

Arguable re exclusions

Which bit do you think is arguable? I can't see any exclusion(s) for fishing rods, or the materials that fishing rods are made of.
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[Graham Elliott]

Which bit do you think is arguable? I can't see any exclusion(s) for fishing rods, or the materials that fishing rods are made of.
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Resin for example could be used as an out? As in Epoxy.

When I had my shipment smashed I put on here the list of items not covered.

Can't be bothered to find it, but it was pretty much everything!

All I can say to you is "Good Luck"

I'll only do the same as Richard ref any rod sales, and ensure I check any purchases prior to payment if person unknown.

 

[Richard Isaacs]

Resin for example could be used as an out? As in Epoxy.

When I had my shipment smashed I put on here the list of items not covered.

Can't be bothered to find it, but it was pretty much everything!

All I can say to you is "Good Luck"

I'll only do the same as Richard ref any rod sales, and ensure I check any purchases prior to payment if person unknown.

Exactly! Good luck with it.
Once bitten twice shy n all that.
@Kevin Steele i have used courier insurance before with something completely unrelated to fishing and the process is a nightmare and they will do absolutely everything they can to ensure you don’t have a claim.
Got no chance with a fishing rod.

 

[Garry Hall]

I Royal Mail left a parcel outside my house last year despite me being home. We had heavy rain and when I found it the cardboard was soaked. I showed my regular postman the next day and he was quite defensive until I showed him it was a galvanised anchor. He then walked off annoyed at me collaring about the bad delivery.
Some people!

 

[Kevin Steele]

Resin for example could be used as an out? As in Epoxy.

I don't think so, Graham. I don't think rods can be defined as being made of resin. Without the core materials (say, graphite, carbon, glass, cork) there would be no rod. If the exclusions literally excluded items that 'contained' certain materials, then nothing would be allowed.

Exactly! Good luck with it.
Once bitten twice shy n all that.
@Kevin Steele i have used courier insurance before with something completely unrelated to fishing and the process is a nightmare and they will do absolutely everything they can to ensure you don’t have a claim.
Got no chance with a fishing rod.

You didn't elaborate, when asked, how you came to be 'bitten', Richard - losing a lot of money on an irreplaceable rod - so it's impossible to engage with why you were: 'once bitten twice shy n all that'.

I'm not here to convince anyone to use Royal Mail (I've had issues with them too, but have also been compensated, so it's all a question of balance), but there's been the usual misinformation in this thread about what they do and do not accept - not least the length of items - so it might have been be helpful to some to have those myths put to bed.

But having received rods from major retailers in flimsy triangular cardboard boxes, I'm far from convinced that the issues that a lot of people have with (any) couriers are down to the courier and not the sender. So, with respect, it depends on what weight anyone gives to someone's rather vague 'bad experience', rather than Googling the T&Cs and making their own mind up.

Anyway, OP has had his money's worth with this thread. I'm off to Scotland for a fortnight.

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