A split frame and nobody to charge
A dining table arrives from an importer. At goods-in, the team signs the carrier's handheld as received, in a hurry because three lorries are due. A week later, when the table is unwrapped for a customer delivery, the top has a crack along one edge. The importer says the carrier was signed for clean. The carrier says the damage was not reported within its window. You are left with a damaged table and a customer waiting for a replacement.
The same pattern happens with sofas scuffed in the van, glass shelves cracked in their box and corner units with a broken foot. Some are genuinely your fault. Many are not, but you cannot show it.
Why claims fall through
- Goods are signed for as clean because there is no time to inspect.
- Damage found later cannot be tied back to a delivery.
- Photos are on someone's phone, if they exist.
- Suppliers and carriers have short reporting windows that nobody tracks.
- Claims are chased by email, and the thread goes cold.
Every supplier and carrier has its own rules about how and when damage must be reported. Your team cannot remember them all, and the deadline passes while the item sits in the warehouse.
What lost claims cost
| Moment | What happens | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Goods-in | Signed clean without checking | Claim rejected later |
| Warehouse | Damage found days later | Cannot show when it happened |
| Delivery | Damage found in the customer's home | Second delivery and an upset customer |
| Claim | Deadline missed or not chased | Cost written off |
How we capture damage and chase claims
- At goods-in, each carton is scanned or its label photographed. A quick checklist asks about visible carton damage, and the signature on the carrier's device can be marked 'unchecked' or with a note, following the carrier's terms.
- Any damage is recorded with photos straight away, linked to the item, carton, supplier, carrier and delivery reference.
- When items are unwrapped for inspection or delivery, the same checklist is used, so damage found later is tied back to its goods-in record.
- Delivery crews use the same app on the customer's doorstep to record condition before and after unwrapping.
- Damage records turn into claims automatically, addressed to the right party, with the photos and references attached and the reporting deadline for that supplier or carrier shown clearly.
- Each claim has a status: reported, acknowledged, credit agreed, repair, replacement, rejected. Claims with no reply are chased on a schedule.
- A report shows open claims by supplier and carrier, and which ones damage the most goods.
A damaged table, handled properly
The table arrives. The carton has a crushed corner, so the goods-in person photographs it, notes it on the carrier's handheld and scans it into the damage check. When the table is unwrapped, the crack is photographed and linked to the same record. A claim goes to the importer that afternoon with the photos, delivery reference and carton damage note, well inside their window. The importer agrees a replacement, and the claim is closed with the credit logged.
The customer's delivery date is updated automatically, and they are told why.
Evidence, not blame
Some damage happens in your warehouse or your own vans, and the records will show that too. That is useful, because it shows where handling needs to improve. Who is responsible for any particular damage is set by your terms with suppliers and carriers, and the system only records the facts and deadlines. It does not decide liability.
Repairs are part of the picture too. Many transit damages are fixed by a furniture repairer rather than replaced, and the claim record can hold the repair booking, the repairer's report and the cost, so you can recover it from the supplier or carrier where your terms allow. Items waiting for repair are kept in a separate location in your stock system, so nobody allocates a cracked table to the next customer order by mistake.
Signs your damage claims are leaking
- Goods are signed for as clean without checking.
- Damage photos live on staff phones.
- Claims are rejected for missing a reporting deadline.
- You cannot say how much damage each supplier or carrier causes.
- Claims are chased by email and quietly forgotten.