Introduction
Centralized Claims Process Coming Soon
Work is currently underway to centralize all claims in order to streamline the indemnity claims process and to provide customers with an easier and more consistent service. All claims will be processed by Accounting Services in St. Louis. On the retail systems (POS, IRT, etc.), AIC 539, Indemnity Claims Paid at Window, will be removed. Customers will have the option to file all domestic insurance claims, including domestic Express Mail® claims online, mail them directly to St. Louis, or submit their completed claim forms at a Post Office™. Registered Mail® and COD claims can be submitted only to Accounting Services by mail or at the local Post Office — no online option will be available.
All claims (domestic insurance, Express Mail, Registered Mail, or COD) submitted at the local Post Office must be sent to Accounting Services in St. Louis immediately. For any damaged items submitted to Post Offices, the review process remains the same: retain the item, complete the PS Form 2856, Damage Report of Insured Parcel and Contents, and submit the form to Accounting Services in St. Louis. If customers have already filed the claim, they must provide a letter (or online claim summary) from Accounting Services with the damaged article (to the local Post Office). If customers have not yet filed the claim, they must submit the completed PS Form 1000, Domestic or International Claim, with the damaged article (to the local Post Office).
Other changes coming soon include these revisions to PS Form 1000:
n Domestic and international claims are combined on a new PS Form 1000, thus obsoleting PS Form 2855, Claim for Indemnity — International Registered Mail, Insured, Ordinary Parcel and Express Mail, and all previous versions of PS Form 1000.
n The Post Office employee section is eliminated.
n PS Form 1000 is now a one-ply form, which can be ordered from the Material Distribution Center, or additional copies can be printed from any computer.
To support these claim changes, this is an itemized list of new or revised directives:
Detailed information on the updated directives will be published in the Postal Bulletin at a future date.
Online Claims Expansion
Today, Click-N-Ship® and eBay customers can file their domestic insurance claims online at www.usps.com. Starting on March 2, all customers will have the added convenience of filing all domestic insurance claims (including Express Mail) online. The online service allows customers to file a claim for domestic insurance as well as view claim status and history at any time. This new option is convenient and it provides a quick and consistent claims process for customers. To file a claim online, customers should go to http://www.usps.com/insuranceclaims/online.htm.
International Claims Update
The U.S. Postal Service® is simplifying its international services by replacing the current international claim form, PS Form 2855, with an updated PS Form 1000. The combined form will allow customers to use a single form for domestic and international claims and is another example of how the Postal Service™ is making our services work better for our customers.
Customers should continue to call 800-222-1811 to initiate an international inquiry. Once the inquiry of damage or loss is confirmed by USPS®, customers will be sent an information packet with the new PS Form 1000. For more information about international claims, go to http://www.usps.com/insuranceclaims/intlclaims.htm.
Improving the Claims Process — Service Talk for Retail Employees
What’s Changed
To streamline the indemnity claims process and to provide customers with easier and more consistent service, the Postal Service is making the following changes, effective March 2, 2009:
n Expansion of the online claims process to include all claims for domestic insurance (Express Mail, Priority Mail, First-Class Mail, Media Mail, and Parcel Post), including Express Mail claims with no additional insurance. Currently, online claims are only available for Click-N-Ship and eBay customers. To file claims online, customers should go to www.usps.com/insuranceclaims/online.htm.
n Revision of PS Form 1000 to include both domestic and international claims, thus eliminating PS Form 2855. The revised PS Form 1000 no longer requires any Post Office employee input.
n Direct filing of domestic claims by mail by customers directly to Domestic Claims, Accounting Services, PO Box 80143, St. Louis, MO 63180-0143. For international claims, customers should continue to call 800-222-1811 to initiate an inquiry. If the inquiry of damage or loss is confirmed by USPS, an information packet with a PS Form 1000 will be mailed to the customer.
n Filing of Registered Mail and COD claims by mail, but not online.
n Adjudication of claims centralized in St. Louis. No local adjudication at Post Offices.
n Modification of the damaged goods policy for domestic claims.
n Increased salvage value from $10.00 to $25.00 for both domestic and international items.
Damaged Article Evaluation
Domestic Claims
n Customers must retain the damaged article and container, including the wrapping, packaging, and all contents received.
n If the claim requires a damage report, customers will receive a letter from Accounting Services to present the article, the packaging, and the letter to a nearby Post Office. However, if customers have not yet filed the claim, they will need to provide the completed PS Form 1000 with the damaged article to the local Post Office.
n If customers present a damaged article, Post Office employees must follow the current process: complete a PS Form 2856, retain the article, and immediately mail the completed PS Form 2856 to Accounting Services in St. Louis.
International Claims
If customers present a damaged article, Post Office employees must follow the current process: complete a PS Form 2856, retain the article, and immediately mail the completed PS Form 2856 to Accounting Services in St. Louis.
How Does It Affect Me
n All claims will be adjudicated in St. Louis, and may not be adjudicated locally; AIC 539 will be disabled from the retail systems.
n If customers submit their PS Form 1000 to the Post Office, accept it and mail it immediately to Domestic Claims, Accounting Services, PO Box 80143, St. Louis, MO 63180-0143. Do not turn the customer away.
n Accept all damaged items that are presented to the Post Office and follow the current process (complete PS Form 2856). Retain the item and all packaging until the claim is resolved. You will receive correspondence when the claim is resolved with instructions on how to handle the retained item.
Customer Claim FAQs — Effective March 2, 2009
Q. What is a claim with the USPS?
A. A claim with USPS is a request by a postal customer for an indemnity payment that resulted from the loss, rifling, or damage to mailed items. The mailed items must have included postal insurance.
Q. Who can file a claim?
A. Either the mailer or addressee may file a domestic claim. For domestic indemnity claims (Insured, Registered, Collect on Delivery (COD), and Express Mail®), either the mailer or addressee may file. However, if the item has Merchandise Return Service, only the permit holder may file.
If the mailer files a claim for damage for an article still in the possession of the addressee, USPS Accounting Services will notify the addressee by mail to present the damaged article and mailing container, including any wrapping, packaging, and any other contents that were received, to the Postal Service for inspection. However, if mailers insist that the addressee return the article to them, the addressee must return the item through the U.S. Postal Service. The original mailing container, including the wrapping, packaging, and any contents that were received, must be mailed inside a new mailing container with sufficient packaging material to prevent further damage to the article.
Q. Where do I file a domestic claim with the USPS?
A. Starting March 2, three options will be available:
1. All domestic insurance claims (including Express Mail) can be filed online at www.usps.com/online claims.
2. Complete the PS Form 1000 and mail to: USPS Accounting Services, PO Box 80143, St. Louis, MO 63180-0143.
3. Complete the PS Form 1000 and submit it to your local Post Office. To find one near you, go to www.usps.com/locator.
Q. Why should I file my claim online?
A. Filing a claim online is convenient and easy: you can upload evidence to substantiate your claim, check the claim status, and view your claim history of other claims filed online. All online claims are immediately transferred to the Accounting Services department for claim resolution and adjudication.
Q. How do I file an international claim with the USPS?
A. For shipments mailed to or from a foreign country using Express Mail International®, Global Express Guaranteed®, registered letter-post, recorded delivery, Insured Mail, or ordinary Parcel Post®, you must first call 800-222-1811 to initiate an international inquiry with the USPS. If your inquiry of damage or loss is confirmed by the USPS, an information packet with a claim PS Form 1000 will be mailed to you. To find more specific instructions for international claims, go to www.usps.com/insuranceclaims/intlclaims.htm.
Q. What is required to file a claim?
A. Claims filed by mail or at a Post Office must include the following:
n The completed PS Form 1000.
n The article number on the package or label.
n Evidence of insurance.
n Evidence of value.
n Proof of damage or missing contents.
For all claims submitted online, evidence of value is required and may be uploaded directly as part of the claim filing process, or may be mailed in. Evidence of insurance and evidence of damage may be uploaded with the claim. Customers need to retain evidence of insurance (except for Click-N-Ship customers) and evidence of damage until the claim is resolved. Uploaded files must be in PDF or JPG file format and less than 2MB in file size. More specific instructions for evidence of insurance, evidence of value, and proof of damage may be found online www.usps.com/insuranceclaims/domestic.htm. This page will be modified on March 2 with the updated claim filing instructions.
Q. How do I find my article number?
A. Your article number may be found on:
n The mailing receipt.
n The online label record, if insurance was purchased online (through Click-N-Ship service or eBay).
n The USPS sales receipt, if you bought the insurance at a Post Office or Automated Postal Center® (APC®).
n The article mailed (below the barcode).
Q. When can a domestic claim be submitted?
A. All claims for damage or missing contents should be filed immediately, but no later than 60 days after the mailing date.
Claims for lost articles (any mailing that has not been received or returned to the sender) must be filed within the time limits below. If you file your claim online, you may file it earlier and it will be held in a “pending” status until the earliest filing date.
Q. When can an international inquiry be submitted?
A. Customers must initiate an inquiry before filing a claim unless they are in possession of a damaged item. Customers may initiate an inquiry by calling the USPS International Inquiry Center at 800-222-1811 within the time periods in the table below. If U.S. customers are in possession of a damaged item (except an item from Canada), they must complete PS Form 1000 and present it and the damaged item, container, wrapping, packaging, and any other contents to a Post Office immediately. If in receipt of a damaged item mailed in Canada, customers must contact the Canadian sender and instruct them to file a claim. Below are the international inquiry filing time limits:
Q. How do I check the status of a claim I already filed?
n For claims filed online, you can sign in to your usps.com account to check the status.
n For claims filed by mail, you can call Accounting Services at 866-974-2733 (Mon–Fri from 7 a.m.–6 p.m. CST). You will need to provide the article number of your claim, the name on the claim, and the original claim filing date.
Q. How do I get technical assistance with online claims?
A. Send an e-mail to the Internet Customer Care Center (IC3) at icustomercare@usps.com with questions or technical issues regarding online claims. Your e-mail will be responded to within 24–36 hours. The hours of operation are 7 a.m.–11 p.m. EST, 7 days per week.
Q. I purchased domestic insurance at an APC. Do I have the option to file my claim online?
A. Yes, starting on March 2, all articles shipped with the U.S. Postal Service with domestic USPS insurance (including Express Mail) are eligible for online claims. Either the mailer or addressee may file the claim. Be sure to keep the transaction receipt provided at the APC.
Q. How long does the online claims submission process take? When can I expect a decision?
A. Submitting your claim online will take approximately 15 minutes or longer per article depending on the amount of items in your package. You may submit your claim online prior to the earliest filing date; however, processing will not begin until the earliest filing date and will remain in a saved status until that time. You may also submit your claim online after the latest filing date but results may be impacted by the delay. If you have filed all of the items required for processing your claim, you can expect a response from Accounting Services within 10–30 days.
Q. How do I file an appeal for my claim after I receive the decision?
A. After the original claim decision has been provided (i.e., denied or approved), you may appeal a decision within 60 days of the original decision date. Two options are available to file an appeal:
n You may appeal a claim decision in writing to the following address:
Domestic Claim Appeals
Accounting Services
PO Box 80143
St. Louis, MO 63180-0143
n ONLY if the original claim was filed online, you may submit the appeal via online claims:
n Sign in to your online claims account at http://www.usps.com/insuranceclaims/online.htm, go to the Claims History page, and then click on the article number for the specific claim you wish to appeal. Once you are on the Claim Status page, click Submit an Appeal.
n If you have any supporting documentation (evidence of value, evidence of insurance, etc.) to provide (that was not originally provided) to substantiate your appeal, you can upload it online with your appeal. It must be in PDF or JPG file format and less than 2MB.
In your appeal (either online or by mail), explain why your case should be reviewed. Also, make sure that evidence of value, evidence of mailing, and insurance coverage for the article is included.
— Product Development,
Mailing Services, 1-29-09
