Hermes lost parcel - claim launched . **WON**

[murraynt]

Hello all.

I'm having some issues getting a refund from Hermes for a lost parcel.

On the 15th of May I bought a shipment label from the Hermes website to deliver a package valued at £130. When I got to the parcel shop I was told I could not print the label, so I bought another shipment label to ship my parcel, again valued at £130.

Fast forward a few weeks and the first parcel has been reported to be delivered at 1.30pm on the 22nd of may. Despite the fact that nobody was recorded on the video camera for one hour either side of that time or that fact that the label was never used.

The second parcel, has been lost. Hermes have admitted they have misplaced the parcel and guided me to submit a claim.As I did not opt for their insurance they have offered a refund of £20. I have not yet accepted this claim. Do I have any right to a full refund? If so, how do I go about it?

Thanks for any help.

[BankFodder]

Your story is a bit confusing. I'm not at all clear whether there was one parcel or two parcels. There were certainly two labels but at the beginning of your post I had understood that this was because it was not possible to print out the first one.

Please could you go through it again and explain it a little bit more clearly. Thanks.

However I understand that for at least one parcel – which may have a value of £130 – which is the value which you declared – Hermes offering you only £20 on the basis that you had not bought the insurance.

If this is the case, then I think that our position is that as you have paid the delivery fee, it is completely unnecessary for you to have to purchase insurance against negligent handling of your property by Hermes.

On this basis you could certainly sue them

[murraynt]

Apologies BankFodder.  There was one parcel, two labels but only one label was used. Hermes claim both have been used, but that was not true. 

[BankFodder]

Okay. So we are talking about one parcel only. The value was £130 – and this was the value which you declared. This is very important.

Hermes have admitted that they have lost the parcel but they are declining liability because they say that you should have bought their insurance.

You have seen what we have said about this so-called "insurance". As long as the value was properly declared in my view is that if you have paid the delivery fee then it is up to them to insure against their own negligence. There is no reason why you should insure against their negligence.

If you are happy with this reasoning – and if you are prepared to take a legal action then of course we will help you.

You need to understand your risk factor – which is that if you lose then you will lose your claim fee – about £25 and you will lose the allocation fee which for this value may be about £80. You will have to look it up the courts website.

If you win then you will get all of these fees back and of course the hundred and £30 you are looking for plus interest on it. The chances are that Hermes will push you to issue the claim and spend the claim fee. They may also push you to spend the allocation fee – but after that, once they realise that you are serious then it is likely that they will put their hands up and pay you out. However it is not guaranteed and you need to be prepared to lose. You have very high chance of success, in my view.

If you think that you want to take a small claim then you should read around this website about how to bring a small claim in the County Court. It's very straightforward but it is worth knowing the steps in advance which will give you greater confidence.
If you decide to go ahead then you should send them a letter of claim giving them 14 days after which you will issue a claim. Do not bluff. If you are prepared to follow through with your threat then don't make the threat. On day 15 you click off the claim.

We will help you draft the letter of claim and also the particulars of claim.

The particulars of claim don't need to be drafted in a formal language. A very simple statement as to why they are liable – that they lost the parcel – is all you need.

Let us know what you want to do

[murraynt]

After reading some more threads on this site and looking at the slide show I would like to go ahead with a small claim against Hermes. I'm just not sure where to begin. 

Edited June 25, 2020 by murraynt

[BankFodder]

Please read my comments here

 

 

[BankFodder]

If you have read around and you understand the risk factors and you are happy to begin a small claim in the County Court, and also if you have read around about the steps involved bringing a small claim in the County Court then your next step would be to send a letter of claim.

 

Quote

 

Dear Sir/Mdm

Parcel reference number X X X – claim reference number X X X
Letter of Claim

 

On X X X date I used your services to send a parcel containing X X X (have you told us what was in it) X X X.

The parcel did not arrive at its intended destination and I now understand from yourselves that the parcel has been lost.

I therefore is seeking the value of the parcel at £130 plus the delivery fee of £X X X

 

I am fully aware that you have a reputation for losing or damaging thousands of parcels that have been placed into your care. You can be certain that if you force this to court, that your record will be brought before the judge – including pieces in the media – both newspapers and television – as well as the information relating to your recent label and computer problems which may well have contributed to the loss of my property.

If I do not receive this sum in full within 14 days then I shall issue a claim in the County Court and without any further notice

Yours faithfully

 

 

Once you have sent this letter off, you are committed – and the claim should be issued on day 15. If you still think that this letter is going to produce any results then you had better think again. It will do nothing other than satisfy the pre-action protocol.

 

During the 14 days you should register with the Moneyclaim online website and start preparing your case. It doesn't need any particular form of words. A short very basic particulars of claim is fine.

 

Quote

The defendants provide a courier service. The claimant use their service to transport a parcel containing a X X X value £130.
The defendants lost the parcel.
The claimant seeks the reimbursement of £130 plus £X X X delivery fee plus interest pursuant to section 69 of the County Courts act 1984.

 

I don't think you need to give them any more information than that at the moment.

For this sort of figure, they may well push you to pay the claim fee and also the hearing fee – but it's unlikely that they will proceed further although now that hearings tend not to be face-to-face but rather on video or by telephone, they may tend to feel that there is less money at risk for them.

In that case you will have to be prepared to present your case. We will help you.

[murraynt]

Thanks for your replies. They are really helpful. 

 

Would it be best to send this letter as an email, on the support thread or a physical copy? 

[BankFodder]

Send it by email and also a physical copy

[murraynt]

Thanks Again, 
 

I have sent an email to [email protected] and I will send the physical letter tomorrow to this address: 
 

Hermes UK

Capitol House,1 Capitol Close

Morley, Leeds, LS27 OWH
United Kingdom

[BankFodder]

In the event that they push you to a hearing – you should read this post which I have made this morning very carefully

 

 

[murraynt]

Thank you BankFodder. 
 

I will study the section 47, 48 and 49 of the consumer right act tonight. 

I also replied to the ticket and attached the letter. I've received a very prompt response stating I should have bought insurance, which is to be expected. 
 

[BankFodder]

I think this is a helpful note because not only does it refer to the so-called compensation cover – better even explains that they won't compensate you for lost items if they appear on the prohibited items list.

This as to the unenforceability of the term.

Under the unfair terms provisions in the Consumer Rights Act there is no power in the court to reconstruct the unfair term so that only part of it applies. It doesn't destroy the contract, but the unfair term destroys itself.
It's patently unfair to decline liability for lost items simply because it appears on a prohibited items list.

You should store this safely and add it to your bundle of evidence later

[BankFodder]

Now if you want to send them a letter of claim, you should do so.

 

Quote

Dear Sir/Mdm

Parcel reference number – X X X – claim reference number X X X
Letter of Claim

 

On X X X date I used your service to send a parcel under the above reference number.
The parcel did not arrive at the destination and after several exchanges with your customer service staff, I was told that the item was lost.
I was also told that I would not be entitled to make any compensation claim because I had not purchased an additional compensation cover. In fact I was also told that even if I had, if my item was included on your prohibited items list, you would still declined liability for its loss.

My position is that I have paid the delivery fee and it is not for me to insure against the negligence of Hermes. It is for Hermes to protect themselves against liability for their own negligence and not pass the buck onto their customers.

I see this requirement as an unenforceable unfair term designed to exclude liability and to prevent me from taking a legal action.

I am preparing to take you to court. If you force this to a court hearing – you can be certain that I shall be producing evidence from many different sources to show that you systematically lose parcels and decline liability on spurious grounds which are unfair and unenforceable.

The contents of my parcel were valued at £X X X.  plus the delivery fee of £X X X.

If I do not have reimbursement in full within 14 days then I shall issue a claim in the County Court to recover this money from you plus interest and without any further notice.

Yours faithfully

 

As I have already indicated, you should only send this letter if you are prepared to issue the claim on day 15. It is almost inconceivable that Hermes will buckle under this threat without issuing the claim papers.

Make sure you have read around the forum and you understand the steps in taking a small claim. Make sure that you understand your risk factors and what will happen if you lose the case.

In the intervening 14 days register on the court service Moneyclaim website and start preparing your claim.

Here is a suggested draft particulars of claim

 

Quote

The claimant used the courier service provided by the defendant courier company to send an item to a third party.
The defendant company has admitted that they have lost the item and yet they refuse to compensate the claimant.
The value of the item sent was X X X. The delivery fee was X X X
The claimant claims full reimbursement of X X X (item value plus delivery fee) plus interest pursuant to section 69, County Courts act 1984.

 

[murraynt]

Hi all. 

I sent the letter yesterday and I've registered on www.moneyclaim.gov.uk. I will update the thread when I hear more. 

[BankFodder]

Thank you, make sure you read around and you understand all the steps.

[syd16]

Hi, I am in a similar situation and looking to start a claim against Hermes.

What is your situation now?

Have you started the claim?

Thanks

 

 

[BankFodder]

I'm afraid that this person has not returned to the forum since the end of June.

It's very frustrating when we go out of their way to try and help people and they don't let us know what has happened or if there has been some resolution.

It's frustrating for us but also for other people who come here for help and hope to find an example or to learn from other people's experiences, it's even more difficult.

[murraynt]

Hello everyone. I'm still here. 

I knew it was a few weeks since I sent the letter off but I didn't realise it has been this long. July has gone quickly! Thanks for the reminder. I will issue the claim tonight. needless to say Hermes have not replied. 

[BankFodder]

I'm afraid by not following up on your threat on the fifteenth day – exactly as promised in your letter of claim, you weaken your credibility, bring comfort to Hermes and of course it becomes more difficult for others.

If you make these threats then you must carry them out exactly

[murraynt]

Understood, but surely regardless if the claim is issued on the 15th day or the 23rd day in my case reasoning against Hermes is still valid? I hope my comments don't come across as being offensive, I am just curious.  

 

Is it still worth submitting? 

Edited July 23, 2020 by murraynt

[BankFodder]

Yes the claim is still valid but what you don't seem to realise is that there are hundreds of people sending letters of claim which are never followed up to Hermes and they all end up in some bucket and that is properly where yours is now.

If you're serious about it then you need to set your deadlines and then follow them up. Otherwise you simply hand control over to Hermes. If you issue the claim against Hermes then they will simply assume that they probably shouldn't worry about you as much as they might do if you laid down strict timelines and stuck to them

[murraynt]

Yes, Point taken BankFodder. Thank you for your patience and help. 

I should have stuck to the strict deadline but I let time slip away from me. I will submit my claim on www.moneyclaim.gov.uk tonight. 

Edited July 23, 2020 by murraynt
Added an image.

[BankFodder]

I have just realised that you have not confirmed to us that £130 was the declared value

[murraynt]

I raised a ticket with hermes and they confirmed the parcel was valued at £120. I have since submitted a claim on the Money Claim web site for £120 + £6.99 Postage.