doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Interesting Visit to FedEx

Went to my local FedEx office yesterday to ship a gun from CA to the midwest and ran into a new glitch. The shipment was a simple Spanish boxlock .410, going to a smith for repair. Nothing on the box to indicate that it contained a gun. Because it's a relatively low value gun, I decided to ship FedEx Ground, but to insure for more than $500. They told me that anything going ground with insurance at $500 or higher required that they open the box and inspect the contents. So I said "let's insure it for $499." They still wanted to inspect it. I declined because I had several hours invested in very carefully and securely packing the gun, and opening the package would destroy the integrity of the packing (lots of rigid foam insulation panels, box inside another box, etc.). They would not let me ship it without opening it in front of them. The solution was to send it FedEx Express (air) with as much insurance as I wanted, no inspection necessary.

Anybody else had this problem with FedEx?

I didn't think FedEx would accept firearms for Ground Shipping, from private parties. Only from FFL holders. H,ICBW

Jim is correct;

FedEx Gun shipping Regs;

http://www.cgwgun.com/shipping/fedex.aspx

FedEx Ground will transport firearms (excluding handguns), but only between:

*

1. Licensed importers, licensed manufacturers, licensed dealers, licensed collectors, law enforcement agencies of the U.S. or of any department or agency thereof, and law enforcement agencies of any state or any department, agency, or political subdivisions thereof; or


Express requires only one have a license (Fed regs of course require the recipient to have the FFL);

FedEx EXPRESS rules: Firearms

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FedEx Express can only accept and deliver firearms between areas served in the U.S. under the following conditions: (1) you agree to tender shipments of firearms to us only when either the shipper or recipient is a licensed manufacturer, licensed importer, licensed dealer or licensed collector and is not prohibited from making such shipments by local, state or federal regulations; (2) the shipper and recipient must be of legal age as identified by applicable state law

Of course USPS would have accepted it and sending it registered would have made sure it arrived safely.

mail it USPS

Dave K, the issue was not whether the box contained a gun, because they did not ask that. Their issue was strictly with the insurance value vs shipping mode.

I think the shipment met the rest of their own rules, because it was not a handgun and it was going to an FFL (but that question did not come up either). This was at a FedEx corporate location and the manager even checked his manual on the isnurance question.

USPS would have added another hour to my transaction time because of the lines at the post office this week. In my location, FedEx is a whole lot more convenient and quicker than USPS.

In my experience, a lot depends on the FedEx employee accepting the package. I had an employee tell me about the 500.00 opening-the-package limit (I insured that one for 499.00 at his suggestion), and then the next time I went to the counter, I mentioned this and another guy on duty waved his hand in the air and said, "AAAH. Don't worry about it."

Also, if you read the next paragraph in the regs cited by DaveK under the "ground" ruling, it will state that a firearm is accepted for shipping from an individual to an FFL for the purposes of repair and/or customizing.

My experience is that it depends on the wench behind the counter.

It was the manager, working the counter because they were so busy.

Quote from Fed Ex regulations above:
" licensed collectors"
R.E: Shipping requirements.

If any of you ever needed a reason to get a C&R FFL here it is in the Fed Ex regulations. Since USPS doesn't discriminate either I just put a copy of my C&R license in with whatever I ship.
Jim

I think the fact that they didn't know what was in there (it my understanding that its not legal to put anything saying there is gun in the package on the outside of it(I had a pretty intense "discussion' with a post mistress (?) over her insisting that I do have it on the outside of the package- I won and but don't go to that PO any more)),if they insure it and its lost,when you tell them it was gun they will not pay as you broke their rules.
Their rules are screwed up,they want both ends having a FFL for ground,yet will abide by federal rules on express (the recipient has to have FFL)

I have had a lot of packages come to my home last couple weeks,like many here I suspect.The ones FedEx and UPS 'toss off the truck" are everywhere from end of driveway to by the garage.My mail girl puts it safely in my garage. I don't trust UPS or FedEx for any shipping,way to many thieves and low paid workers who don't have to answer for their actions.But thats me