NFC has seen a significant increase in the number of shipments to which uncrating of crated items is not being performed at delivery. As you may know, the uncrating item code (105E) was removed from the 400NG Tariff back on 15 May, 2022. Compensation for uncrating is part of the unpacking line item and is billable per our compensation schedule. Due to the increase of incomplete services at delivery, we wanted to remind our agent family on the policy and procedures as it pertains to uncrating.
Agent's Responsibility At Delivery
It is the delivering agent's responsibility to uncrate all crated item(s) at the time of delivery, regardless of whether a 3rd party company is used to crate the item(s) at origin. Should a customer choose to waive unpacking, this does not necessarily include uncrating. Keep in mind that many of the most commonly crated items, specifically glass/marble/stone table tops, belong to a furniture piece that requires reassembly. Therefore, if uncrating is not completed, reassembly cannot be completed. This constitutes a service failure and may result in a Letter of Warning/Letter of Suspension.
- Item(s) should be uncrated in such a manner that the component parts of the crate are not destroyed during uncrating, so that crates may be reused by the customer for future moves.
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Crate(s) remain the property of the customer unless the customer decides not to retain the crate(s). If elected not to retain, crate(s) should be removed from the residence as part of debris/packing materials removal protocol.
Agent Liability
Typically, the delivering agent is not held liable for uncrating if it’s discovered that an item inside of a crate is broken or damaged at the time of uncrating. Per the DP3 Claims and Liability Business Rules, crates are considered packed items and the responsible party who crated is always liable. As NFC handles the majority of all approved crating at origin, liability falls on our office. The exception to this would be extenuating circumstances (e.g. delivery crew drops a crate at delivery etc.).
We advise that all crews be prepared to uncrate on every move which has crated goods, regardless of whether a 3rd party company crated at origin. The only time uncrating is not required is if the customer advises the agent not to uncrate at delivery. For those instances, make sure that the DD619 specifically lists that uncrating was waived, and that the document is signed by the customer.
