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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;calcol, post: 2448428, member: 77639&quot;]I wrote the following mostly as a reminder to myself, but others may find it useful.&nbsp; Shipping internationally is not discussed. All dollar values are current as of June 2016.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Introduction</b></p><p><br /></p><p>In the U.S., registered mail provides a safe way to transport coins.&nbsp; Although it&#039;s not necessarily the quickest or cheapest way, it&#039;s widely available.&nbsp; Private delivery companies provide an alternative, but insurance from a separate company may be needed.&nbsp; Not all post offices can handle registered mail because some smaller post offices don&#039;t have adequate security for it.&nbsp; With registered mail, you are paying for a more secure method of transit and for insurance up to $50,000.&nbsp; Tracking and signature-required are included.</p><p><br /></p><p>Coins should be insured for their full value however they&#039;re shipped. It&#039;s possible to obtain up to $5,000 of USPS insurance without using registered mail, and it may be cheaper than registered mail if the value is relatively low.&nbsp; $500 insurance for non-registered is $6.65, whereas registered would be $14.55.&nbsp; However, for $5,000 insurance, non-registered is $55.00, but registered is only $22.30!&nbsp; The breakeven point is around $2,000.&nbsp; For registered mail, the clerk writes the value of the shipment on the form and that will be the insurance amount.&nbsp; The registration cost is determined by that value. If you don&#039;t use registered mail, pay the little bit for tracking and signature-required.&nbsp; If you ship coins frequently, private insurers are worth investigating.&nbsp; With private insurance, registered mail may or may not be useful; this complicated subtopic won&#039;t be discussed further. Be sure you have photographs of both sides of all coins prior to shipment.&nbsp; If the coins are in slabs, be sure that photos include both sides of the entire slab.</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;ve filed USPS insurance claims for lost or damaged non-registered mail, and it went smoothly.&nbsp; I&#039;ve never had a to file a claim for lost or damaged registered mail.</p><p><br /></p><p>Whatever the insurance, postage costs will be added to it.&nbsp; Registered mail travels at its own speed, often slowly, because of security precautions.&nbsp; If it needs to be there in a hurry, don&#039;t use registered mail.</p><p><br /></p><p>Coins should be in a small inner box or boxes with padding.&nbsp; The smaller box(es) should go in a sturdy, not-too-worn outer box along with padding and a document or label that includes the &quot;to/from&quot; addresses.</p><p><br /></p><p>Because submitting registered mail can take some time at the counter, don&#039;t go into the post office with it just before closing.&nbsp; Some post offices allow registered mail to be submitted at a machine.&nbsp; Unless you are very sure that you have prepared the package correctly, it&#039;s better to deal with a clerk.&nbsp; If the coins are worth $1,000 or more, always go to a clerk for submitting the package.&nbsp; The clerk should place the package in the safe before you leave.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Rules and Procedure:</b></p><p><br /></p><p>1.&nbsp; Sealing tape must be brown, heavy duty paper, and at least 2&quot; wide.&nbsp; Water-activated adhesive is traditional, but self-stick is available, faster, and more convenient. Intertape (Intertape Polymer Group, aka IPG) 9341 Kraft Paper Carton Sealing Tape is self-stick and available from Amazon and elsewhere and works well.&nbsp; Retain the Intertape tape roll label or a copy of the ad.&nbsp; Some postal clerks are not familiar with it.</p><p><br /></p><p>Clear tape and&nbsp; strapping tape can be used initially as needed, but the outer covering of all seams must the sealing tape mentioned above.&nbsp; &quot;All seams&quot; means corners where the box was fastened together as well as the flaps.&nbsp; Postal clerks must stamp and/or initial all seams, which is why paper tape must be used.&nbsp; Ink doesn&#039;t stick well to most plastic tapes.</p><p><br /></p><p>Some clerks will supply or (less likely) apply sealing tape, but don&#039;t count on it. Do it yourself in advance.</p><p><br /></p><p>2.&nbsp; Package cannot have any writing, printing, stickers, color stripes, ads, decorations, etc. other than the to/from addresses showing.&nbsp; Remove stickers by peeling if feasible.&nbsp; However, the quickest way to prevent the offenders from showing is to cover them with sealing tape.</p><p><br /></p><p>3.&nbsp; Address labels cannot be used.&nbsp; To/from addresses must be written directly on the package, either on the bare package wall or on sealing tape.&nbsp; Fine-tip ink markers do not work well on the Intertape tape mentioned above because it has a somewhat slick surface.&nbsp; A regular size, black Sharpie works fine.</p><p><br /></p><p>Write the &quot;from&quot; address in the upper left corner and the &quot;to&quot; address bottom center.&nbsp; &quot;To&quot; address should be in larger font than the &quot;from&quot; address.</p><p><br /></p><p>4.&nbsp; Fill-out the registered mail form before getting to the clerk.&nbsp; Take some extras home for next time.&nbsp; The upper half of the form, including the declared value, is to be filled-in by the clerk.</p><p><br /></p><p>5.&nbsp; Always take a roll of sealing tape , tape roll label or ad, scissors, and a black Sharpie to the post office with the package.&nbsp; Post offices and clerks within a post office can vary on how they interpret the rules.&nbsp; Be prepared to alter or redo the packaging.</p><p><br /></p><p>Carrying the above items along with a shipping box to out-of-town venues where you might obtain coins can be useful.&nbsp; Sending coins home via registered mail is likely safer than carrying them yourself, and they will be insured.&nbsp; USPS often has a temporary post office at major shows.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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