How to Ship Coins Safely, with Insurance and Tracking

To ship coins safely, pack each coin tight in its holder, put the holders in a small plain box, put that box inside a second box with padding, and write nothing on the outside that says coins. Ship with tracking and a signature on delivery, and insure each package for its full value with insurance that actually covers coins. Many carrier and label-provider policies limit or exclude coins and bullion, so read the terms before you count on them.

Many coin package losses have plain causes: a box that rattled, a label that said what was inside, or a delivery to a porch with no signature. Each step below closes one of those gaps.

Step 1: Pack the coins

Holders

• Slabs. Wrap each one in bubble wrap or a padded sleeve. Slabs crack at the corners when they slide against each other.
• Raw coins. Put each coin in a 2x2 or a flip, and put the flips in a box or between card stock so they cannot bend. Never ship a raw coin loose in an envelope.
• Rolls and tubes. Tape the caps shut. A tube that opens in transit spills every coin into the box.
• Bullion bars. Leave them in the original assay card or sleeve.

The box

1. Put the wrapped holders in a small, sturdy box and fill every gap. Shake it. If anything moves, add padding.
2. Tape the inner box shut on every seam.
3. Put the inner box inside a larger plain box with padding on all sides.
4. Seal the outer box with tape you can recognize, so you can tell later if it was opened.

Many dealers weigh the packed box and photograph it, the open inner box, and the coins before they seal it. If a box arrives light or opened, those photos and the weight are your evidence.

The outside

• No words such as coins, gold, silver, bullion, or numismatic on the label or the box.
• No business name that says coins in the return address, if you can avoid it. Many dealers ship under initials or a plain business name.
• No value on the box. Declare the value to the carrier or the insurer, not to everyone who handles the package.

Step 2: Choose the service

Coin dealers mostly use USPS services with strong tracking and handling, such as Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express, and Registered Mail for high-value packages, or UPS and FedEx services with signature options. Each carrier has its own rules on what it will carry, how much it will insure, and how it handles coins and precious metals, and those rules change. Before you settle on a service, read the current rules:

• USPS. The Domestic Mail Manual, especially the sections on insurance and Registered Mail, and the USPS pages on insured mail limits.
• UPS and FedEx. The service guide or tariff for your account, including the limits on declared value and the list of excluded items.

Signature on delivery

Require a signature on every coin package worth more than you would happily lose. A package left on a porch is easy to steal and hard to claim. For high-value packages, an adult signature adds a check that the person signing is an adult.

Step 3: Insure for full value with the right policy

There are three common ways to insure a coin package:

Option	How it works	What to check
Carrier coverage	USPS insurance, or UPS and FedEx declared value	Limits per package, exclusions for coins and precious metals, claim rules
Insurance from your label provider	Bought with the label from a shipping software company	Coverage limits, exclusions, and how claims are paid
Your own shipping policy	A policy you buy from a specialty insurer for your business	Per-package limit, per-day or per-shipment limit, approved carriers and services, packing rules

Carrier and label-provider insurance can deny claims for coins, bullion, and precious metals. A policy written for dealers is usually built for coins, but it has its own rules, such as a per-package limit, approved services, and packing requirements. A claim can fail because you broke a rule you did not read, so read the terms once and write the rules on a card next to your shipping station.

What value to declare

Most policies pay what you can prove you lost, up to the declared value. That might be your cost, the sale price, or the replacement cost, depending on the policy. Keep the invoice, your purchase record, and the coin photos for every shipment.

Worked example: the cost of shipping one order

You ship Richard Lawson a 1909-S VDB cent, PCGS VF30, sold for $1,450, plus a 1916-D Mercury dime, NGC G6, sold for $1,050. Declared value: $2,500.

The rates below are made up to show the math. Use your carrier's and insurer's current prices.

• Label: $11.80
• Signature on delivery: $3.50
• Insurance at an example rate of $0.60 per $100 of value: $2,500 ÷ $100 × $0.60 = $15.00
• Packing materials: $2.20
• Your cost to ship: $11.80 + $3.50 + $15.00 + $2.20 = $32.50

If you charge Richard $25.00 for shipping, you pay $7.50 of it yourself. That might be fine on a $2,500 sale. On a $60 coin, the same habit loses money. Work out your real cost per package once, at a few value levels, and set your shipping charges from it.

Worked example: splitting a large order

Say your policy covers up to $25,000 per package, and a buyer orders $41,800 of gold coins. One box would be $16,800 over the limit, and that part would not be covered.

Split it:

Package	Coins	Value
1	Coins A to F	$22,400
2	Coins G to K	$19,400
Total		$41,800

Both packages are under $25,000. Ship them on different days or by different services if your policy limits the value per day or per address, and check whether it does. Each package costs a second label, but uninsured value costs more.

Step 4: Track it and tell the buyer

• Email the buyer the carrier and tracking number when the package ships.
• Watch the tracking until it shows delivered. A package with no scan for a few days is worth a call to the carrier.
• When a carrier reports a problem or returns a package, act the same day.
• Ask the buyer to open the package on camera for high-value orders, if your terms allow it. It settles "the box was empty" claims.

Step 5: File claims fast

If a package is lost or arrives damaged, file the claim within the deadline in your policy or the carrier's rules. Have ready:

• The invoice and proof of value.
• Photos of the coins and the packed box, and the packed weight.
• The tracking history and the delivery scan, if any.
• The buyer's statement, for a damaged or empty package.

Do not refund the buyer before you know how the claim will go, unless your terms say you will.

How CoinManagerPro ships coins

With CoinManagerPro shipping, you buy labels from an invoice or an eBay order with your own Shippo or ShipStation account. In settings under "Shipping provider", choose "Shippo" to buy labels in CoinManagerPro, "ShipStation" to send orders to ShipStation and buy the label there, or "No provider" to add tracking numbers by hand. Labels are billed to your Shippo or ShipStation account.

On an invoice with a "Ship to" address, click "Buy label". Enter the package size in inches, the "Weight (oz)", the "Declared value", and the "Signature on delivery": "No signature", "Signature", or "Adult signature". Under "Insurance", choose:

• "My shipping policy", for your own insurance policy. Enter the "Insurer", "Policy number", and an optional "Per-package limit" under "Shipping insurance policy" on the Shipping provider settings page. CoinManagerPro stops a label whose declared value is over the per-package limit.
• "Shippo insurance (XCover)", which is added to the label cost and covers up to $10,000, or "ShipStation insurance (Shipsurance)".
• "Carrier declared value", which shows only UPS and FedEx rates.
• "Not insured".

When you choose label-provider insurance or carrier declared value, CoinManagerPro warns that it can deny claims for coins, bullion, and precious metals. Pick a rate, buy the label, and print it from the shipment.

CoinManagerPro checks carrier tracking on a schedule, and each shipment shows "Shipped", "In transit", "Delivered", or "Problem". The buyer gets an email with a tracking link when the package ships and another when it is delivered. You can turn each email off, and you can set an "Email for shipping problems" to hear about carrier problems. For a package you shipped at the post office, use "Add tracking" with the carrier and tracking number, and the buyer still gets the shipped email. For an eBay order, CoinManagerPro sends the tracking number to eBay.

The short version

Pack tight, box twice, and keep the outside plain. Ship with tracking and a signature. Insure each package for full value with insurance that covers coins, and read its limits and rules. Split orders that go over a per-package limit. Track every package to delivery, keep photos and weights, and file claims inside the deadline.