Buying Silver with Free Shipping

When buying silver and other precious metals online, waiting for your order to arrive can be a nerve wracking experience. Often questions like ‘Will my order arrive?’ or ‘What if someone intercepts by precious cargo before it gets to me?’ run through a buyer’s head, while they are waiting for their package to reach them.

Thankfully, a lot of online precious metal retailers understand your concerns and now offer insurance to cover the shipping of your order. In some cases this is free for all orders, and for others it is triggered when purchases breakthrough a certain price threshold.

But like all good things in life, there is often small print for these insurance policies that cover the shipping and delivery of your silver. So while a site proclaiming that they offer free insurance might seem like a good choice, it pays to fully understand just what that insurance covers, and in what circumstance you might be left out of pocket should something go wrong.

How Shipping Insurance Works

Most insurance policies offered by established precious metals dealers will fully cover your package while it is in transit. As the parcels are tracked and sent using a reputable shipping company such as UPS or Federal Express, there is little chance the packages will go missing at any point in their journey.

Conscientious dealers will ensure that their packages are discreetly wrapped so that is not obvious that they contain precious metals. This should hopefully make them less likely to become the target of thieves while they are in transit.

One way that shipping insurance policies can become voided is if you entrust your package with someone else and instruct the delivery service to leave the package with a neighbour or doorman. By giving these instructions to the shipping handlers, you will not be able to make a claim should the package go missing before it gets to you.

While theft during transit is the main concern of those shopping online for silver and gold, damage could also occur during the journey. Due to this, most shipping insurance policies will cover any goods that arrive at their destination in less than the advertised condition.

Qualifying for Free Shipping and Insurance

Many precious metal dealers will offer the above insurance policies free of charge, as well as covering the cost of shipping your package to you. However, not all orders qualify for free shipping. Usually you will be required to order items over a certain value to trigger the free shipping and insurance policy.

Free Shipping, Handling and Insurance Checklist

When ordering silver online, it is a very good idea to ensure there is an insurance policy in place to cover your purchase. Even if that means you have to pay for it, it is still recommended that your package is covered should it not arrive or is damaged in transit. While most websites will display that they do offer free shipping and insurance, it is vital that you check exactly when these services become free and on what value orders.

Make sure you read the small print of the policies to find out what is covered and what is not. Also make sure you don’t do anything that could void the policy such as requesting the package be left with a neighbour.  While there is little chance something will go wrong, it pays to be make sure your package is protected.