A damage claim rarely fails on whether the item broke. It fails on the evidence around the box: USPS asks to inspect the damaged item and its original mailing container, claims are denied as "insufficient packing" when nobody photographed how the item sat inside the box, and a buyer who repackages an item for return can quietly destroy the evidence the claim depends on.
This guide covers the three things that decide damage claims: what "original packaging" means as claim collateral, the photo set that connects the box to the item, and the timing rules that catch sellers out.
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Open the free packet builderThe original mailing container is part of the claim
USPS may require the damaged item and its mailing container to be presented for inspection, and sellers report inspection windows as short as about 20 days — with the damaged package sitting in the buyer's home in another state. That combination is what kills otherwise valid claims.
Keep the item, the shipping box, any inner boxes, and all cushioning exactly as received until the claim is closed and paid. Tell the buyer on day one not to repackage or discard anything, and ask the carrier what form the inspection takes — photos, a drop-off, or a physical inspection — so you can plan around it.
The repackaged return that voided the claim
A pattern sellers describe: an item shipped double-boxed arrived damaged, the buyer returned it in a different box with new peanuts, and USPS refused the claim — changing the packaging destroyed the inspection evidence, and there was no way to prove how the item had been packed.
If a return is part of your process, the original mailing container travels with the item, and both are photographed before the return ships. A return in a different box can cost you the claim even when the original packing was flawless.
The photo set that connects the box to the item
A reviewer is answering one question: do the outer damage, the packing, and the item damage tell one consistent story? Claims described as dying "on packing" usually have photos of the broken item but nothing showing how the item sat inside the box. Take the full set before anything moves:
- Outer box: all six sides if possible, with close-ups of crush points, punctures, and tears.
- Label close-up: tracking number and service readable.
- Opening sequence: the box as first opened, cushioning visible.
- Item in place: how the item sat inside the packaging.
- Damaged area: one wide shot plus one close-up.
- The packing materials themselves: bubble wrap, peanuts, dunnage — "insufficient packing" denials are answered by showing what packing existed.
Approved claims can still die later
Approval is not the finish line. Sellers report USPS claims that were approved and then declined on a later review — with the original packaging already discarded, leaving nothing to inspect. Keep the item and packaging until the payment has actually landed, and keep your photo set archived alongside it. If a reversed claim asks for new evidence, the archived photos are what let you respond within the appeal window.
Index the photos the way a reviewer reads them
Number the photos and give each one a caption line: what it shows and what it proves. An index that says "Photo 4 — item in original packaging, cushioning visible" does more work than a dozen unlabeled attachments. The same index belongs in the claim packet itself, so the reviewer moves from summary to evidence without guessing.
Official sources used
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