Most damaged parcels were not damaged by carelessness on the road. They were packed in a way that made damage more or less inevitable, and the journey simply found the weakness.
Use a box that fits
An oversized box is the most common cause of damage. Contents slide, corners take the impact, and the box itself crushes because nothing inside supports the walls. Pick a box the contents nearly fill, then pad the remaining gap.
Pad the gap, do not just cover the top
Padding belongs on all six sides, not only as a layer on top before you seal it. If you shake the box gently and hear movement, add more.
Tape the seams, not just the middle
Run tape along the centre seam and both edge seams, on the top and the bottom. The bottom is what fails when a box is lifted in a hurry.
Write the address twice
Once on the label, once on a slip of paper inside the box. Labels get scuffed and torn. A duplicate inside costs nothing.
Tell us if it is fragile
Not only with a sticker - tell the courier when you book or at collection. Delicate items are carried differently, and they never go under anything heavier.
