Things change within the military on a regular basis. This we do know. When it comes to moving, we all need to be on our toes and up to date. We must know how change will impact us.
We recently updated information with regards to DPSand have discussed full replacement value in the past. When it comes to full replacement value, it obviously pays to know yourstuffandbe fullyinformed. Italso helps when things are explained in plainterms.
Here's hoping thatfollowing the above links and being informed will keep us from being shocked when we must file a claim.
No guarantee of full reimbursement
Take a look at your personal belongings. If you’re getting ready to move household goods, you need to understand what "full replacement value" really means. It’s not how Webster’s would define it.
The Full Replacement Value Act of 2003, amended in 2007, set the terms of liability for carriers hired to coordinate household goods moves. It was phased in starting in October 2007, and by last March it was used for all moves, stateside and international.
"It is important that servicemembers are not misled by the term ‘full replacement value,’?" said Nannette Davis, a spokeswoman for the Navy’s Fleet and Industrial Supply Centers in San Diego. "This does not necessarily mean that a member would receive the full replacement cost for every item destroyed, damaged or lost."
What it means is a carrier’s maximum liability is either $5,000 per shipment, or $4 per pound (up to $50,000) whichever is greater.
"That is the extent of the carrier’s liability," said Pat Leonard, director of claims and tort litigation for the Navy’s Office of the Judge Advocate General. "This is not negotiable. It is set by the terms of the contract."
Just by comparison, $4 per pound is less than half of what many airlines pay for lost luggage. The industry standard is $9.07 per pound, up to $635 per lost bag, under the "conditions of carriage" used by most major U.S. airlines.
When Greg and Pascale Schreiner received a settlement check from the company that coordinated their move from Naples, Italy, to Arizona last year, they couldn’t believe how little they were paid. Most of the items in their shipment were gone when it arrived in Arizona. They received a check for $5,000 after putting in a claim for $18,000.
"I was so upset!" Pascale Schreiner said. "This wouldn’t even cover the clothes that were stolen. I felt like after being robbed, then I was spit on."
There is a way to recoup more money for lost, damaged or stolen items if servicemembers don’t feel they’ve received a fair settlement from a carrier. Cases can be transferred to a military claims office, but those claims are paid based on depreciation or repair cost – whichever is less.
The Schreiners are in the process of filing with a military claims office, as is Debbie Moors, who also lost most of her household goods shipment when she transferred to Naples.
"I doubt I’ll get a fair settlement from the government," said Moors. "I certainly didn’t get one from the shipping company."
Have you had experience with claims since the implementation of Full Replacement Value?
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Comments
We are in the midst of settling our claim from moving last June. So far so good .. $4k to fix or replace damaged goods. Fortunately I have just about every receipt for everything we own (from furniture down to my $125 Ott Craft Lamp .. which was destroyed) .. I much preferred the old method of paying out of pocket for additional insurance. It was our family's good luck charm!
Changes need to be made so that whatever your weight limit is .. you will be covered. In our case, our homeowners policy valued our household goods at three times the $50k limit .. We tried in vain to work with our mover last summer to buy additional insurance and they weren't able to find an insurer until it was too late.
This is a prime example of some great idea that was poorly thought through. I hope in years to come adjustments will be made to truly offer FRV for all of us.
I thought that we were in the midst of settling our claim. Our unaccompanied baggage arrived last summer without any packing paper. Most of the items in the shipment were crushed. Our printer/copier/scanner was wrapped in our dress clothes. There was ink everywhere! The conservative estimate that I put forward for the damage was around $1500 (unaccompanied baggage).
I received an e-mail today from the claims department of the carrier. They denied my claim on the grounds that they have determined from pictures that I sent to them that my items were damaged due to water/moisture. They even went as far as to say that there was no way that the carrier could have caused the damage. We did not have a mold or moisture problem with our items, they were all crushed due to improper packing. They were substantiating their claim of water/moisture damage on the fact that they looked at weather conditions for Guam at Andersen Air Force Base for the dates of 7/15/08 to 7/18/08 and saw that the area experienced rain during that time frame.
This seems completely absurd to me. My understanding now is that we need to file the claim through our military claims office where we will receive the depreciated value of our goods. I agree with Diane that we would be much better off if we could have purchased our own insurance with the carrier. I feel helpless without a secure channel for recourse. I am intending to do a lot of letter writing this week to many people that I think need to be aware of this abuse by the carriers. Our goods were quite obviously handled in a careless manner.