Kinda hokey...

Just placed my first Classic Industries order. I was rather pleased with myself that I was able to take advantage of the Free Shipping ($99.00+) feature as shipping was nearly $20.00 without it. But not really happy to see a $3.95 "insurance fee" got tacked on to the bottom line of the invoice. Really? They are brake parts. Not likely to get damaged unless the truck goes into a lake or burns up. Usually, insurance is an option. Not in this case. Anyone else take issue with this on their orders?

As reliable (??) as shipping has been lately, it could be a blessing in disguise...
$3.95 is worth the aggravation of trying to track down an order that went missing in transit...

Was it posted in your invoice before you signed off on it? That's not cool of they charged you without your prior knowledge. So who would get the insurance claim????

pishta said:

Was it posted in your invoice before you signed off on it? That's not cool of they charged you without your prior knowledge. So who would get the insurance claim????

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I honestly can't say. I didn't notice it until I got my order confirmation email message with a copy of the invoice attached. Next time I order I will be paying attention.

It could be buried in the fine print somewhere- I don't know about Classic Industries, but some places REQUIRE insurance on orders over a certain dollar value. But if they just plain didn't tell you, yeah- not cool.

Next question is why are you buying brake parts from Classic, any local parts store can get the parts.

sireland67 said:

Next question is why are you buying brake parts from Classic, any local parts store can get the parts.

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Seemed like a good idea at the time?

What or who does the insurance cover....? That's strange.

Shipper is using insurance to cover lost item claims and buyer is paying for it. The shipper is responsible for getting the goods to you, so they are choosing to charge insurance to cover the potential loss and subsequent reship cost.

Whoever pays for the shipping, bill of lading, is usually the one that can file a claim. Basic UCC stuff for businesses. Only way a buyer could do anything for a claim is if they paid for the shipping on their own account or the seller pays shipping and subsequently subrogates their right to any claim to buyer.

I buy most all my brake parts from rock auto.

sireland67 said:

Next question is why are you buying brake parts from Classic, any local parts store can get the parts.

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One reason is I'm dealing with a vintage car that will be 50 years old next year. First, buying things like "brake hardware installation kits" with multiple pieces can be a nightmare...the last time I bought rear drum brake parts for my Dakota 2X4, I had to go back 3 times to get the right parts because there were several different options. If Classic says an installation kit fits my year, I'm going to trust that it will. Return shipping can be expensive as hell...
Second, when they sell NEW drum brake cylinders ready to install for ten bucks apiece, who's gonna quibble over that? IF I could find the seal kits, and IF they cost less than 10 bucks each, I'd still have to hone the old cylinders and hope those 50 year old parts aren't pitted or corroded beyond repair.
Third, brake shoes...yeah. I could get them anywhere. But I needed to bump the order to $99.00+ to save $20.00 or more in shipping, so I threw them in on the order. If you subtract the (now free) shipping, I paid around 15 bucks for the shoes.
Last but not least...when you buy from a supplier like Classic, one should expect the quality to be as good or better than a lot of the garden variety auto parts retailers, who we know for certain are selling Chinese stuff. Not to say that some of the stuff Classic (and other restoration suppliers) isn't Chinese...I'm sure some of it is...but they have a reputation to uphold. So, there's that.