The logistics case for automating courier claims in consumer electronics

It's a potent combination. On the one hand, consumer electronics is the second biggest e-commerce industry in the world, accounting for one in seven online retail purchases. On the other hand, consumer electronics are highly fragile, highly valuable and highly prone to unsuccessful deliveries, be it lost in transit or arriving damaged.

That's why more and more logistics teams at large online electronics retailers, such as Backmarket, are automating courier claims to recoup compensation for delivery issues without the manual hassle.

For logistics managers weighing up whether to follow suit, here's the case for automating courier claims.

1. No hassle integration

Logistics managers are trying to make fulfilment more efficient - so the last thing you want is a piece of software that takes weeks to implement and requires lengthy onboarding.

Well, fear not. Automated courier claims platforms are simple plug-ins that connect directly to your e-commerce site or CRM - from Shopify and Squarespace to Zendesk and Freshdesk. You then choose which couriers you use (at Claimit, you can select 150+ major couriers) and the platform will start tracking all of your orders and shipments with these couriers (and automatically file claims if something goes wrong).

In addition, leading courier claims platforms don't keep hold of any personal identifiable information (PII) data, so you don't need to wait for approval from your CISO or data protection officer to give it a try.

2. Works automatically in the background

The clue is in the name: automated courier claims frees up your team from the manual claims process. Synced to your e-commerce sales, the platform is always-on in the background and enables you to easily manage every order, every courier and every claim from a centralised dashboard.

Here's how it works:

1. You ship orders as normal, such as a TV with DPD or a smartphone with Evri.
2. The platform alerts you to a shipping error, such as lost in transit (i.e. via the order's tracking reference going off course) or damaged on arrival (i.e. via customer ticket raised in your CRM).
3. The platform auto-checks the claims eligibility for the item by checking the contents against the courier's Ts&Cs. E.g. DPD doesn't accept claims for goods with batteries or White Goods.
4. If eligible, the platform's AI agent files a claim automatically, adapting to each courier's complex claim process.
5. You can then track the claim's status until resolution (at Claimit, we get payouts for 70%+ of claims) via an AI-powered dashboard with an AI agent handling any further communication with the courier.

3. Generates revenue with no cost

Compensation payouts vary according to the courier you use and the value of the item sent, with most major couriers offering up to £100 compensation per item sent. In the past, with complicated manual claims processes, many logistics managers didn't see the point in filing claims due to the high risk of a claim denial through human error and the time taken to file them. But with AI agents, you have no resource overheads and you don't pay anything up front.

Most automated claims platforms only take a percentage of successful claims (at Claimit, we take 25% per successful claim), so you don't need to worry about your logistics budget either. What's more, the payouts come 40% quicker than manual claims and have a much higher rate of success.

For example, Claimit has:

• Improved Bulk's claims success rates by 4x
• Reduced Frasers Group's time spent on claims by +70%
• Recouped £10,000 per month for Emma Bridgewater

The bonus: claims platforms also provide AI-powered invoice auditing

No hassle, no cost, no brainer. There's a reason that the logistics teams at Europe's largest online retailer for refurbished electronics, Backmarket, uses Claimit.

But our platform goes way beyond just courier claims for delivery losses and damages. It also automatically spots contentious courier surcharges and makes claims for any misbilled shipments.

Whether it's penalties for packaging and weight or surcharges for remote destinations and fuel, additional courier costs can quickly add up. You think you're paying one price, but your invoice - delivered weeks or months later - says another.

At Claimit, we've found that around 4% of shipping invoices are incorrect. Our AI-powered invoice auditing platform scans each invoice line-by-line and compares it with your originally contracted label costs, spotting discrepancies, duplications and billing errors that human eyes miss - saving e-commerce companies hundreds of thousands.

Find out how Sigma Sports saved £240,000 from identifying invoice discrepancies.