One of our favorite parts of working with clients is surprising them with new claims we are able to successfully reimburse them.
Our ability to find trends in your reports is what sets us apart, and our ability to find and file pick and pack claims is very exciting! We wanted some more insight in our most asked-for claim type, how it’s managed, and how we are able to successfully get those claims reimbursed.
The mastermind behind our pick and pack claim is Shira. We asked her to sit down and tell us a bit about her and what makes this claim so special.
Tell us a bit about your background!
I was born and raised in Israel and moved to the United States a few years ago. I did my BA in Business and Economics and my MSc. in Financial Mathematics. Before I started working for Getida I worked for an evaluation company as a financial derivatives analyst, working with large databases, and modeling and analyzing complex financial instruments. When I heard about what Getida does, I knew we would be a great match!
What’s your current position at GETIDA? How long have you been in this role?
My current position is a Claims Specialist. These days I mostly manage the pick and pack claims. But I also specialize in discovering new claim types, analyzing the Amazon reports, and extracting interesting insights for our clients.
What does a typical day look like for you?
I start my morning by checking on the claims I’ve filed, making sure all of them are being taken care of, sometimes Amazon asks for invoices and pictures, and I need to reach out to our clients so we can provide Amazon what it needs to reimburse the claim. Afterward, I audit new sellers’ data and look for new pick and pack discrepancies. In between, I look for new claims and insights in our data.
What is the most complex claim type to file?
Pick and pack claims are complicated claims. The process for finding these discrepancies and filing for this claim takes longer than the average case and requires a deep understanding of the terms of services for which these claims can be filed, and the manner in which the fees are calculated makes these cases particularly unique and challenging. Handling these type of claims requires quite a lot of monitoring and communication with Amazon but this is what we’re here for!
What is the most interesting case you have filed for?
We had a seller that was paying $8.74 extra per unit in FBA fees for one of his SKUs. The overcharge was happening for 15 days before we were able to adjust the dimensions to the correct one. In those 15 days, this customer lost over $11,000. We were able to recover that entire amount for him.
Can you explain what pick and pack fees are?
Pick and pack fees are the fees a seller is paying Amazon when they choose to use their FBA services. In other words, these are the shipping and handling fees that Amazon charges the seller for fulfilling the customer’s order. The fees are charged based on the weight and dimensions of the product and may change over time. We have noticed that many of our sellers are charged incorrectly over time. This was a great place for us to help fix a mistake. Also, on February 19, 2019, these fees will be going up. We want sellers to be prepared for that.
[It’s important to note that as of February 15th, 2019, Amazon will be changing their policies on long term storage fees and these fees are calculated based on the same dimensions as the pick and pack fee. If one is wrong, the other one will be too! You could be losing much more money than you think!]
Do you have any tips and recommendations for the sellers?
Keep a log, like this one, of all your SKUs weight and dimensions in its packaging (as it is being sent to Amazon). Although it might take quite a while to document everything, it will make things easier for the seller in the long run.
Moreover, it is important for sellers to know that they are being charged based on their shipping method of the product in its packaging. Amazon often uses the example of a ball to explain how they charge. One seller may send in an inflated ball while the other may send in the same ball but deflated. These sellers will pay a different fee for the same exact item. My tip for our sellers is to pay close attention to their packaging because they are being charged for that.
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By the way! Shira made an awesome template that helps you start tracking your products’ weight and dimensions. Click Here to download your copy!
