Sending important documents can be stressful, mostly because you cannot help wondering what if the document gets lost, or doesn’t get delivered on time which results in you not fulfilling your legal obligations or important deadlines. And then your life gets really complicated.
Even though we do live in the era of the internet, not every document is to be sent by e-mail, some still have to have a real stamp and a signature, and sent in hard copy. This is usually the practice with important contracts or some government documents.
Regular posts tend to end up in clutter every now and then. Some cities, like Chicago, have experienced this clutter which resulted in tons of people not getting their mail at all. So, the fear we mentioned previously is not just paranoia, but an entirely justified fear.
So, what do you do to avoid this? Well, to make sure the documents are on the right track and will be arriving on time, your best choice is to hire a courier service. For this reason, we have assembled some useful tips and tricks to help direct you in how to send your important documents safely, by a courier service.
1. Find a reliable courier service
We’ve mentioned how local posts can be simply preoccupied and experience clutter now and then. This has been recognized as a business opportunity by many, and as a result, there are tons of courier services available as an alternative. Still, with so many on the market, another challenge is to choose the reliable one. After all, important documents are at stake.
So, a useful tip would be to ask someone you know who has already had experience with some courier services. If you manage to gather a couple of service recommendations, shortlist three that you assess would work best for your needs. Secondly, use online reviews and ratings to see what is the opinion of others and how satisfied are people with their services in the field of important documents. This is by far the best way to tackle this issue.
In a crown of different services, this will help you compare reliability, whether they deliver on time or not, whether someone has experienced their documents being lost or damaged on the way, or any other concern you may have. To learn more about how to find a reliable courier service, click here.
2. Location of the courier
As we are talking about private services, this means not all of them operate everywhere. Some may cooperate with others in document delivery, which basically means there’s a risk of your documents being late to the address, or worse, getting lost. This is something you may not realize at first, because they will accept your package, but it can be found out if you do a little research.
So, when digging for the information, see if the service has an outpost where you intend to send your documents to.
3. Check if the service has insurance
Since we’re talking documents, and sending them in hard copy, you want to make sure they arrive not only in a timely manner but also in one piece. We’ve mentioned a couple of times before how important it is that they do not get lost. But there’s also the responsibility of covering the damage if something happens to your documents on the way.
Here we’re talking about the insurance. It is the first thing you need to check about the courier service, you choose to send your documents with. Luckily, most of the services offer insurance to anything you send, but not everyone offers the same deal. Among those you have shortlisted, choose the one offering the best deal for you. Even if it means paying a bit more money to send it, it could be worth it, giving the importance of the documents you’re sending.
4. Plan to send it on time
If it’s important, and you have a deadline by which it needs to reach the recipient, then you also must send it on time. Sometimes, it’s not about the service – they can’t do much if you fail to send it on time. Additional advice for people running businesses is to prioritize what needs to be sent. Whoever is responsible for this should know how to set priorities and make sure what needs to be sent is out of the office asap.
It is also important to choose the right kind of service, for the right kind of document. Couriers will know how important it is, according to the service you chose to send it by. For example, you can choose express service to make sure the document is delivered fast.
5. Track what you’re sending
The best thing about couriers is tracking options for whatever you’re sending. This tool gives you a sense of ease, knowing that your documents are on the way, and knowing the exact time they arrive. Also, if you notice there’s a delay in delivery, it gives you a chance to react on time.
If you have sent the documents and made sure you have a couple of days of flexibility, if something happens, you can demand the package to be returned when you notice there’s a delay, and sent it via another service.
6. Seek additional services
Some services have perfected their portfolio by adding options of delivering packages in a matter of hours. These are mostly local ones, but come in very handy when you can’t get out of the office and need to deliver the document in the shortest possible time. These additional services include a courier arriving at your door, picking up the package, and delivering it in the shortest possible time.
As you can see courier services can take a lot of the burden off our backs when there’s something important that needs to be sent. Following these tips and tricks, we gave you will help you get the documents on time, safely, without worrying whether they will be lost or not.