Damage in a removal: writing precise reservations on delivery, and confirming them within ten days
It is the only stage of a move where your rights are lost within days, and it lasts twenty minutes. The inventory, the declaration of value, the choice of carrier are worth little if those minutes are badly used. This dossier says what to check, what to write, and how to confirm in time.
By Jean Mascla, founder of Home SelectUpdated · 5 min read
The gesture: check, then write
At delivery, two things happen at once. You check the packages against the inventory, number by number, to spot what is missing. And you look at the outside condition of each, to spot what has suffered.
Packages bearing a mark of impact are opened in front of the driver. Not all of them: those ones. It is a triage, not a general unpacking, which would be materially impossible on a container.
What you find is written on the delivery document, before signing. That document, and it alone, opens a claim.
Why a general reservation is not enough
The most used wording is also the least effective. A general reservation on unpacking names nothing and records nothing: it proves no damage, and everything will then rest on the registered letter.
A reservation counts by its precision. It names the package, the item and the damage: "box 14 crushed on one corner, six plates broken", "wardrobe lot 3, side panel split over thirty centimetres". A photograph taken at the same moment usefully completes it, but does not replace the handwritten mention.
That is the difference between a claim that settles and one that bogs down: the carrier does not dispute what was observed in their presence.
The ten days, and what they close
For a removal contracted by a private individual, article L224-63 of the Consumer Code, which adapts article L133-3 of the Commercial Code, requires reservations to be confirmed by registered letter within ten days of delivery. After that, the right to compensation lapses, even on obvious damage and even if the carrier acknowledged it orally.
That period is neither indicative nor negotiable. It does not reopen for good faith, a chaotic move or the consignee’s absence. This is why you need it in mind before the truck arrives, not discover it while wondering what to do.
The letter repeats the reservations recorded on the delivery document, adds damage found while unpacking in the meantime, and encloses the photographs. It goes out within the ten days, not on the eleventh.
The case of packing you did yourself
It changes things and deserves repeating here: an item you packed yourself is almost never covered, the carrier not answering for packing they did not do.
This is not an unfair clause, it is a logical consequence, and it is decided at quote time, item by item, not on the day of the breakage.
Tignes, Alpes
What the inventory does here
It comes back, and this is its second use. Checking is only possible against a list, and a claim is only quantified on a value written in advance. That is why the valued inventory of the customs file must be honest: undervalued, it weakens precisely this remedy.
One last, more prosaic point. Plan to be two at delivery: one person checking, one looking at the packages. Alone, you do both badly, and that is exactly the moment when there is no catching up.
What to have to hand on the day
The printed inventory, numbered like the labels on the packages, and a pen: a load is checked on paper, not on a phone you scroll. A cutter to open the marked boxes, and a charged phone to photograph each damage as it is found, the package and its label in the same frame.
Also prepare the confirmation letter before the lorry arrives: the carrier’s exact details, the contract reference and the delivery date already filled in. That same evening, you only have to copy the reservations and attach the photos; the letter leaves the next day, far from the tenth.
What Home Select organises for the delivery of your belongings
Settling in is prepared during the search: the date of the deed sets that of the delivery, and the contracts are opened before the arrival. Your Home Select property finder keeps that calendar with you, from the preliminary contract to the first night.
We introduce the international remover, the tradespeople of the fit-out and the concierge service that receives deliveries and prepares the house. Transport, customs and works are theirs, under their responsibility: our role is that you arrive in a house that is ready.
Frequently asked questions
Does a general reservation on unpacking protect you?
No, and it is the most used wording. A reservation must be precise to count: it names the package, the item and the damage observed. A general formula proves nothing: everything will rest on the letter sent afterwards. The useful reflex is the opposite of intuition: better to open three boxes on the doorstep, in front of the driver, than sign quickly to let them leave.
What happens after the ten days?
The right to compensation lapses, even on obvious and acknowledged damage. For a removal contracted by a private individual, article L224-63 of the Consumer Code, which adapts article L133-3 of the Commercial Code, requires reservations to be confirmed by registered letter within ten days of delivery. That period is neither indicative nor negotiable, and no good faith reopens it.
Must you unpack everything in front of the driver?
No, and it would be materially impossible on a container. The useful gesture is targeted: check the packages against the inventory, spot those bearing a mark of impact, and open those. Intact packages are unpacked afterwards, and any damage found within the ten days stays covered provided it is reported in that period, by registered letter.
What should you do when a removal is delivered?
At delivery, two things happen at once. You check the packages against the inventory, number by number, to spot what is missing. And you look at the outside condition of each, to spot what has suffered.
How do you confirm reservations after a removal?
For a removal contracted by a private individual, article L224-63 of the Consumer Code, which adapts article L133-3 of the Commercial Code, requires reservations to be confirmed by registered letter within ten days of delivery. After that, the right to compensation lapses, even on obvious damage and even if the carrier acknowledged it orally.
What should a delivery reservation contain?
The package, the item and the damage, written on the delivery note before signing: “box 14 dented on one corner, six plates broken”. A photograph taken at the same moment completes the note, without replacing it.
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