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I shipped a suitcase of used clothing and shoes via ParcelHero using UPS. None of those items are on their prohibited list. I contacted their team before shipping to confirm that a suitcase was allowed—as long as it was properly packed. They confirmed this in writing, and UPS collected the item without issue.
❗ Upon delivery, my suitcase was visibly damaged. I submitted photographs and documentation showing the external damage and proof of prior approval. Despite this, ParcelHero rejected my claim multiple times over a series of emails. I clearly explained that the suitcase was the actual shipped item—not just “external packaging”—but they kept insisting on the same excuse, refusing to acknowledge either the evidence or their own prior approval.
There was no attempt to offer a solution, no goodwill gesture, and no willingness to take responsibility. The repeated rejections felt dismissive and inflexible, despite the facts presented.
Delivery delays added to the frustration: the item arrived significantly later than the promised timeframe.
Then, without warning, ParcelHero withdrew £92.90 from my account—a surcharge that was never communicated or agreed upon. I had to block further payments to prevent more unauthorized charges.
ParcelHero’s customer service was unhelpful and evasive. When challenged, they relied on vague policy references, ignored clear documentation, and refused to meaningfully engage.
⸻
Summary of my experience:
• Pre-shipment approval ignored
• Luggage damaged in transit — claim rejected multiple times despite evidence
• Delivery significantly delayed
• Unauthorized £92.90 charge with no prior agreement
• No attempt to resolve or acknowledge responsibility
Recommendation: To future customers: use this service at your own risk. If anything goes wrong, don’t expect fairness, accountability, or even basic customer care.
im slightly confused.
so you shipped it via parcelhero using UPS And ups picked up the package.
who was it that agreed to you that "a suitcase was allowed—as long as it was properly packed" was it UPS or parcelhero? did both ups and parcelhero say it was allowed?
from what i read on parcelhero's page they are just a broker [not sure if that is true since it sounds odd to claim that] that facilitates communication between a customer and shipping company.
Thanks for your comment. I understand the confusion, so let me explain clearly:
I booked and paid directly through ParcelHero, not UPS. ParcelHero is a third-party broker that arranges the shipment and handles all communication, payments, and claims. While UPS physically transported the item, ParcelHero was the actual service provider I dealt with from start to finish.
Before shipping, I explicitly asked ParcelHero whether sending a suitcase (instead of a box) was acceptable. They confirmed in writing that it was, as long as it was properly packed. Based on that confirmation, I booked the service. UPS collected the suitcase without any issue, which further confirmed that there were no violations at pickup.
As for the weight:
• My suitcase weighed 23kg
• I booked and paid for 25kg, to be on the safe side
• I also followed the volumetric weight rule (i.e., couriers charge based on whichever is greater: actual weight or size-based volumetric weight)
I entered the correct dimensions and weight, and ParcelHero’s system accepted it with no warning or surcharge.
Yet after delivery, ParcelHero suddenly claimed my item exceeded the weight or size limit and charged me £92.90 as an extra fee. This was based on a vague and unverified re-measurement, which I was never shown. They provided no photo evidence, no detailed breakdown, and no opportunity to contest the charge. It was simply deducted from my account without warning or consent.
To make matters worse:
• The suitcase was visibly damaged upon delivery
• I submitted a damage claim with clear photo evidence, specifically for the suitcase itself, not the contents
• ParcelHero rejected the claim multiple times, stating they are not liable for shipments containing prohibited items even though:
1. The contents of my suitcase were not prohibited, and
2. My claim had nothing to do with the contents — it was about external damage to the suitcase, which they completely ignored.
That was a long one, but I hope it makes things clearer now :)
yeah still confused but not from what your saying. while they are the broker they did say they were responsible for your package after pickup [because they scedualed it on their end]. now i can only think of 1 way this could have happened.]
1. you entered the info into their system.
2. [not sure on this since i do not work for them] they then entered the info into their system to send to ups. oops they made a error on this step.
3. UPS informs them of a discrepancy but still delivers it to the destination. along the way it is damaged and not reported to parcel [or parcel again miss entered the information]. about the damage.
4. your left holding the bag on this because someone else did not admit they made a mistake.
Thanks again — I really appreciate you trying to unpack this, and I can see where the confusion might come from. Let me clarify a bit more, especially about where the responsibility lies and how things unfolded.
Yes, you’re right that ParcelHero is a broker and UPS physically transported the item. But since I paid ParcelHero directly, and they arranged everything (pickup, labels, claims, communication), they were the sole point of contact and the contracted service provider from start to finish. Any errors in data entry, communication with UPS, or follow-up would fall under their responsibility, not mine.
Now about the charge:
• I entered accurate weight (23kg) and also paid for 25kg to allow a margin.
• I also followed the volumetric weight rule (they charge based on whichever is greater: actual weight or size).
• Their system accepted it all without warning — so nothing was flagged at the time of booking.
The £92.90 charge came later, after the item was already delivered. There was:
• No prior warning
• No detailed invoice or breakdown
• No photo or proof of re-measurement
What made it more concerning is that this extra charge was applied without any prior notice or my agreement. There was no breakdown, no supporting evidence, and no opportunity to verify or challenge it. I only became aware of it when they attempted to withdraw funds from my account — which I found unacceptable given the complete lack of transparency or communication.
Then on top of that came the damage issue. I filed a claim for external damage to the suitcase itself — not the contents. ParcelHero rejected the claim multiple times, stating they don’t cover shipments containing prohibited items. But:
1. The contents (used clothing and shoes) are not on their prohibited list.
2. My claim wasn’t about the contents at all — it was about visible, external damage to the suitcase, which was the actual item being shipped.
I submitted photos and explained the issue clearly, but they kept giving the same stock response without engaging with the actual facts.
So I do understand your outline of how mistakes could happen in such systems, and maybe that’s part of what went wrong here. Even if the error originated elsewhere in the process, it was ParcelHero’s responsibility to address it, since they handled the booking, accepted the data, and charged me — not UPS directly. But what was most frustrating wasn’t just the outcome ! It was the lack of transparency, no supporting evidence, and zero accountability when I tried to resolve it.
Hope that explains it better, and thanks again for engaging thoughtfully.
oh i understood all that. my last comment was agreeing parcel appears to be at fault from your reply before.
as for my responses, this site is to air out any complaints on a company to warn others. anyone who responds to a complaint with their experiences or try and help the OP understand the issue and get to a resolution on the issue with how to fix it, sometimes the company themself does not monitor or know this site exists. so it is up to the community to try and help out when possible.
I really do hope you get this resolved with them. i don't really have much experience with 3rd party schedulers, though i do try and keep my notes accurate and fix my errors before it becomes an issue like parcelhero has done.
they dropped the ball here.