A Nightmare Transaction with First Choice Reptiles

Originally Posted by The BoidSmith

He could have hidden behind his TOS but he did the right thing, in fact even more than some guys had done in the past (paying for shipping).That's what really matters in the end. Good for you

Well said.

Although there is a personal lesson learned here, the fact is he did come through which shows he has the professional character to make things right in this situation. Thankfully, the BOI makes everyone aware of shady and good characters in this business.

Regards.

at least he was willing to make good on it.

I have had numerous ocnversations and transaction with Nick Mole and have been very pleased.

Originally Posted by The BoidSmith

Just out of curiosity. What's the shipping policy of DHL? Can you even file a claim. You can be a registered shipper with FedEx, but does DHL offer the same service?

DHL does have a small animal waiver that allows for the shipping of some reptiles (lizards included, snakes not). I'd have to rummage through to find where I saved the info, but I believe their general policy is that they do not ship live animals without that waiver...and only the listed animals are permitted.

I can't seem to find the information on the waiver, but the following is from a document sent to me by DHL :

Originally Posted by DHL: Prohibited & Restricted Commodities

Live Animals
(Limited to non-venomous, frogs, insects, lizards, tortoises, sea life,
and worms). Domestic (USA) transportation only under certain
conditions. Not permitted to be sent outside the U.S. DHL is not
liable for degradation of goods due to delays. Shipments must be
sent through Express Air Service.

nick mole put the wrong zipcode on my dhl package and instead of pa it went to washington state. got the ridiculously small box the next day. hand cut styrofoam lining with no heat pack, although the temps were pretty cold. he put the two young wc snakes together in the same bag which had a hole in it. one snake was loose in the box when I opened it....a very unprofessional shipper

DHL is not liable for degradation of goods due to delays.

That' was what I suspected, thanks Harald.

Originally Posted by BWSmith

I have had numerous ocnversations and transaction with Nick Mole and have been very pleased.

I have too. Anytime their was a problem. He got right on it. Made everything right no problem. I have ordered from Nick for close to 7 years and he has never done me wrong. Some times things have happened. But he has always made them right. No questions or proof of what I was claiming. He just resent the order and they would come in. You take a risk when shipping reptiles. None of the shippers will honor anything that happens to a reptile in transit. I use UPS for shipping. I mark the package " live harmless lizard " . No matter what is it is and send it on. I use heat packs and cool packs with insulated boxes. With no extra charge. Sending reptiles through shipping companies now a days is asking for trouble. Most aren't even guaranteeing Next day anymore. I feel it is up to us to work with the shipping companies. Try to make them understand what we need done and be willing to pay a little more to get that done. It could work if enough people would work together and try it. Bad shipping has made us all look bad at some point or another I am sure.

Well when it comes down to it all the shippers will ship live animals, heck I remember seeing a Seal at the DHL office in Houston a few years back.. If you get the waivers they ship most anything but as Harald pointed out none of them are going to take responsibility for delayed shipments of live animals and I think most if not all won't be responsible for loss.

That being said if the shipped put the wrong Zip code on the shipping forms then they are responsible. Either way Nick make good on this deal which speaks well for him..Randy

I bought from Nick Mole a while back before he got his bad guy posts. I bought a pair of wild caught red eye crocodile skinks. He shipped with DHL. They didn't arrive until 1.5 days after they should have, and when they did get there the box had really been banged up. Nick was very concerned and wanted to know immediately when they got there. Of course they play dead very convincingly so it was later that night before I could tell if they were ok, but everything worked out in the end. Having said that I told Nick then that I had no problem with him but had a huge problem with that carrier and he needed to switch if he wanted anymore of my business.

I think it's great that he comes through on agreements and is a pretty good guy, but I think there is an ethical issue with subjecting an animal to potentially fatal experience even if you do intend to reimburse the buyer if necessary. In every reptile transaction there are 2 ethical considerations 1. the well being of the animal 2. the money involved.