FAQs – Claims

A Shipment Claim is intended for situations when a shipment was lost, damaged, or partially delivered.

The right to claim in most cases is with the party who paid for the transportation charge directly to DHL, either as a DHL account holder or as a Retail Customer. A ‘Retail Customer’ is further defined as having paid the transportation charges via the DHL Australia website, over the phone with Customer Service or as a walk-in customer at one of our Service Centres.

All claims must be submitted in writing to DHL within thirty (30) days of the date that DHL accepted the Shipment. File a Claim

All requests for loss or damage claims must be submitted in writing to DHL within thirty (30) days of the date that DHL accepted the Shipment.

Most claims will resolve within ten (10) business days, however the entire claims process can take up to thirty (30) calendar days.

The claims process starts with the receipt of the completed claim form. DHL will be in communication throughout the claim process; upon receipt of your claim, if additional information or documentation is required, and with the resolution of your request.

An official claim resolution letter is sent by email.

Please be aware that a claim for loss or shortage cannot be processed until a completed trace (investigation) has been conducted. Only once the trace is complete can it be known whether the shipment is indeed lost, and to what extent.
To initiate a trace investigation, please contact DHL Customer Service on 13 14 06 and provide a detailed description of the missing item(s).

Please call DHL on 13 14 06 so we can initiate a trace to investigate. Please keep all damaged items, as well as any inner and outer packaging, for photo documentation and possible inspection, and contact the shipper.

DHL’s liability is strictly limited to direct loss and damage to a shipment only – all other types of loss or damage are excluded.

In the event Shipment Insurance is not elected, liability is limited by the standard Terms and Conditions of Carriage for the service used. For this please reference Clause 6 – DHL’s Liability.

Additionally, DHL liability is limited by the Montreal Convention  .

Shipment claims are settled once an Offer Acknowledgement and Release Deed Poll is signed and witnessed. We can arrange for payment to a DHL account, as a credit to credit or debit card or as a Bank Transfer (EFT) payment.

Settlements can only be dispatched to the party approved for the claim. DHL is not able to forward settlement offers to third-party companies that are not approved.

In the event of late delivery on a DHL Express Time Definite shipment (Express 9:00 or Express 12:00); the customer may request a refund or reimbursement of base shipping charges in accordance with the DHL Money-Back Guarantee.

Only the direct-billed party or DHL account holder can request a Service claim for late delivery.

Please call DHL on 13 14 06, our specialist team will assist you.

Service claims for Time Definite shipments must be submitted within fourteen (14) calendar days of the pickup date as noted in the Money-Back Guarantee.

Most claims will resolve within ten (10) business days; however, the entire claims process can take up to thirty (30) calendar days.

Service Claims can be filed only for shipments that have been delivered later than the committed date/time.

If you are a DHL Account holder and have been billed for a cancelled or returned shipment, please contact our Customer Accounts Team on 1300 301 307 or via email at auaccounts.query@dhl.com.

In general, delays beyond DHL’s control are not covered. Full details may be found in the DHL Express Money-Back Guarantee Terms and Conditions. Please reference clause 9 of DHL Express Terms and Conditions of Carriage for reference to circumstances beyond DHL’s control.

The party that was billed for the shipment by DHL for the transportation charge.

This would be DHL account holders or Retail Customers. A ‘Retail Customer’ is further defined as having paid the transportation charges via the DHL Australia website, over the phone with Customer Service or as a walk-in customer at one of our Service Centres.

Please be advised that under the DHL claim policy, the right to submit a shipment claim belongs to one of two parties: the bill-to party (DHL account holder) or, in certain cases, the shipper. Normally it is up to the bill-to party to file any claim with DHL.

The DHL Express account holder/payer owns the claim rights, claims that are submitted by another party must be denied unless an Assignment of Rights letter from the DHL Express account holder/payer is provided. If you have submitted a Claim that has been denied for this reason, please ask our Claims Team about this and how to proceed.

Assignment of rights is an official document that is provided and signed by the DHL Express account holder/payer that allows the claim rights to be transferred to another party.

We must refer you to the DHL account holder or transportation charge payer for reimbursement on these charges. The Australian Government generally deem these charges as non-refundable. However, these charges can be incorporated in a claim submitted by the sender.