Narrative Summary

I shipped my personal, three-year-old MacBook to a buyer I met on a tech forum. We agreed on a fair market price of $600. USPS lost the package. I filed a claim and provided the original Apple receipt from three years ago showing I paid $1,200. USPS approved the claim but hit me with aggressive, standardized depreciation. They sent a check for only $250, claiming the "useful lifespan" of the computer dictated a 75% reduction in value, ignoring the fact that I had just sold it for $600.

The Resolution Strategy

When items are used, carriers employ standardized depreciation tables that rarely match actual secondary market values. If you accept their depreciation math, you lose hundreds of dollars.

The Authori shipping appeal generator drafted a rebuttal focused on the market comparables clause in DMM Section 609.4.1. The appeal successfully argued that theoretical depreciation tables are superseded by actual secondary market data.

The drafted letter didn't just complain about the math; it provided documented proof of the $600 peer-to-peer transaction, paired with three URL printouts of identical used MacBooks currently selling for $600 on major refurbished electronics sites. By using the DMM's allowance for market-comparable valuation, the appeal proved the actual current replacement cost was exactly $600. USPS dropped the aggressive depreciation formula and issued a supplemental check for the remaining $350.