Caribbean Airlines courier service threatened to pay US$15,000 over losing two packages

Caribbean: Caribbean Airlines Limited (CAL)’s Jetpak Skybox courier service has been accused of the allegation of losing two packages and refusing to compensate the amount to a cellphone dealer.

The packages contained US$11,682 in merchandise, which the dealer demanded reimbursement for and threatened to sue the airline for.

The incident came to light after the letter was sent by Attorney Richard Jaggasar- a representative from Rehin Burke, who is the owner of Burke Corporation Technologies to the CAL. The letter consisted of a demand for the compensation of the amount and the threat of taking action. It was sent to the CAL’s Corporate Secretary and General Council Nalini Lalla on Thursday.

As per the initial reports, the three packages have been shipped by the cellphone dealer with the assistance of CAL’s Jetpak service in late September 2022.

After some weeks, the businessman was informed by the courier service about the arrival of the packages in Trinidad expected to be delivered in two days.

However, Burke had only received one of the three packages and the correspondence from the company also asked about the freight, service and handling fees for the delivery. In order to enquire about other packages, he visited the company’s office and asserted that the seven cell phones were missing.

The company owner asked about the items from the courier service several times but was left with no clue. After some days, he was informed by another employee that the packages were lost due to which he demanded proper compensation.

CAL’s cargo logistics officer Charelle Assee issued the statement and refused to accept liability, but offered a $1,000 settlement on Jan 24, 2024.

She stated that the cellphone dealer had failed to follow the official policy of the company, stating that such claims could be made within seven days of the delivery.

In response, the cellphone dealer accused the company of misleading their customers and providing wrong information. He also noted that the complaints have been several times, but company failed to response to them on time.

He said that he claimed about the items on November 11, 2022, but received the response on November 24, 2022, which is even longer than a seven-day period. Burke further demanded compensation and said the company was solely responsible for this negligence.

Assee added that they would accept the full liability and presented the revised settlement offer of US$2,950. But in response, cellphone dealer asked the company to pay the reimbursement in 28 days, and accept their settlement, otherwise the strict actions would be taken.