What photos should you take when freight is damaged?

Print this checklist

Use a wide-to-close sequence

Take the photos in this order:

1. Whole shipment. Show the entire pallet, crate or piece.
2. Where it was. Show the freight in the trailer or on the dock.
3. Identification. Capture the label, shipment number or other identifying information.
4. Packaging. Show wrap, pallet, carton and crate condition.
5. Damage area. Move closer.
6. Damage detail. Take close photos that clearly show crushing, puncture, water, tearing or product exposure.

That sequence makes it easier for someone who was not at the dock to understand what they are looking at.

Do not move the freight first if you can avoid it

Once a pallet is moved, the scene changes.

You may lose useful information about:

• What the freight was touching
• Whether it had shifted
• Whether another pallet contacted it
• Whether the trailer floor was wet
• Where broken wood or packaging was located
• How the load was positioned

If safety or dock operations require the freight to move, photograph what you can first.

Get the label in frame

A perfect close-up of a crushed carton is less useful if nobody can tell which shipment it belongs to.

Take at least one photo that clearly connects the damage to the shipment.

That may be:

• Shipping label
• Pallet label
• Purchase-order label
• BOL reference
• Handling-unit label

Do not rely on a label photo alone. Pair it with wide photos of the actual freight.

Photograph the pallet too

Damage can begin underneath the product.

Look for:

• Broken deck boards
• Split stringers
• Collapsed pallet blocks
• Product overhang
• Cartons crushed against the pallet edge
• Shifted or leaning stacks

The truck and pallet loading guide covers pallet-condition checks in more detail.

If the wrap is torn, show the tear and what is behind it

Take:

• One photo showing the entire wrapped pallet
• One photo showing the torn area
• One closer photo showing exposed cartons or product
• One photo showing whether the load shifted inside the wrap

Do not remove all the wrap just to make the photo easier unless the freight has to be opened for inspection.

If the freight is wet

Photograph:

• Wet or stained cartons
• The lowest affected cartons
• Pallet condition
• Floor around the freight
• Nearby trailer wall or roof area if visibly wet
• Any dripping or standing water that is visible

Do not assume where the water came from. Photograph what you can see.

Write these details down while you are looking at it

What gets missed most often

People often forget:

• The wide shot
• The label
• The pallet underneath
• The trailer interior
• The seal
• The number of affected pieces
• A photo showing scale
• The delivery-receipt notation

A hundred close-up photos do not replace one good wide photo that explains the scene.

What happens next?

Document first. Then contact the broker or the party handling the shipment.

Do not use this page to decide claim deadlines, carrier liability or legal recovery. Those can depend on the carrier, contract, commodity and circumstances.

For delivery shortages or damage notation, use the OS&D checklist and delivery checklist.