The BleachTech v. UPS declared value class action was a lawsuit alleging that UPS systematically overcharged customers for declared value coverage by billing $0.85 per $100 of declared value on the entire shipment, including the first $100 that UPS’s own tariff said carried no additional charge. Joe Solo and BleachTech LLC filed the case in July 2014 in the Eastern District of Michigan. After UPS failed to force the dispute into arbitration, the district court granted final approval of a class settlement in 2022.1govinfo. BleachTech LLC v. United Parcel Service, Inc. – Opinion and Order Granting Motion for Final Approval of Class Settlement
The Overcharge at the Heart of the Case
Both named plaintiffs had purchased declared value coverage for valuable packages shipped through UPS before December 30, 2013. The price of that coverage was set by UPS’s Tariff/Terms and Conditions of Service, which stated there was no additional charge for the first $100 of coverage. UPS charged them $0.85 for every hundred-dollar increment of declared value anyway, including the first $100.2Justia Law. Solo v. United Parcel Service Co., No. 17-2244 (6th Cir. 2020)
The plaintiffs read the contract straightforwardly: the first $100 was free, and the per-increment fee only applied above that threshold. UPS argued that the phrase “total value declared” meant the fee applied to the entire amount from the first dollar. That interpretive fight became the basis for a proposed class of every customer billed under the same formula.
UPS’s first move was a motion to dismiss asking the district court to interpret the language in its favor and end the case on the merits. The court did not grant that relief, and the litigation continued through appeal and into discovery.
How UPS Lost Its Arbitration Gambit
After more than two years of merits litigation, UPS changed course. The company pointed to an amended version of its terms and conditions, effective December 30, 2013, containing a broad clause requiring individual binding arbitration of all disputes. UPS moved to compel arbitration, a move that would have ended the class action.
The district court denied the motion, and the Sixth Circuit affirmed in January 2020. The appellate court found UPS’s litigation conduct “thoroughly enmeshed in the merits” and said the company could not “use a motion to dismiss to see how the case was going in federal district court, while holding arbitration in reserve for a second chance in another forum.”2Justia Law. Solo v. United Parcel Service Co., No. 17-2244 (6th Cir. 2020) The plaintiffs had also suffered real prejudice. They had spent years defending against the motion to dismiss, appealing that decision, and engaging in months of discovery. UPS had received key admissions about its amended terms five months before filing to compel arbitration and let additional discovery run in the meantime.
With arbitration off the table, the class action was cleared to move toward resolution.
The 2022 Class Settlement
The district court granted final approval of a class settlement, finding it “fair, adequate, and reasonable” and the product of “good-faith, informed and arm’s length negotiations by competent counsel.”1govinfo. BleachTech LLC v. United Parcel Service, Inc. – Opinion and Order Granting Motion for Final Approval of Class Settlement BleachTech LLC received a $5,000 service award as the named plaintiff. The settlement provided recovery for class members who had been overcharged for declared value coverage during the relevant period.
What Declared Value Coverage Actually Is
The case matters beyond its class members because it exposed how declared value pricing works and how easily a large carrier’s billing can drift from its own tariff. Declared value coverage is not insurance. It is a contractual cap on the carrier’s liability. Under the Carmack Amendment, codified at 49 U.S.C. ยง 14706, motor carriers can limit their liability for lost or damaged goods to a value declared by the shipper, so long as the declared value is reasonable and the carrier gives adequate notice of its rates and rules.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 49 USC 14706 – Liability of Carriers Under Receipts and Bills of Lading The shipper picks a coverage level and pays accordingly.
For UPS specifically, the default liability for a domestic package with no declared value is $100. Shippers can raise coverage up to $50,000 per package by declaring a higher value and paying an additional per-increment fee.4United Parcel Service. Value-Added Services International shipments carry the same $100 default cap, with coverage available up to $50,000 for most packages and $500 for jewelry.5United Parcel Service. Terms and Conditions of International Service The plaintiffs in BleachTech were paying for that structure, and paying too much.
Declared Value Is Not Shipping Insurance
A distinction that trips up many shippers, and one worth stating plainly given how the case is often described: declared value coverage caps what the carrier can be forced to pay. It is not a guarantee of payment. If UPS loses a $3,000 laptop and you declared a value of $100, you recover at most $100, no matter what the item was actually worth.
Third-party shipping insurance operates differently. An independent insurer covers the actual value of the shipment, and claims are paid whether or not the carrier was at fault. Insurance claims also tend to process faster because the claim goes to an insurer rather than the company that lost the package. The tradeoff is an added cost, typically around $0.50 to $1.00 per $100 of value, and most policies exclude categories like perishable goods, artwork, cash, and hazardous materials.
One other boundary is worth noting because searchers often assume it goes the other way: a carrier’s declared value cap generally holds even when the loss involves gross negligence or employee theft. Federal courts have recognized only a narrow exception where the carrier itself converts the goods to its own use. The Carmack Amendment also preempts state law claims, so shippers usually cannot use breach of contract, misrepresentation, or common law negligence theories to get around the federal liability framework.
Filing a Claim on Time
If a shipment is lost or damaged, federal deadlines matter. Under the Carmack Amendment, a shipper has at least nine months from the date of delivery to file a written claim with the carrier. If the carrier denies the claim, the shipper has at least two years from the denial date to file a lawsuit. Individual carriers may allow longer periods in their terms, but they cannot shorten these federal minimums.
Document the condition of high-value shipments at both ends of the trip. If something arrives damaged or goes missing, file a written claim with the carrier promptly rather than waiting. And check what you were actually charged for declared value coverage against the tariff you were quoted. The BleachTech case is a reminder that the price on the invoice is not always the price in the contract.