Skid Steer Door Arrived Damaged? Do This Right Away

Your new door showed up and something is wrong. A crushed corner, a torn box, a bent piece of hardware. Here is exactly what to do: leave everything where it sits, take clear photos of the box and the damage, and text those photos to (800) 781-8000. Keep all the packaging. We will look at your pictures and make it right.

Freight damage does not happen often, but it happens. A box can get dropped, stacked wrong, or knocked around on the way to your yard. None of that is your fault. What matters is what you do in the first few minutes after you spot it.

Step one: document before you touch anything

A shipping claim lives or dies on documentation. Photos taken at the tailgate do more than any phone call made a week later. Before you drag the box into the shop, make these four moves:

1. Leave the shipment where the driver set it. Do not flip it, drag it, or lean it against the wall yet.
2. Photograph the whole box from a few steps back. Get the shipping label in at least one shot so the photo ties the damage to your order.
3. Get close-ups of the damage. Crushed corners, punctures, tears, forklift marks, water stains. Shoot every side that shows a problem.
4. If the driver is still there, point out the damage. Ask for it to be noted on the delivery record. If the driver is already gone, do not worry. Your photos still carry the claim.

Then text the photos to (800) 781-8000. Texting is the fastest way to put your shipment in front of someone who can act on it. We are here Mon–Fri 7am–4pm CST.

The photos that make your claim easy

You do not need to be a photographer, just a phone and decent light. Here is the shot list we wish every customer sent:

• One wide shot of the unopened box or packaging, right where it was delivered
• One clear shot of the shipping label
• Close-ups of every damaged spot on the outside of the packaging
• After opening: photos of the damage to the door or hardware itself
• One shot of how the parts sat inside the packaging, if you can

More photos are always better than fewer. Blurry or dark photos slow things down, so take an extra ten seconds and get them sharp.

Found the damage after the driver left?

Plenty of operators sign for a box, set it in the shop, and open it on the weekend. If that is you and you find damage, you are not out of luck. The steps just shift a little.

Two rules apply in every row of that table. First, keep all the packaging until your claim is settled. The box is part of the evidence. Second, do not install a damaged door. Text us first, because installing it can muddy the question of what happened in transit.

One more note on timing. The sooner you send photos, the cleaner the claim, because fresh damage on fresh packaging is easy to trace to the truck. So open and inspect your shipment the day it arrives, even if install day is a month out.

Check every part while the box is open

Since you are already inspecting, count the parts. Your door ships as a complete kit for your machine. Depending on the model, that means the CNC-cut polycarbonate door plus the hardware to hang it: handle, locking latch with keys, hinges, weather seal gasket, and the nuts, bolts, and washers. Our guide on whether doors come with everything you need to install walks through the full picture.

Lay the parts out on a bench and check each one for cracks and bends from shifting in transit. A bent hinge is just as much a shipping problem as a cracked panel. If anything is damaged or missing, same drill: photos, then a text to (800) 781-8000.

What happens after you text us

A real person looks at your photos and gives you a straight answer. If the door or hardware was hurt in shipping, we make it right. You will not get passed around, and you will not be left to argue with a carrier on your own.

We will not print a replacement timeline here, because the honest answer depends on which door you ordered and the time of year. When we see your photos, we will tell you exactly what happens next for your order.

For background, every door ships UPS 3 Day Air at a $150 flat rate, typically 3 business days (not guaranteed). Our guide on how long shipping takes covers what can slow a box down.

Shipping damage is also a separate lane from the warranty. Every door we build carries a limited lifetime warranty against door failure or breakage: one free replacement for life for the original owner, under normal conditions. Hardware carries 3 months. A door that got hurt on the truck never even started its working life, so do not sit on the damage wondering which category it falls in. Send the photos and let us sort the paperwork. Our guide to what the limited lifetime warranty covers explains the rest.

The five-minute delivery checklist

Tape this inside the shop door for the next time a freight box lands:

• Photograph the box before moving it, label in frame
• Close-ups of any dents, tears, or crushed corners
• Note damage with the driver if they are still on site
• Open and inspect the same day, even if install is weeks away
• Lay out and count every part against your order
• Keep all packaging until any claim is settled
• Text photos and questions to (800) 781-8000
• Do not install a damaged door before talking to us

Whether you ordered a Bobcat M Series door or a Case 1845C door for a machine nobody else builds enclosures for, that door was CNC-cut for your exact model before it went in the box. If the trip roughed it up, tell us the day it lands and we will stand behind it.

Find your door in 30 seconds. Pick your machine’s make and model and see the exact door built for it: [Find Your Door]. Questions? Call or text (800) 781-8000, Mon–Fri 7am–4pm CST.