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Here is the another full context of the USPS Regulation . This page was worded a little differently than the original I have to specify type of mail service to include Tracking and Signature capture. It also does not mention"or insured fro $500 or more".I don' t know if one supersedes the other or not.They both came off the USPS regulation pages but came up differently when Googled. Also the comment was made that if it is not declared a firearm and insured you would seem to be SOL if it was lost or damaged.

432.3 Rifles and Shotguns

Except under 431.2, unloaded rifles and shotguns are mailable. Mailers must comply with the rules and regulations under 27 CFR, Part 478, as well as state and local laws. The mailer may be required by the USPS to establish, by opening the parcel or by written certification, that the rifle or shotgun is unloaded and not ineligible for mailing. The following conditions also apply:

Subject to state, territory, or district regulations, rifles and shotguns may be mailed without restriction when intended for delivery within the same state of mailing. These items must:
Bear a “Return Service Requested” endorsement.
Be mailed using a class of mail, product, or Extra Service that provides tracking and signature capture at delivery. Priority mail does this )
A rifle or shotgun owned by a non-FFL may be mailed outside the owner‘s state of residence by the owner to himself or herself, in care of another person in the other state where he or she intends to hunt or engage in any other lawful activity. These mail pieces must:
Be addressed to the owner.
Include the “in the care of” endorsement immediately preceding the name of the applicable temporary custodian.
Be opened by the rifle or shotgun owner only.
Be mailed using a class of mail, product, or Extra Service that provides tracking and signature capture at delivery.
Mailing of rifles and shotguns between licensed FFL dealers, manufacturers, or importers are not restricted. The Postal Service recommends that these items be mailed using a class of mail, product, or Extra Service that provides tracking and signature capture at delivery.
Rifles and shotguns may be mailed by a non-FFL owner domestically to a FFL dealer, manufacturer, or importer in any state. These items must be mailed using a class of mail, product, or Extra Service that provides tracking and signature capture at delivery.
Except as described in 432.3a, licensed curio and relic collectors may mail firearms meeting the definition of curios or relics under 27 CFR 478.11 domestically to licensed FFL curio and relic collectors in any state. These items must be mailed using a class of mail, product, or Extra Service that provides tracking and signature capture at delivery.
Firearms meeting the definition of a rifle or shotgun under 431.4 which are certified by the curator of a municipal, state, or federal museum, which exhibits firearms to be curios or relics of museum interest, may be accepted for mailing without restriction when mailed between governmental museums.
Air guns (see 431.6) that do not fall within the definition of firearms under 431.1a are mailable. A shipment containing an air gun with a muzzle velocity of 400 or more feet per second (fps) must include an adult signature service under DMM 503.8. Mailers must additionally comply with all applicable state and local regulations.

Link to page: USPS - 432 Mailability

That isn't how I read it:



Maybe I'm wrong, but when you purchase insurance with an item's shipping, you declare an insurable value for the item. Don't think you have to declare that it is a firearm when you ship. My understanding is, you only have to declare a firearm for shipping with common or contract carriers (UPS/fedex/etc.). However, it's interesting that the USPS reserves the right to ask you to open the package to be sure the firearm isn't loaded. That would be a royal pain once you've already sealed the package, especially as I do it with gummy tape. Which is why I don't declare my item is a firearm (one of the reasons at least) and I've not been challenged yet at my local post office for that. I've only shipped via UPS once when I used to live closer to a hub and I did declare it there as required.

Curious if anyone else interprets the declaration requirement for insurance differently. It is rather ambiguous as written, but doesn't seem ironclad the insured item must be declared specifically as a firearm at the time of shipping to make a claim later.

Don't know,but what IF the person did not follow the other regulations, ie shipping to and FFL You file a claim and then say it was a firearm and they fine you or ? for not doing so. Pretty ambiguous. If you follow all the other rules, seems like you are good to go.