Packing, shipping and installing glass chandeliers

At a glance

Roles are typical, not a statement of who does what on any commission.

From crate to commissioning

A glass chandelier changes hands at least five times: workshop to packer, packer to carrier, carrier to site, site to installer, installer to client. Every hand-off is a place where a dispute can start, so the useful question is not only how the glass is packed but who holds the fitting, and who is responsible for it, at each step. The drawing shows the usual order and who normally holds each step. It is a typical order: the maker's instructions and the contractor's method statement govern.

Our live pages say that fittings are delivered assembled where access permits, or packed for on-site assembly, and that installation is arranged and coordinated by the studio (see bespoke lighting and installation). A fitting that arrives assembled moves the glass risk from the room to the route, so the delivery access survey matters more. One that arrives packed adds a dressing step on site, and the questions about who does it and in what order.

Packing: what to ask for

Most breakage in transit is a packing and handling question, so settle packing before dispatch, not once the crate is open. We found no standard written for packing hand-made glass lighting. The best open guidance we read is museum practice for fragile objects. The Canadian Conservation Institute's note on safe shipment (CCI Notes 20/3, 2021) starts from the object and the route, rates routes by how rough they are (it puts a parcel courier network in its highest-hazard group and controlled art-handling networks in its lowest), keeps hard objects apart from each other and from the box, makes the cushioning the most flexible part of the package so that the object floats on it as one unit, and calls the crate the first line of defence. It is written for museum objects. Use it as a frame for questions, not as a specification for a chandelier.

Ask the maker to describe the packing in writing, and look for these points:

• A packing list keyed to the elements. Number every element against the element schedule or the anatomy drawing (see chandelier anatomy and glossary), so that a missing or broken piece is named, not described.
• Separation. No glass on glass and no glass against the crate wall: each element in its own cell, with the packing keeping it from moving.
• The frame and the heavy parts. How they are held, and whether the metal frame travels in its own crate.
• Photographs before the crate is closed. A numbered set of each layer gives any later dispute a before picture. The acceptance criteria sheet makes the same point for inspection at the workshop.
• The route. Which kind of carrier network the crate will travel on. A crate of glass should not travel as a parcel.
• Shock and tilt labels. They record that a crate has been tipped or jolted past a set level. They do not show whether the glass inside is damaged, so treat a tripped label as a reason to look, not as proof.
• Wood. Solid wood packaging imported into Great Britain must meet the ISPM 15 standard from any country, the EU included, and carry the mark. Gov.uk (Forestry Commission, updated 22 April 2026) says processed wood such as plywood is outside the rule, and that packaging that does not comply can be rejected or destroyed. Ask whether the crate is solid wood.

Risk, insurance and the arrival window

Who pays for a broken chandelier is decided by the contract before it is decided by the crate. Three things should be written down: the delivery term that says where the risk passes (an Incoterms rule is one way to do it; ask which one the quote uses), the cargo cover that applies on each leg and who bought it, and the carrier's own limit of liability.

For a consignment moved by road between two countries, the Carriage of Goods by Road Act 1965 gives the force of law in the United Kingdom to the CMR Convention, which is set out in the Act's Schedule. We read the text on legislation.gov.uk on 5 November 2026. The points that matter for glass are these.

• The carrier's liability, and when it falls away. The carrier is liable for loss of or damage to the goods between taking them over and delivery (article 17(1)). It is relieved where the damage arises from, among other things, missing or defective packing, from handling, loading, stowage or unloading by the sender or the consignee, or from the nature of goods that exposes them particularly to breakage (article 17(4)(b), (c) and (d)). Where the carrier shows that the damage could come from one of those risks it is presumed to have done so, and the claimant may prove otherwise (article 18(2)). The sender is liable to the carrier for damage and expense caused by defective packing, unless the defect was apparent or known to the carrier when it took the goods over and it made no reservation (article 10).
• A limit set by weight, not value. Compensation for loss may not exceed 8.33 units of account per kilogram of gross weight short (article 23(3)), a unit of account being the Special Drawing Right of the International Monetary Fund (article 23(7)). Because the limit follows weight, it may fall short of the value of a light, costly piece. The sender may declare a higher value on the consignment note for a surcharge (article 24).
• The arrival window. If the consignee takes delivery without checking the condition of the goods with the carrier, or without sending reservations, that is prima facie evidence that the goods arrived in the condition described in the consignment note (article 30(1)). The periods are in the table.

The Convention applies to a contract for carriage by road where the place of taking over and the place of delivery are in two different countries, at least one of them a contracting country (article 1(1)). It does not decide a separate contract for the last leg within the United Kingdom, a courier's own terms, or other modes of transport, which carry their own limits and notice periods that we did not read. Ask the studio or the maker which rules and which periods apply to your delivery, and ask your broker whether the cargo cover matches.

The practical consequences are simple. Open the crate soon enough to meet the shortest period, write the period you have agreed into the order, and keep the packing until any claim is settled. Agree the spare glass in the order too: ask the maker for the number of spare elements of each type, made in the same run, instead of a rule of thumb. We found no published breakage allowance for glass chandeliers, and our Murano chandeliers page mentions a maintenance kit arranged by the studio, so ask what it holds.

Arrival, opening and counting

Arrival is the moment the evidence is made. These steps take little time and decide most disputes.

1. Before signing. Count the crates against the delivery note and look at each for damage, a crushed or wet corner and a tripped shock or tilt label. Photograph them with the date visible. Write any exception on the delivery note in plain words (for example, 'crate 2, crushed corner, label tripped') before it is signed, and tell the sender the same day.
2. Move the crates. Take them upright and the right way up to the opening space along the route surveyed beforehand.
3. Open in a suitable place. A clean, dry, protected area with room to lay elements out on padding, the maker's opening instructions to hand, and the receiving party present. Where agreed, have the studio or the maker present or on a video call.
4. Count and check. Count every element against the element schedule and check each one, unlit and then lit where possible. The acceptance criteria sheet says what to look for and how to write a limit.
5. Record. Photograph each damaged element where it lies, with the packing around it, and keep the packing until the claim is settled: the carrier or the insurer may ask to see it.
6. Report. Send the written report with the photographs inside the agreed period: what, where, when and who found it.

A fitting that arrives assembled is examined in the same way, before it is lifted, with the person who will hang it present.

Installing: the order of work and who does what

The order below is typical. It follows the research outline and general practice rather than a published procedure, so the maker's assembly instructions and the installer's method statement govern, and some fittings are assembled whole or wired after the glass goes on.

1. Fixing first. The structural engineer designs the fixing for the weight the maker declares. The contractor installs it and the engineer signs it off before the fitting is lifted. We give no weights or ceiling loads: the weight of a hand-made glass fitting depends on its size, the number of arms and the thickness of the glass, and the figure has to come from the maker's shop drawing and the engineer's design. For scale, an IET article on Section 559 of BS 7671:2008 (17th edition) says the fixing for a pendant luminaire must be able to carry at least 5 kg, and that above 5 kg the installer must ensure the fixing can support the mass (regulation 559.6.1.5 of that edition). That is a floor for ordinary pendants. It means the rating of a standard ceiling accessory is not the test for a glass chandelier. Editions change, so confirm against the current BS 7671.
2. Canopy. Fixed to the engineered fixing. On a heavy fitting the canopy hides the fixing; it does not carry the load.
3. Frame. Lifting and work at height belong to the contractor's plan. Regulation 8 of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 says every lifting operation involving lifting equipment must be properly planned by a competent person, appropriately supervised and carried out in a safe manner. Regulation 6 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 says work is not to be carried out at height where it is reasonably practicable to do it safely otherwise. We prescribe no method.
4. Electrics. The fixed wiring and the final connection are electrical work for a competent person under BS 7671. In dwellings in England, Approved Document P (2013 edition) expects installation to BS 7671, and a registered competent person completes a BS 7671 electrical installation certificate for every job (paragraph 3.3); outside dwellings that Part P route does not apply, but BS 7671 remains the standard. The certificate comes from the electrician. The maker's document is the declaration of conformity for the fitting: see luminaire conformity. They are different papers with different authors.
5. Glass last. Glass is the most fragile part and the last to be added. Dress it after the dust-making and wet trades and the decoration are finished (see the site readiness checklist), from the maker's instructions and the element schedule.
6. Clean, test and commission. Clean, fit the specified lamps, set up dimming (see dimming protocols), check lit, then snag against the agreed criteria (see snagging acceptance criteria) and sign off.

What a specifier owes the site. Regulation 9 of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 requires a designer to take account of the general principles of prevention and any pre-construction information to eliminate, so far as reasonably practicable, foreseeable risks to people carrying out construction work, and to give information about the risks that remain to the principal designer. 'Design' includes drawings and specifications, and a designer includes anyone who, in the course of a business, prepares or modifies a design for a product intended for a particular structure (regulation 2). So put the declared weight, the packed weights and sizes, the heaviest single part and any lifting points on the drawing and in the information you hand over. That is information, not a method.

Who does what

The table is typical, not a statement about any commission. Our installation page says the studio arranges installation for every commission and coordinates the fitting work on site, and that it chooses the route for each project: the workshop's own fitters, the workshop delivering in person, or goods consolidated through a logistics partner. Its hardware and services step lists lighting fixings and services connections installed and tested. It does not describe chandelier assembly, glass dressing or the electrical certificate, so ask for those in writing.

Each glass element packed individually, separated from other glass and from the crate, in a crate built for [road freight / export], not to travel as a parcel. Solid-wood crates to carry the ISPM 15 mark. Packing list keyed to element schedule [ref]; numbered photographs of each layer sent to [name] [ ] working days before dispatch.

[Maker / studio] gives [ ] working days' written notice with crate count, packed sizes and weights and unloading equipment. Route and floor protection as survey [ref]. Unloading by [party]. Any lift planned by a competent person; method statement to [name] [ ] days before delivery.

On delivery [receiving party] counts crates against the delivery note, writes visible damage on it before signing and photographs it. Crates opened within [ ] working days, every element counted against schedule [ref]. Damage or shortage notified in writing to [studio], with photographs, within [ ] days of delivery or any shorter period the carrier's terms or the applicable convention set. Packing kept until the claim is settled.

Risk in transit remains with [seller] until [delivery to the site address / unloading at the room of placement]. [Seller] arranges cargo insurance for [replacement value] on [all risks / stated] terms, shows any declared value on the consignment note and sends the certificate to [name] before dispatch. Delivery term: [stated, for example an Incoterms rule and edition].

Installation by [party] to the maker's assembly instructions [ref]. Fixing designed by [structural engineer] for the declared weight, signed off before the lift. Electrics connected and tested by [electrician], BS 7671 certificate to [name]. Glass dressed by [maker's technician / named installer] once [dust-making and decorating trades] finish, then cleaned and checked lit. Spares: [number] of each element type, same run.

Standards and sources

• Carriage of Goods by Road Act 1965, Schedule (CMR), articles 1, 8 to 10, 17, 18, 23, 24, 30: read 5 Nov 2026.
• Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998, reg 8; Work at Height Regulations 2005, reg 6: read 5 Nov 2026.
• Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, regulations 2 and 9: read 5 Nov 2026.
• Approved Document P, Electrical safety, Dwellings, 2013 edition (England): paras 1.1, 2.7, 3.3.
• IET Wiring Matters, Autumn 2008: Section 559 luminaires and lighting installations: BS 7671:2008; confirm against the current edition.
• Gov.uk: Wood packaging material for import and export: updated 22 Apr 2026.
• Canadian Conservation Institute, CCI Notes 20/3: Five Steps to Safe Shipment (2021): museum objects.

Questions we are asked

How is a glass chandelier packed for shipping?

We found no standard written for packing hand-made glass lighting. Good practice follows museum packing: a sound crate, each element in its own cell so that glass never touches glass, cushioning that lets the pack float as one unit, and a packing list and photographs before the crate is closed. The maker should describe its packing in writing before dispatch, and say which carrier network the crate will travel on.

Who is responsible if a chandelier arrives broken?

It depends on the contract. The delivery term says where the risk passes, cargo insurance may cover the loss and the carrier's liability is limited. For international road carriage the CMR rules we read relieve the carrier for defective packing, for unloading by the consignee and for goods exposed to breakage by their nature, and cap compensation by weight. Ask the studio or maker to state who bears transit risk, and who insures it, in the quote.

Should I sign for a crate that looks damaged?

Write the damage on the delivery paperwork in plain words before signing, photograph it, and tell the sender the same day. Under the CMR text we read, taking delivery without checking the condition with the carrier or sending reservations is prima facie evidence that the goods arrived as described. Agree with the sender and the insurer how the crate is to be opened.

How long do I have to report breakage?

Under the CMR, reservations for visible damage are due by the time of delivery, and for hidden damage in writing within seven days of delivery, Sundays and public holidays excepted. Your contract, the carrier's terms or the insurer may set other or shorter periods, and a domestic leg may follow different rules. Open the crates promptly and write the period into the order.

How much does a glass chandelier weigh, and what ceiling can carry it?

There is no useful typical figure: it depends on size, arms and the thickness of the glass. The maker declares the complete lamped weight on the shop drawing and a structural engineer designs the fixing for it. A standard ceiling accessory is not the test: an IET article on the 2008 wiring rules says a pendant fixing must carry at least 5 kg and that heavier fittings need a fixing able to support their mass.

Who assembles and hangs it?

Our live pages say fittings are delivered assembled where access permits or packed for on-site assembly, and that installation is arranged and coordinated by the studio. They do not say who dresses the glass or whether a technician attends. Ask for those two answers in writing for each piece, with the contractor's method statement for the lift.

Does a chandelier come with an electrical certificate?

The electrician issues a BS 7671 electrical installation certificate for the installation work. The maker supplies a declaration of conformity for the fitting. They are different documents from different parties, so ask for both.