Delivery and First Inspection Checklist

The first inspection is not glamorous. It is also the moment when good documentation is easiest and every carton label is still sitting in front of you instead of becoming recycling three hours too early.

A useful first-day process has two goals:

1. confirm that the product in the box matches the product you actually ordered;
2. preserve enough evidence to explain any problem before cleaning, repair, dressing, or repeated handling changes the condition.

There is now a third reason to move deliberately: some sellers or manufacturers use short arrival-defect reporting windows even when broader after-sales coverage lasts much longer.

This is not a claim that every seller uses the same return window or requires the same photographs. Those rules vary. The point is to build a clean record and identify the actual deadline before you need it.

The reporting clock may start when the package arrives

Do not confuse an advertised warranty duration with the deadline for reporting obvious shipping damage or manufacturing defects discovered at delivery.

Irontech’s current policy research provides a clean example. The manufacturer’s current material says manufacturing defects or transit damage should be reported within 3 days of receipt for assessment and an appropriate repair/replacement solution. That is an arrival-reporting window, not a three-day universal product warranty.

ZELEX, STARPERY, FANREAL, AllYourDolls, and Sex Doll Queen provide a more important lesson collectively: arrival windows can be much shorter than the words one-year warranty make buyers expect.

That is why 24 hours is a useful operational target for first inspection, not because a law or universal industry rule magically expires every claim at hour 24, but because several current policies use that shortest window.

For the cross-brand policy model, see How to Verify Seller Authorization, Warranty, and After-Sales Terms.

For the path that gets the box to your door in the first place, see How Sex Doll Shipping Actually Works.

Think in three evidence checkpoints

A delivery problem is easier to reason about when you preserve the different states instead of treating one photograph as the whole history.

Checkpoint 1: factory/QC state

Possible evidence:

• order-specific factory photos/video;
• option sheet or order configuration;
• visible unit/order tag;
• seller/manufacturer QC statement.

This can establish visible configuration and visible condition at the photographed time. It usually cannot establish every hidden skeleton, bond, core, packing, or unphotographed area.

Checkpoint 2: packed/pre-carrier state

Possible evidence:

• packing photos/video;
• internal restraint position;
• sealed-box condition;
• shipment weight/dimensions.

This checkpoint is often missing, but it can be extremely useful when a factory photo looks good and the delivered unit is damaged.

Checkpoint 3: delivered/opened state

Possible evidence:

• carrier tracking/delivery time;
• exterior carton condition;
• unboxing photos/video;
• internal packing position;
• received product condition.

The causal boundary matters:

clean factory photo + damaged delivered product = the damage became visible sometime after the photographed factory state.

It does not automatically prove the carrier caused it, the seller packed it badly, the warehouse mishandled it, or the factory caused a hidden weakness. Preserve the evidence first; do not manufacture a cause from one image.

For the pre-shipment checkpoint, use How to Review Factory/QC Photos Before Your Doll Ships.

Before opening the inner packaging

Start with the shipment as it arrived.

Useful evidence can include:

• the delivery timestamp or tracking event;
• every side of the unopened shipping carton;
• crushed corners, punctures, water damage, torn tape, or re-taping;
• carrier labels and tracking labels;
• manufacturer or seller labels if present;
• the position of the product and major packing pieces when the box is first opened.

A short continuous unboxing video can be useful, especially when the carton already looks damaged or the policy asks for video. It can preserve the sequence of discovery and the original packing arrangement.

An unboxing video is not magical claim insurance. It cannot prove hidden pre-shipment skeleton condition, legal responsibility, or long-term product durability. It is one useful chronology record.

Do not assume visible carton damage means the product inside is damaged. Also do not throw away the only evidence of a damaged carton before checking.

During opening, preserve the packing story

Before you lift every insert out and create an archaeological reconstruction later, record how the heavy product was actually restrained.

Useful details include:

• head/face shielding;
• hand/foot protection;
• foam blocks and separators;
• straps or restraints;
• whether the product appears to have shifted inside the carton/case;
• accessory placement;
• crushed or displaced internal packing.

Avoid cutting deeply into the carton where the product may be close to the blade.

The goal is not to prove causation on the living-room floor. It is to preserve enough information for the seller/manufacturer/carrier to understand the delivered state.

Confirm the product identity first

Before judging whether something is missing, identify what is actually in the box.

Compare the delivered product with the order record:

• manufacturer;
• body identity or factory token if known;
• head identity or factory token if known;
• material option;
• revision or generation if the seller documented one;
• detachable, fixed, or integrated construction;
• ordered options;
• included accessories.

A seller character name by itself is weak identity evidence. If the listing called the doll “Jessica” but the factory works in body codes and numbered heads, preserve both layers rather than assuming the seller name is the manufacturer model.

If the product cannot be mapped confidently, document the labels and physical configuration and mark the identity as unresolved instead of inventing one.

See How to Read Doll Body and Head Codes when the seller name and factory identity do not line up cleanly.

Compare the received unit with the approved factory photos

If your order had factory/QC photos, keep them open during the first inspection.

Check the visible features that were documented before shipment:

• body and head;
• skin tone/makeup at a broad visual level;
• standing-foot/hand options when visible;
• accessories;
• obvious surface condition;
• custom notes that should be visibly apparent.

A mismatch between factory and arrival photos is useful chronology evidence. It is not permission to infer the exact cause of every difference.

Photograph the condition before cosmetic cleanup

If you find a possible defect, take photographs before applying powder, oil, solvent, cleaner, heat, adhesive, pigment, or makeup.

That preserves the original condition and reduces arguments about whether a later treatment caused the damage.

Useful overview photographs include:

• front and back of the body;
• head and face;
• neck connection or integrated neck area;
• hands and fingers;
• feet and standing hardware if present;
• major seams and high-stress areas;
• any detachable parts as received.

For a specific problem, take one wider image that shows location and one closer image that shows detail. A macro close-up with no sense of where it is on the product is surprisingly good at documenting everything except the actual problem.

Preserve the original files at full resolution. A heavily compressed chat-app screenshot should not become your only copy.

Separate shipping compression from confirmed damage

Soft products can arrive with temporary compression, folds, surface marks, displaced hair, or packaging impressions.

That does not mean every visible mark should be dismissed as normal, and it does not mean every mark is permanent damage.

Use neutral language during the first inspection:

• visible crease;
• surface indentation;
• tear;
• open seam;
• missing piece;
• loose component;
• discoloration;
• abnormal movement;
• unresolved mark.

If the manufacturer publishes a recovery or unpacking procedure for the exact product, follow that source. If it does not, do not improvise aggressive heat or chemical treatment simply because somebody on a forum fixed a different material that way.

Check the ordered configuration

A configuration check is different from a cosmetic inspection.

Verify options that can be confirmed without destructive disassembly or unsupported testing. Depending on the product, that may include:

• the correct head/body pairing;
• detachable versus integrated head construction;
• standing-foot hardware that was explicitly ordered;
• removable components that were part of the order;
• wig, eyes, or accessories listed as included;
• seller-documented upgrades that have an observable identifier;
• anti-counterfeit or authenticity identifiers when the manufacturer actually provides them.

Do not tear open inaccessible parts to prove an internal option. If an upgrade cannot be verified externally, preserve the order record and ask for the appropriate evidence or procedure rather than creating new damage in the name of inspection.

Verify exact-unit authenticity when the manufacturer provides a system

Seller authorization and exact-unit authenticity are different checks. A retailer can be genuinely authorized while a physical code still needs to be verified, and a valid code does not prove that the seller’s stock description, QC, warranty summary, or delivery handling was correct.

Do the authenticity check while the manual, tags, labels, and packing context are still in front of you. Preserve the result with the order record instead of treating a successful web page as a disposable moment.

FANREAL currently has a narrower evidence state. Its Chinese direct-sale Conditions of Sale say that if received goods have an anti-counterfeit label, the buyer should not cut or remove it when returning the product. That is useful reason to preserve a FANREAL label if one is present, but the current research has not established a public FANREAL query URL, code location, result semantics, repeat-query behavior, timing restriction, or universal label scope.

For ZELEX, FIREDOLL, and HimeKingDoll, the current DJP research likewise does not establish a comparable manufacturer-operated public exact-unit query workflow. Not established is not the same as does not exist; it means the buyer should not borrow STARPERY or Irontech instructions and pretend they apply to a different brand.

Move the joints gently, not heroically

A first inspection can establish whether the product has obvious gross movement problems, but it is a bad time to conduct an unscripted durability test.

If the manufacturer provides posing or joint instructions, use them.

Without product-specific guidance, the conservative goal is to identify obvious issues such as:

• a joint that does not move at all where movement is expected;
• uncontrolled flopping that is clearly different from the rest of the assembly;
• grinding, detached hardware, or visible internal exposure;
• asymmetry that appears structural rather than pose-related.

Do not use excessive leverage to “see how far it goes.” The first hour of ownership is not required to become a failure-analysis case study.

Keep order evidence together

Create one folder for the purchase while everything is easy to find.

Useful records include:

• order confirmation;
• invoice;
• listing title and screenshots;
• selected options;
• seller messages that clarified configuration;
• factory/QC photos;
• tracking information and delivery timestamp;
• carton and product photographs;
• unboxing/packing video if recorded;
• authenticity code/label/manual context if present;
• manufacturer authenticity query result or error plus query date/time if applicable;
• support messages if a problem is reported;
• seller and manufacturer policy pages that applied when you ordered.

That delivery timestamp can matter when a reporting window is measured from receipt rather than payment or shipment.

This is particularly important in a market where the same body and head can be sold under different finished-character names.

The order page can also change after purchase. A dated screenshot is often better evidence of what was represented at checkout than trying to reconstruct the configuration months later.

Do not discard packaging on autopilot

Large boxes are annoying. That does not make immediate disposal strategically brilliant.

Before discarding major packing material, check the seller and manufacturer policies that apply to your purchase. Current policies sampled in the research sometimes ask buyers to preserve the original box, all box sides, shipping labels, internal packing, or unused/original condition during claim evaluation.

DJP Dolls does not publish one universal “keep the box for X days” rule because seller policies differ and can change.

The reliable rule is simpler: check the actual policy before destroying potentially useful evidence.

If you find a problem, freeze the evidence state first

For a possible arrival defect or transit-damage claim, use this order:

1. preserve the carton, packing, labels, tracking, order, and factory photos;
2. photograph/video the issue in the received state;
3. notify the seller/manufacturer/carrier route required by the policy;
4. obtain instructions;
5. repair only after the evidence is preserved and the chosen resolution supports repair.

That is different from owner-caused damage months later, where repair triage starts from the current material/system rather than an arrival-claim clock.

Many current policies make unused/original condition and photo/video evidence relevant to claim evaluation. Glue, solvent, heat, powder, dye remover, disassembly, or other repair attempts can erase evidence or create a second problem.

If you find a problem, send the first report before trying to fix it

A useful first message should establish the timeline and condition, not solve the repair by guesswork.

Send enough information for support to identify the order, understand the issue, and tell you what evidence or next step they require.

Classify the issue before contacting support

A clear problem description usually gets farther than “the doll is messed up.”

Useful categories include:

• shipping damage;
• wrong product identity;
• wrong or missing option;
• missing accessory;
• cosmetic defect;
• structural or joint concern;
• authenticity concern;
• documentation conflict;
• unknown condition needing clarification.

Then provide:

• order number or seller reference;
• exact product description from the order;
• concise explanation of what differs;
• a few relevant photographs;
• whether any cleaning, repair, heat, or disassembly has already been attempted.

The goal is not to write a courtroom brief. It is to make the evidence easy for another person to understand.

Who should you contact first?

There is no universal answer because the seller, manufacturer, freight forwarder, insurer, and carrier can be different parties.

A practical starting rule is:

• if you bought directly from the manufacturer, start with that manufacturer’s order/support channel while preserving any carrier evidence required by policy;
• if you bought from a retailer, start with the retailer that accepted the order/payment unless its current written policy directs you elsewhere;
• if the seller asks you to open a carrier case, save the carrier case/reference number and continue preserving the seller correspondence;
• do not independently send a high-value custom product back to the address printed on the shipping carton unless the responsible seller/manufacturer authorizes that return route.

A return label/shipping carton address can belong to a logistics facility rather than the correct returns destination. Humans did, in fact, manage to make where do I send it back? a multi-company systems question.

First-day things to avoid

Until the product identity and condition are clear, avoid unnecessary actions that can erase evidence or add variables:

• aggressive solvents;
• heat repair;
• unknown adhesives;
• abrasive cleaning;
• unverified stain-removal chemicals;
• structural disassembly without instructions;
• forcing joints to their limits;
• throwing away all labels and packaging before checking policy requirements.

None of those actions is universally forbidden forever. They simply do not belong ahead of documentation and product identification.

The short version

On delivery day:

1. record the delivery time and check the applicable reporting deadline;
2. photograph the unopened carton, all sides, labels, and visible damage;
3. preserve the packing arrangement as you open it;
4. confirm the exact product and ordered configuration;
5. verify the manufacturer authenticity code/label/serial when a documented system applies, and save the result/time separately from seller authorization;
6. compare the received unit with approved factory/QC photos if available;
7. photograph the product before cosmetic cleanup if anything looks wrong;
8. separate obvious defects from unresolved shipping/compression marks;
9. preserve the order page, option record, policy pages, full-resolution evidence, authenticity materials, and packaging until claim requirements are clear;
10. report a qualifying problem immediately and get written instructions before repair or return;
11. do not add heat, solvent, adhesive, or destructive disassembly before documenting the problem.

The first inspection should make later decisions easier, not create a second mystery on top of the first one.

For pre-purchase policy verification, use How to Verify a Doll Listing Before You Buy and How to Verify Seller Authorization, Warranty, and After-Sales Terms.