A high value courier moves items whose loss would be financially or reputationally serious (jewellery, watches, art, prototypes, luxury stock, certified documents) with one accountable person from collection to delivery. SilverDrive runs it from Amsterdam across Europe: one vetted driver, one unmarked car, no depot, a signature at each end and a fixed price.
The decisive variable is not the vehicle or the tracking software. It is the number of people who touch the consignment between collection and delivery. Parcel networks are built around volume and anonymous handling, and the handling points (loading bays, sortation hubs, overnight staging) are where consignments are most exposed. We remove those handovers instead of insuring against them.
What our secure courier service includes
- Single custody. One named, vetted driver collects the item, keeps it and delivers it. It is never left unattended, never left in a parked car or a hotel room, and never handed to anyone who is not expecting it.
- Discretion. The item travels in the passenger compartment of an unmarked executive car, not a liveried van, so no observer has a reason to look at it.
- Documented chain of custody. Collection and delivery are recorded against identification, with a signed record of what was handed over, when and in what condition. Where appropriate the item is sealed in the sender's presence and the seal checked at handover.
- Insurance settled in writing. Before the movement we confirm which policy responds, the declared value and any conditions. SilverDrive is not an insurer, so cover is agreed with your own insurer or broker in advance.
- Door to door, across borders. On cross-border runs the same driver stays with the consignment the whole way; custody never passes to a partner carrier at the border.
How a high-value courier job works
- Brief. What is moving, its declared value, the named sender and recipient, and the deadline.
- Plan. We agree the vehicle, the route, the timing and the insurance position in writing, and fix the price.
- Collection. The driver identifies themselves, checks the item with the sender, records its condition and, where appropriate, seals it.
- Transit. The driver goes direct. The item stays in their custody throughout, including at fuel and rest stops.
- Handover. Delivery to the named recipient only, against identification and signature, with condition and seal confirmed before the record is closed.
Courier Amsterdam, same day and across Europe
Because the driver drives straight from sender to recipient, many movements inside the Netherlands and to neighbouring cities can be completed the same day, depending on notice and distance. Antwerp's diamond district is around two hours from Amsterdam; Brussels and Düsseldorf are comparable. We regularly drive to and from Belgium, Germany, France, Luxembourg and Switzerland. For journeys inside Schengen there are no routine border stops, but customs and declaration duties can still apply to goods (carnets for exhibition pieces, for example). Establishing them is the sender's responsibility, and we will ask rather than assume.
What we carry, and what we do not
Typical work: a jeweller in Amsterdam sending stock to a client in Antwerp, a gallery moving a work to a fair, an auction house releasing a lot to a buyer, a watch going to or from service, a prototype that must not enter a depot, original documents for a closing. The owner or a specialist can travel in the same car with the item, which keeps custody to one chain while we handle the driving, parking and waiting.
We are honest about the limits. SilverDrive provides the driving and custody layer only: no armed escort, no close protection and no armoured vehicles. Where your risk assessment requires a protection team, we work alongside the one you appoint. For low-value parcels a standard courier is cheaper and perfectly adequate. For large crated artworks that need climate-controlled fine-art freight, a specialist art shipper is the right call.
Vehicles
Most consignments travel in an unmarked Mercedes-Benz E-Class or S-Class. Larger items or several cases go in a V-Class. All are from our own fleet, driven by our own chauffeurs.
