How to handle "items not recieved" due to Canadian postage strike

[aln_kat]

It is highly likely there will be a Canada postal strike come July 1 2016. I have numerous outstanding purchases (coming from China) that are due come late June and into July. A lot of my purchases from China these last six months have already been arriving late ( quite a few lately not arriving at all)  and are about one to two weeks after the last delivery date. If a item is not received 2 weeks after the last delivery date I do file a claim regardless of the amount and will not accept offers for a re-send. If a seller issues a refund and I receive the item at a later date (seldom happens) I will contact the seller and offer to make a payment.  How  should I handle "items not received" should a postal strike occur? I will not be sure if the reason I do not receive an item is because item was not actually shipped (suspect that in few cases), actually lost in mail or due only to the postal strike but may arrive one day. I do not want to penalize a seller but neither do I want to out the money if the purchase never is received once the strike is over and the deadline to file a claim is perhaps passed.

[momcqueen]

Good question. As a seller, I do not know.

This would be a interesting issue to raise Wednesdays at Board Hour. It's weekly and a representative from ebay Canada is on hand to answer pressing questions such as yours. http://community.ebay.ca/t5/Weekly-Chat-Session/bd-p/23000000073

Are you able to come back on Wednesday after 1 pm EST? Raphael from ebay Canada has lately been leaving the thread open overnight into Thursday at about noon as opposed to open for the single hour that one would suppose from the title of the discussion thread. 

I would encourage you to ask him directly. All the rest of us can do is offer speculation.

[femmefan1946]

I will not be sure if the reason I do not receive an item is because item was not actually shipped (suspect that in few cases),

Open the Item Not Received Dispute. Don't give the benefit of the doubtl

actually lost in mail

Seriously does not happen.

I've been selling everything from cast iron wood stoves to books to postage stamps by mail for over 30 years, and while items have been returned as undeliverable or have arrived very very late, postal losses are a handful over many thousands of sales.

Including both tracked and untracked items.

Persons who claim 'lost in mail' should be wearing asbestos pants.

or due only to the postal strike but may arrive one day.

This is tough on the seller but you have to protect yourself.

Allow nearly the full period to lapse and then open the Dispute.

You can, as you have noted, refund the refund when or if the items arrive after the lockout of postal workers (more likely than a national strike and revolving strikes hold up the mail, they don't stop it) is over.

You should also be aware that while eBay only allows 30 days after expected delivery for a Claim, Paypal allows 180 days.

I strongly doubt that the Post Office will be allowed to stop functioning for six months.