item lost in mail - when do i have to send refund

[orphanitems]

I have an item that is missing in the mail. The tracking number says it did NOT even make it out of the country.

My buyer is very polite and patient and says they still WANT the item.

MY QUESTION IS - how long do I have before I have to SEND THE BUYER A TOTAL REFUND?

The item was sent with Tracked Packet with Canada Post.

I filed a claim with CANADA POST - and they sent me a note saying they will NOT refund me until FEBRUARY 21 2017!

The clerk on the PHONE at Canada Post said They would pay on JANUARY 1, 2017.

BOTH of these dates seem incredible.

The item was mailed NOVEMBER 7, 2016. The delivery standard date was November 17. I filed on November 27.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

THANKS

[Anonymous]

That is strange.  I think someone at Canada Post made the mistake of the date like February which is way too long.

I filed a claim for a lost item that it never arrived to my buyer even the tracking information said it arrived in USA as of October 28 (passing the expected date of November 3) and I filed a claim with Canada Post last week and I got an email from Canada Post saying that they will send me the cheque within 10-15 days.

I filed it online which is much easier, just get all information ready on hand when file online.   Try and call Canada Post and hope to get the right person.  Good luck.

[orphanitems]

Thanks  

I think they are nuts

On the PHONE they said 45 days from the delivery standard date (Nov. 17) that would be January 1

but they said it would be FEBRUARY

Thanks i will call them

BUT when do i have to refund buyer? What if it gets delivered and I have already refunded them?

[ypdc_dennis]

---

@orphanitems wrote:

BUT when do i have to refund buyer? What if it gets delivered and I have already refunded them?

---

When was the expected delivery time range (as shown with the order details on eBay)? Then ANYTIME after that last expected date of arrival to refund.

If it eventually does show delivered, then politely ask the buyer to repay the refund via a paypal transfer.

-..-

[reallynicestamps]

Let's step back and see what your responsibilities (and needs) are as an eBay seller.

You mailed the item on November 7.

Was the LAST delivery date that eBay gave November 17?

The buyer has 30 days after that to file a Dispute.

Has the buyer filed a Dispute?

You used Tracked Packet.

Where does Canada Post say the shipment is?

Have you given the buyer the tracking number and the last place CPO recorded it?

Canada Post is a lot slower than eBay thinks. Fortunately your buyer is being patient.

Thirty days is waaaay slower than normal.

You should be refunding your buyer before she opens a Item Not Recieved dispute.

If she does open the dispute, refund in full immediately.

Otherwise you get a Defect and no one needs one of those.

Then with her refund, let her know that WHEN her item arrives, she can refund you by using Paypal's Send Money service.

Or if you feel less trusting, you can let her know that WHEN it arrives, you will be reinvoicing her.

The CPO insurance is basically a long shot.

Not that they won't pay, but that your buyer with have her purchase before either January first or February 21.

[orphanitems]

Thanks for your help. The Tracking shows that I mailed it Nov 7, Delivery Date expected Nov. 17, customer is being very patient and wants the item, but the time Tracking shows it has not gotten out of Canada! 

The customer opened a case already and I have been in contact - they agreed to wait until Dec. 12.

I opened a ticket with Canada Post Nov 27 - and they have given me NO information as to where the item is.

Canada post sent this:

Submitted: 2016/11/27

*Expected Resolution Date: 2017/02/21

Our records indicate that no scan was uploaded to the Canada Post tracking system to indicate delivery of your item. We apologize for the lack of information regarding this item.

In some circumstances, delivery scans are not available even though items have been delivered. If you become aware that the item is delivered, please let us know by replying to this e-mail.

We understand that the item is important to you. As part of the investigation, we will contact the addressee to confirm delivery.

We will continue to monitor the status of your item and will be contacting you as soon as a delivery scan becomes available.   You may also wish to monitor the status of your item online at www.canadapost.ca. Should the item not get delivered by the *Expected Resolution Date, we will contact you again to confirm next steps.  

[pjcdn2005]

Hav you checked th tracking number on USPS? Sometimes the info Is slow to get updated on the CP site.

[orphanitems]

Hello,

I do not know how to us Canada Post tracking number on a USPS site.

---

@pjcdn2005 wrote:

Hav you checked th tracking number on USPS? Sometimes the info Is slow to get updated on the CP site.

---

[ricarmic]

Go to this location:

https://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfirmAction_input 

http://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfirmAction_input  

Put the Canada post tracking number in the first box that says "Enter up to 35 numbers separated by commas"

It will show the updates from the USPS site.....

[pjcdn2005]

You can also type in USPS.com and enter the tracking number on that page.

[sylviebee]

I just received an item which was shipped at the beginning of October from the US.

If you refund and also keep the line of communication open and friendly with your buyer there is much better chance that the buyer will re-pay for the item if it arrives in the future.

[ricarmic · Accepted solution]

If they are use, here's a link to a thread that has my "form letters" I use for situations like this. Feel free to use whatever works for your situation!

http://community.ebay.ca/t5/Seller-Central/RICARMICs-INR-where-is-my-package-updated-2016-form-lette... 

[orphanitems]

Thank you for your information - UPDATE :the item did finally reach the buyer and they were very patient and no refund was made. I do not understand how a parcel can be lost for over a month and then finally be found?

[ypdc_dennis]

---

@orphanitems wrote:

... I do not understand how a parcel can be lost for over a month and then finally be found?

---

The post office can lose mail for decades, a month is child's play.

Some reasons:

* trucks/bins/bags incompletely emptied, so it gets delayed until the next time the truck/bin/bag is used;

* sometimes a label from another parcel sticks to another parcel and that parcel bounces back and forth between sorting facilities as machines read different bar codes (until a person actually removes the bad bar code from the parcel)

* temporary parcel overflow rooms that end up as first in, last out

google "lost mail delivered years later" for some interesting stories...