eBay

midnight_starr2007 · ‎02-10-2021

Hello All,

I was supposed to receive an item that said that it supposed to arrive on January 19th. I did check the shipping details, and the last entry was January 11th in Chicago, Il, in the U.S. I did let the seller know about this a few days ago. I also let them know that I don't want a refund, I just want to know where the item is. However, a day or later I got a refund for some reason. I know that this package is delayed because of the pandemic.

Yesterday, I was chatting with a Canada Post employee online about this particular package. They did ask me some questions, which I did provide. One of them was the Canada Post Tracking number. I did provide them with a tracking number that is not traceable in Canada (I don't know if I should post the tracking number on here. But I decided not to.).

Why is that? Is there another way to ask the Seller to give us a Canadian Tracking Number? Is there another way to find out where this package is in the U.S. by that U.S. tracking number? And why is it that every time I let the seller know that I haven't received an item and I don't want a refund and then they refund me? How do I fix that issue?

Anonymous · ‎02-10-2021

More info is needed. To respond about the tracking. Not sure what service he used if it was an small packet air, epacket , tracked package etc.

Even tracked packages have no updates currently , its seems all the items I shipped have gone dead in the water with no updates.

When you inquired to the customer you may have started a claim by mistake . Did you use a drop down saying I havent received my item then you probably started a claim now the seller is responsible to provide tracking or refund you if it's late.

This is happening a lot you can message the seller again and ask him to rebill you again via paypal once the item arrives.

femmefan1946 · ‎02-10-2021

This is happening a lot you can message the seller again and ask him to rebill you again via paypal once the item arrives.

Absolutely.

Sellers are having a hard time with slow and delayed mail these days, and it is refreshing to find a buyer who is so understanding.

If your package was for some reason deemed Undeliverable, it would be returned to the seller. But even in good times, Return To Sender is not a priority, and the return could take months.

femmefan1946 · ‎02-10-2021

I did provide them with a tracking number that is not traceable in Canada

Registered Mail has become a service that does not track outside the origin country. Some older sellers cannot believe this and continue to use it.

why is it that every time I let the seller know that I haven't received an item and I don't want a refund and then they refund me?

Some never sent the item at all. This is somewhat less likely when they paid for tracking.

Some reckon the costs of refunding are lower than the costs (including labour and angst) of trying to find a lost package in a cross-border tsunami of mail, again including carriers being short-staffed due to illnesses.

Some did not use tracking. Many Canadians don't, using self-insurance to cover potential losses like delayed delivery. International tracking is very expensive. I can send a 30 gr envelope to the USA for $1.30, but the cheapest tracked rate is $13.36 for anything up to 100gr.

midnight_starr2007 · ‎02-10-2021

Hello,

This is the tracking number that I got from the States: UM800591548US. It was shipped out of Chicago on January 11th. It was supposed to be in Calgary, Alberta, Canada on January 19th. It never arrived. I figured that it's somewhere in Canada where there is a lockdown because of Covid.

I did try to get a hold of the seller by messaging them personally, but they never responded back. So I had to do the "I've never received the package" thing, but there were two choices, one is a refund and the other is that I want the item. I clicked on wanting the item. I don't understand why they thought that I want a refund when I clicked on wanting the item?

midnight_starr2007 · ‎02-10-2021

Hello,

Thankfully, eBay does have a tracking system. I did check and I did see that the item was shipped out of Chicago on January 11th. That was the last time that it was tracked.

As for not having a tracking number for international buyers, that should be a rule because once it gets into another country, the shipping number changes.

I am still thinking that this package is in a Canada Post warehouse somewhere else in Canada, where there is still a Covid lockdown. I did check the Canada Post website and there is a page for Delivery Service Alerts about delays.

marnotom! · ‎02-10-2021

"UM" prefixes indicate that the item was sent by letter post. You may get event scans for a letter post item, you might not.

During the summer, my wife purchased two items from the same seller that were mailed in two separate cheque envelopes as letters with no labels for customs or tracking. They reached her a few days apart from each other and took about a month to reach her. You're about in that timeframe now, and as you suggest, things are a bit more complicated now with Canada Post.

I'm of the attitude that knowing where an item is isn't nearly as important as receiving it. While it's reassuring to have some sort of evidence that the item is on the way, knowing its location doesn't make any difference to whether or not you receive it. That part is out of your hands. You just know that it's more likely to reach you in a timely manner if it's in Toronto, and more slowly if it's been misdirected to Tuktoyaktuk.

clemowbooks · ‎02-10-2021

Chicago to you in Calgary?

Probably went through Mississauga which has had a COVID breakout, with 200+ workers affected.

I wonder if there is so much chicanery with "replacements" that eBay has just decided that refunds are a better choice. Kinda paternalistic.

pjcdn2005 · ‎02-10-2021

According to tracking HERE the parcel entered Canada on January 25th so as you suspected, it is likely hung up somewhere in Canada but if it isn't trackable here, there is no way to know where it is.

When you choose the 'item not received' option it opens a claim and the seller only has a certain amount of time to show that the item has been delivered or they have to refund you. If they don't do either and you ask ebay to step in, they will receive a defect and ebay will refund you from the seller's account. The seller probably decided to refund you as they have no way of knowing if you were going to ask ebay to step in. As another poster mentioned, if you receive the item you can ask the seller for their paypal email so that you can repay them.

Keep in mind too that once you open that claim, you only have a limited amount of time to ask ebay to step in or they close the claim without a refund and without an option to open it later. Sellers appreciate buyers being patient but you have to loo, after yourself too. 🙂

lady.stark · ‎02-10-2021

An item that was shipped from the US on December 15 had an estimated delivery date of January 12. Guess what? I got it yesterday, almost 2 months after shipment!! So there is a LOT of delays due to COVID*.

If the item does show up, you can still repay the seller. Just advise them you got the parcel and that you want to pay back. They can send you an invoice through PayPal.

* I did not contact the seller, but marked my calendar 30 days after estimated delivery date. I would either have opened a claim on eBay before the 30 days mark or waited longer to go to PayPal (they have 180 days from payment). Fortunately, I did not have to do neither.