I promised this so here it is!
Note that these are the base form letters, I almost always adjust them to the current situation, but the base wording normally stays the same. They've served me well over the last 20 years!!
Please feel free to make use of whatever pieces work for you!
Slow delivery, MIA packages:
Hi! Your parcel was mailed Monday April 8. I certainly understand your frustration awaiting the parcel's arrival, delays like this are frustrating to us both!. Unfortunately parcels like this go through customs, often taking longer to arrive, this is especially true for items from here in the "middle" of Canada to you there in California. I would really appreciate it if you can wait another week or so before we decide the package is lost and I refund your money, but I will be ok whenever you decide. If it gets to the point that you think it has been long enough, please just send me a message and I will refund your money out of my own funds ASAP. Assuming the parcel does arrive after that, let me know and I’ll send another invoice so you can pay again (small parcels like this are not insured so I am out 100% if they do not arrive). Thank you in advance for your continued patience and have a great day! RICARMIC (Ron)
Hi! THX for your note! Your parcel was sent as advised on Wednesday October 30 without tracking (tracking is very expensive here in Canada, to track would have cost an additional $30.00 more). I understand your frustration awaiting the parcel's arrival, it is frustrating to us both! Unfortunately parcels like this go through customs and that can add an unpredictable delay. You will receive a full refund if your package does not arrive, so you do not need to worry. If it gets to the point that you think it has been long enough, please just open an item not received request and I will refund your money out of my own funds. Assuming the parcel does arrive after that, let me know and I will send another invoice so you can pay again (small parcels like this are not insured so I am out 100% if they do not arrive). 99.5% of the time parcels to the UK just take longer than they should to arrive, especially at this time of year. I would appreciate it if you can wait another week or two before we decide the package is lost and I refund your money but I will be ok whenever you decide. Thank you for your continued patience and have a great day! Regards, RICARMIC
IST:
Trust me, I dislike the Internet Sales Tax as much as you. The IST is something your state government there has put in place to gather taxes on purchases you make from large "facilitators" like eBay, Amazon etc irregardless of where the seller like me is from. It is actually eBay that is forced to gather the tax and send it to your state government, but they do it through my PAYPAL account (so it looks correct on the invoice and bill) which means them collecting taxes from you for your state government costs me 3% of the taxes (so if you pay $1 in taxes, I pay 3c in paypal fees). While the money comes through my PAYPAL account, I never get my hands on it. Most states have adopted the IST and some countries like Australia and Singapore too. So as you can see, the IST type taxes cost me more as well which is quite frustrating to me too!
Neutrals/Negatives:
Feedback "reply" from me:
Buyers first contact regarding any issues. Will contact them to try to rectify.
or
Unaware of any issue before receiving this,will contact buyer to try to rectify.
Message to buyer:
Hi BUYERNAME, I see from the negative feedback you left me that you have not received your stamps. I am sorry to hear that they have not reached you, certainly by now they must be lost. You do have options to resolve this, if you want I can try sending another group of the "whatever they bought" to you, or I can refund your money. It is unfortunate that the first news I have of any problems is a negative rating, which is damaging to my reputation, before I've had a chance to know about it or to try to work with you to fix it! I hope that once this is fixed you will consider revising your rating. Let me know if you would like me to try sending another set of stamps, or if you want your money refunded and have a great day!!
Hi! BUYERNAME I see from the neutral feedback you left me that you were not happy with the "package of stamps they bought". I am sorry to hear that they were disappointing. You do have options to resolve this, if you return them intact you can receive a full refund, or a partial refund is another option as well. If you would prefer to go the partial refund route, I would look for your help to identify the appropriate refund amount given the issues you've identified. It is unfortunate that the first news I have of any problems is a neutral rating, which is damaging to my reputation, before I've had a chance to know about it or to try to work with you to resolve it! I hope that once this is resolved you will consider revising your rating. Let me know how you would like to approach resolving this and have a great weekend!!
