Last minute buyers.

[westernstargifts]

Why do men wait until the last minute to shop?  Why do they make a purchase, wait 3 days to pay and then expect you to get it to them before Christmas?

To be fair, I do have 2 e-checks waiting to clear (both Canadian women) and another female that hasn't paid yet, but there are a larger number of male buyers who haven't yet paid.

I sent a shipping notice to a lady in Michigan yesterday (shipped same day) and quoted her an estimated "delivery time" of 2 weeks.  I also state in the listing description that International buyers should allow 2 to 3 weeks for delivery.  This is the reply I received.

Well, that is a bit dis-heartening as it is a Christmas gift & the listing said 6-8 business days. I would have certainly paid extra shipping to have it here in less than 2 weeks & by Christmas. I suppose that is why I should have gone w/my gut instict & stayed within the USA to purchase from. I will keep my fingers crossed & hope I get lucky & it arrives before Christmas. Is there any tracking number?

Thanks so much.

Which shows another issue that I have seen mentioned on discussion boards before.

Why does eBay show the inaccurate shipping times that they get from the Canada Post website with no allowance for customs or the busy Christmas season?  Obviously that is the reason this lady made the purchase...because she assumed it could arrive in time.  Thank you in advance, eBay, if she dings my DSR for shipping time.

[westernstargifts]

Interesting.

I just went back to My eBay and there was a message from one of the customers who has not yet received her parcel.

Hello Judy, Thank you very much for your quick response. I will give it a few more days. I did hear reports that they have cut a lot of jobs at the post offices so this would affect delivery times too in addition to the Holidays. Thanks so much and I will keep you posted.

That's it!  I'll blame USPS......;-)

[westernstargifts]

Sorry about the multiple posts but I emailed that customer back and she just gave me a little more info on the postal cuts.

Unfortunately, they did make that untimely/hurtful decision to cut jobs at the busiest time of year. All of this to supposedly keep the pension pool funded. First there are complaints that we're not utilizing our post office services enough when we use internet, e-mail and telephone and other courier services but then they cut jobs when we need/use them the most. Yes, they are definitely hurting themselves. Sad. :O(

[goodnotes88]

This has been going on a lot, some people want to scam U, because they know they can automatically get back their money from Paypal even if they get their stuff. Paypal takes it out of your acc. without even looking at this person's habit.

Paypal is easy, all U have to say I didn't get my stuff and open a dispute and bam they get their money back while U are  out both times money and stuff gone, they get it for free. I am really, really upset about this. When something cost less than the Registered Mail cost in Canada why are going to mail it that way, so we have no trking no: and that is what they are asking for. So we lose out when there is no trking no: When you put expedited S&H no one wants to buy it, they find it;s too much money, U just cant win here. The sellers are getting rip off left and right on this site.

sp

Groan.....I opened up my email tonight and had no less than 3 "Where's my item".  One was shipped the Monday before the American Thanksgiving, one just under 2 weeks ago and the other on Dec. 15 (shipped same day).

The guy from Dec. 15 sent this message:

Your ad stated 6 to 8 days for shipping, click the ? mark after shipping, I wanted it for Christmas.

You are selling on US eBAY not ca ebay AND I never would of bought it had i known it would take that long.

Not to happy. xxxxx

Not only did he see that unrealistic "delivery time" but he is also blaming me for showing up on .com.

Cumos....I'm off to change the shipping on all of my Light Packet mail.

PJ....Thanks for letting me know about your contact with Vincenzo on this issue.  If you contacted him on a discussion board can you point me in the right direction to add a comment?

Ann...Thanks for the info but I don't have a clue how to do that...lol.

Thanks again.

Judy

[femmefan1946]

EBay and Paypal do NOT require tracking. They do require Delivery Confirmation, which is much cheaper.

Even cheaper services than Expedited can be handled without needing a PP dispute.

If the item is small enough (less than 500 grams and 2 cm thick) it can be sent LetterPost/LightPacket. Neither postal insurance nor Delivery Confirmation available but we can add a few pennies to our handling charge as a self-insurance premium and pay out when a buyer complains.

Small Packet Air and Surface include up to $100 insurance and Canada Post is quite good about paying out on claims. This is particularly useful for overseas shipments. We can increase the insurance (or add in our own self-insurance as above.)

Complaints by buyers are more likely to be real than phoney in my experience. However, as a book seller, I deal with people who can and do read. I also find my philatelist and pattern buyers are very reasonable about problems.(Collectors of china and militaria-- not so good.)

Don't let the problem escalate to Paypal. Fix it before it goes that far. Having PP force a refund is the worst case for your ability to sell.

PS Registered Mail is not recognized by PP or eBay as proof of shipping or of delivery. Don't know why, but save your money and use another service.

PPS Search the Sellers Board for discussions of shipinsure and other third party insurers. I don't use them myself, but there are some interesting discussions.