Many orders not arriving

[dragonfly*71]

In the summer I learned that I could get my craft supplies so much cheaper on here.  I went on a bit of a spree and had about 80 orders (all small).  At first they were coming in when they were supposed to or earlier but now I have had to contact the seller for more than 2 dozen items that haven't arrived.  Someone at work said to me today that perhaps they are held up at customs because I was flagged at customs for ordering so much.  Is that possible or could this many really have gotten lost in transit?

[marnotom!]

Are all your purchases from China with dirt cheap to free shipping?

[reallynicestamps]

There are three possibilities:

• The sellers chose Surface shipping which can take months.
• The shipments are held up at Customs because of the fentanyl problem* or the UPU dispute**.
• The seller never sent anything at all figuring at such a low price the buyer will forget the purchase.

The answer is still the same on all of these.

You have 30 days after that 'last estimated date for arrival' eBay gave you to open a Dispute with eBay's Resolution Centre, which is at the bottom of this page.
The first suggestion is to Contact the Seller. Don’t get into a conversation.
Just ask “When was this sent? What service was used? What is the tracking number?”
Don’t get into a conversation. You want either a prompt refund OR a tracking number that shows the purchase is in Canada.
Do NOT accept a replacement. It won’t arrive.
Do NOT close the Dispute until you have the product or the refund.
If you have already attempted to Contact the Seller,  skip that step, ask eBay to step in and Escalate to a Claim.
If the seller cannot prove Delivery (not shipping, delivery) you will be refunded.
 
If the 30 days have passed, go to your Paypal account.
You have 180 days from payment for this Dispute.
Find the transaction and copy the number.
The PP Resolution Centre is at the top of your PP account page under Tools
Same process basically, skip the Contact Seller and escalate to a Claim.
If the seller cannot prove Delivery (not shipping, delivery) you will be refunded.
 
In future, read the feedback.
Don't buy from sellers with less than 98% positive (99% for Asian sellers)
Read the negative feedback , including seller responses, for patterns like slow or no delivery, poor communication, low quality, counterfeits.

The patterns are more important than the numbers.

A seller with 99% feedback may have 500 negs, but 50,000satisfied customers.

In fact, since less than 40% of transactions have any feedback, he may well have twice that many satisfied customers.
 

*While China is cooperating, a lot of this lethal drug is still coming in, usually in small untracked packages.

** China is exploiting a loophole in this Postal Treaty to subsidize its international shipping.