Ebay Stole My Money

[antimo_30]

I sold an item to a buyer in Mexico. Shipping is very high from where i live. Buyers item was sent with regular international mail.  I have a receipt to show I mailed it with the buyers name on it. The buyer says they didn't get it but there is NOTHING to prove that they didn't.  I have no way of knowing if they got it, they could be lying. Ebay has no way of knowing if they got it. The buyer opened a claim and even though I had proof Ebay sided with the buyer and withdrew the money from my account. I am furious!  I have deleted all my listings and I will NEVER purchase or sell an item through Ebay ever again. They have lost a customer and a seller. I want everyone on Ebay to be aware of the buyer so you don't get ripped off to.  Heads up. 

[reallynicestamps]

Did you use a TRACKED service?

If you cannot show the tracking number and that the shipment was both shipped and DELIVERED, you will lose any Not Received (INR) claim.

As a Canadian seller, I ship over 90% of my sales internationally-- mostly to the USA.

International Tracked Shipping is very expensive so I rarely use it, because the Canada Post/USPS interface is excellent and it is very unlikely that the shipment will not be received promptly.

And most people are honest, so being unable to "prove" delivery is moot.

But.

Like other  sellers who ship without tracking, I understand that if a shipment is lost or delayed or if there is an INR claim, I will be refunding. I think my refunds for INR last year were one* in some 350 sales.

If your losses to INR claims are less than one percent of your sales, you are doing better than the industry average.

*And one of those arrived late and the buyer returned my refund, because most people are honest.

[antimo_30]

If Ebay insists on refunding buyers for items because of no tracking then Ebay should only be provding sellers the option to sell with tracking. By allowing any type of shipping, then saying that there is no tracking number is FRAUD.

I mailed the parcel, I have proof i mailed the parcel, I have proof who I mailed the parcle to and it stats the VIP code on the receipt.

The postal systems incompetence, buyers lack of morals, or Ebays policies do not make me responsible for a parcel that the buyer stats they did not recieve.  It can be sugar coated any way you like. FACTS are FACTS and the Fact is I mailed it and Ebay are thieves. 

Like I said they will NEVER get a dime from me again. Any seller that has half a brain that has this happen to them, should do the same. They deserve to go under. 

I am not looking for sympathy or exuses. I posted my post to make buyers aware of this situtation and the potential that the buyer quite possibly is scamming people. 

[marnotom!]

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@antimo_30 wrote:

If Ebay insists on refunding buyers for items because of no tracking then Ebay should only be provding sellers the option to sell with tracking. By allowing any type of shipping, then saying that there is no tracking number is FRAUD.

I mailed the parcel, I have proof i mailed the parcel, I have proof who I mailed the parcle to and it stats the VIP code on the receipt.

eBay believes buyers should be refunded for items they did not receive or were not in the condition as stated in the listing. Your buyer’s complaint wasn’t that you hadn’t shipped the item, it was that they hadn’t received it. You couldn’t produce evidence that they had received it, so you didn’t prevail in the case.

Even if you had shipped the item with tracking, you wouldn't have prevailed in the case if the tracking information didn't show that the buyer had received the item.

It is unfortunate that the agents you chose to get the item to the buyer likely failed to do their job, but eBay believes buyers shouldn’t be hung out to dry because of the choice in shipping method that you made.  Besides, it’s good business practice and it’s how eBay has operated for decades.

@reallynicestamps  made some very good comments about the nature of risk management when selling online. I suggest you read them again.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

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@antimo_30 wrote:

I sold an item to a buyer in Mexico. Shipping is very high from where i live. Buyers item was sent with regular international mail.  I have a receipt to show I mailed it with the buyers name on it. The buyer says they didn't get it but there is NOTHING to prove that they didn't.  I have no way of knowing if they got it, they could be lying. Ebay has no way of knowing if they got it. The buyer opened a claim and even though I had proof Ebay sided with the buyer and withdrew the money from my account. I am furious!  I have deleted all my listings and I will NEVER purchase or sell an item through Ebay ever again. They have lost a customer and a seller. I want everyone on Ebay to be aware of the buyer so you don't get ripped off to.  Heads up. 

The ebay buyer is liz.46

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@antimo_30 

The only 2 services that can be tracked to Mexico are Xpresspost and Tracked. Have you tried tracking your shipment with Parcelmonitor? What shipping service did you use?

What type of item did you send? Did you include proper customs paperwork? Central and S. American countries are very strict when it comes to documentation. It is also very important to be aware of what types of items can and can't be sold to countries before shipping. 

Lastly did you include a phone number/real email address for the customer on the package/documents. Very important if customs  needs to contact the customer prior to delivery especially with International shipping? 

https://www.parcelmonitor.com/track-mexico/

[msau4301]

You already have some great responses here. Shipping costs may be high but depending on the value of the items you are selling it is up to you to decide if it's worth the chance (small as it might be) of the buyer not receiving it sending it untracked, versus the piece of mind you have shipping with tracking...the buyer pays the shipping so if they are used to buying on line they would be aware of costs too. If you are going to appeal to more buyers with the lower (or free) shipping you have to consider that as well.

You have to put yourself in the buyers shoes and think of the reverse scenario, if you had ordered something here and it had not arrived, even though the seller had mailed it off to you (and took photo to prove it), would you not want your money back if you didn't get it? That is why the system is in place, eBay is wanting to make sure everyone is comfortable buying here, knowing there money will be refunded if they don't receive it, or it is not what they expected.

I've sold here for many years, and as reallynicestamps says the percentage of not received items if very, very low. It's unfortunate it happened for you early on but you can take it as a learning experience.

[brettjet38]

@antimo_30  "Ebay Stole My Money"

No, they did not, you did not read eBay's policy about shipping /tracking and Seller RESPONSIBILITY when shipping items, before selling internationally.

3 min article

Help a buyer with an item they didn't receive

https://www.ebay.ca/help/selling/managing-returns-refunds/helping-buyers-items-not-received?id=4116

If a buyer doesn't receive their item, they're entitled to a refund unless you can provide tracking information showing that it was delivered.

If your buyer hasn’t received their item and the estimated delivery date has passed, they’ll let you know there’s an issue by opening an “item not received” request.

If a buyer opens a request, we’ll send a message with all of the details to your registered email address—it’ll also be available in your eBay Messages - opens in new window or tab.

Once a request is opened, you have 3 business days to resolve the issue. After that time, either you or the buyer can ask us to step in to help resolve the issue.

Resolve an item not received request

Tip
When a buyer opens a request, the funds related to the sale may be be put on hold. Once the issue is resolved, the hold is lifted and you'll receive your funds in your next scheduled payout.

What to do when a buyer opens an item not received request

In the email you received telling you the buyer’s issue, select See request details. You’ll find information on whether the buyer is requesting a refund or would prefer to still receive the item. You’ll also see your response options:

Add tracking details: You’ll need to provide tracking within 3 business days of the request being opened, if you haven’t done so already. In order to be protected, tracking must be from one the shipping carriers integrated with eBay and must include the date you shipped the item, the date it was delivered, and the address it was delivered to. If the order has a total cost (total of item(s), shipping and tax) of $750 or more, it should also show the signature confirmation of the recipient. Learn more about our signature confirmation requirements.

[brettjet38]

What service did you use ?

"regular international mail" as in you shipped it as a letter with a stamp?

Did you have a customs declration on the package?  

[brettjet38]

YOU ARE NOT THE VICTIM HERE...

You agreed to ALL the eBay TERMS, CONDITIONS & POLICIES when you joined THIS CLUB...

It is up to you to decide the "RISK" factor you are willing to endure for that almighty sale to somewhere...

Me!

I choose not to ship to Mexico or South America, too many issues and TRACKING is expensive.

You are NOT the victim, just someone who "jumped right in" without putting their little toe first to test the shark-infested waters...

The End.

[mrdutch1001]

Sellers ARE indeed responsible for their methods of shipping and using Untracked shipping methods are indeed the responsibility of the seller! ....and it would not matter whether you sold the item on eBay, OR any other selling site, YOU as the seller are responsible for your actions if using untracked shipping methods. As an inexperienced seller, you will find there is much yet to learn about shipping items to your customers wherever they may be located.

[flipistics]

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@antimo_30 wrote:

I sold an item to a buyer in Mexico. Shipping is very high from where i live. Buyers item was sent with regular international mail.  I have a receipt to show I mailed it with the buyers name on it. The buyer says they didn't get it but there is NOTHING to prove that they didn't.  I have no way of knowing if they got it, they could be lying. Ebay has no way of knowing if they got it. The buyer opened a claim and even though I had proof Ebay sided with the buyer and withdrew the money from my account. I am furious!  I have deleted all my listings and I will NEVER purchase or sell an item through Ebay ever again. They have lost a customer and a seller. I want everyone on Ebay to be aware of the buyer so you don't get ripped off to.  Heads up. 

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A few things to note about this:

1. As a seller, it is your responsibility to get the item to the location specified by the buyer. If the item does not make it there, you refund the buyer. I (think) the consumer protection laws for most areas actually require this. You can then file a claim with the post office / shipper to (hopefully) get reimbursed yourself. The exception to this may be if you have tracking that shows the item as delivered, in which case eBay's seller protection should cover you regardless of whether the post office misdelivered it.
2. Any goods (items you sell) that cross an international border must include customs info regardless of the value or whether it will fit in an envelope. This rule wasn't really enforced for a long time, but it IS now. A lot of sellers of things like sports cards found that out the hard way over the last few months. I don't know what service you used, but if it didn't include customs info there's a very good chance the buyer really didn't receive it. If you sent it small packet, you may be able to add the UR number in eBay and that MIGHT show limited tracking info. You'd probably still have to refund though unless you really lucked out and got a delivery scan.
3. You don't have to ship to all countries. There's nothing wrong with starting off with just Canada or Canada + USA. You can add more later as you become more comfortable with it.