Advice: Ebay policy regarding Not Received Item?

[andyandted]

I realize I have been on Ebay a while, but lately as a seller I have found little to no support for a seller.

Quick synopsis; Buyer buys vintage watch from me on Ebay.com. I ship the item with tracking, I followed tracking till item was declared "delivered", Item delivered to buyer March 17 2017. Buyer makes claim for "NOT RECEIVED" item?? What is Ebay's policy in such a situation. Thanks in advance for any advice.

[silverpinups]

As far as eBay's concerned the item you sold is delivered. The claim will close in your favor since you had Shipping with a Tracking Number.

Did you fully insure the package? It's always good to cover all your bases. 

If you shipped the item without a Tracking Number you would be on the losing end of the claim.

Now the buyer may not have received it because it was delivered to a different address on his street or on the slim chance that a porch theft occurred. The buyer will have to contact his local post office and file a claim or talk to his neighbors about the package.

That's my best guess.....

[andyandted]

Thanks for the advice. Any and all is appreciated. As a seller on Ebay I feel vulnerable whenever a claim is made as 98% of the time eBay sides with buyer. And yes I fully insured it, Ive learned the hard way it does not pay to cut corners.

[maggiebvintage2010]

You need to be sure that the tracking number is entered on your Sold record on eBay, otherwise the eBay bot will automatically side with the buyer.

[pjcdn2005]

You should also add the tracking number to the claim just to make sure that they realize it was delivered.  I would also contact the buyer and explain that it was delivered and ask them to check with others in their household if they had seen it.  If the parcel was insured with Canada Post and the buyer still insists that they did not get the item...you could file a claim with CP. There are times when they will refund even though the package shows as delivered.

[cumos55]

Canada Post would look at the tracking and note that the parcel was delivered.

The buyer would state the parcel was not received.... and buyer must notify Canada Post 

This happened to me where a parcel was identified as delivered to a community  mailbox. Buyer was livid because he did not receive the parcel. It was buyer's statement of not received that allowed the insurance claim to proceed. 

The rule for insurance and shipping to the US has changed with signature required.... over $200  I believe

For delivery in Canada,  and above $100... or definitely $200   signature will be required by me with deliver to the buyer or pickup by the the buyer

 Community mailboxes will change the requirement for signature, when the parcel is picked up by the buyer, and not left at the community mailbox.

[femmefan1946]

whenever a claim is made as 98% of the time eBay sides with buyer.

No.

What you are seeing are posts from when the system did not work as intended.

Sometimes the buyer  bullied and the seller caved.

Sometimes  the seller did not realize (like the OP) that there is a defense against non-delivery claims.

Sometimes the seller did not use Confirmation of Delivery or Signature Confirmation when it was necessary.

Sometimes the seller preferred to use cheaper shipping and Cookie Jar Insurance against claims, then panicked when they got a claim.

Sometimes the item really was not delivered.

Add to that porch theft, helpful housemates who put shipments where it cannot possibly get lost, Delivery Notices that blow away or are otherwise misplaced. and carriers who mark things delivered before they actually are.

[andyandted]

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@femmefan1946 wrote:

whenever a claim is made as 98% of the time eBay sides with buyer.

No.

What you are seeing are posts from when the system did not work as intended.

Sometimes the buyer  bullied and the seller caved.

Sometimes  the seller did not realize (like the OP) that there is a defense against non-delivery claims.

Sometimes the seller did not use Confirmation of Delivery or Signature Confirmation when it was necessary.

Sometimes the seller preferred to use cheaper shipping and Cookie Jar Insurance against claims, then panicked when they got a claim.

Sometimes the item really was not delivered.

Add to that porch theft, helpful housemates who put shipments where it cannot possibly get lost, Delivery Notices that blow away or are otherwise misplaced. and carriers who mark things delivered before they actually are.

We will have to agree to disagree regarding ebay policy towards sellers. I sent the package to a house address, I sent the package via Canada Post USA-Tracked packet. Insurance was well covered. The buyer as well as eBay were provided with the tracking number for the package. So far the buyer has not responded, however the amount he paid remains frozen in my paypal account.

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[femmefan1946]

  So far the buyer has not responded, however the amount he paid remains frozen in my paypal account.

Yes, that's part of the process.

The buyer has a chance to respond.

If he does not, your account is unfrozen.

If the number turns out to be false (I know yours  won't, but we hear of fake tracking numbers often, usually from overseas sellers) the buyer can still win, and the scamming seller will lose.

There is a system.

It is like unto the mills of the gods.

Oh yeah, insurance.

Useless frippery.

If the postal system sees that the package was delivered, you don't get reimbursed.

If the claim is damage in transit, the postal system will say it was your fault for not packaging it well, and you don't get reimbursed.

Insurance is only useful if the package is egregiously late, or if the postal system attaches a Notice that they were responsible for the damage.*

With the exception of very high value items, where third party insurance is a better bet, Cookie Jar Insurance covers more problems than postal insurance, including slow delivery, damage from poor packing, damage in transit and porch theft. Not all of which are the seller's responsibility, obviously but time is money (18cents a minute to be precise).

*BTW-- stamp collectors love those 'Damaged In Transit" packages. They are quite collectible, especially if the event is well known, like a post office fire or a plane crash.

[ricarmic]

Femme, just an a comment about this: "If the postal system sees that the package was delivered, you don't get reimbursed." It depends what kind of "delivered" it was. Canada Post will provide insurance coverage for some "delivered" items claimed not received by the buyer, because they covered such a claim for me (one of my buyers).

The item was "delivered" to a community mailbox, however the buyer claimed they never got the package. The buyer assumed the key was put in the wrong box or whatever.

At any rate Canada post covered it.

I have seen USA packages delivered to their version of a community mailbox as well, so I would presume they would cover those as well.

That doesn't seem to apply in this particular case though as it looks as though it went physically to the house.

[andyandted]

I agree. In the past I have had to make 4 claims to Canada Post, over a 10 year span, and they have honored the insurance, each time.

Back to my buyer, they seem very confused, as of this morning I have received the 4th request for tracking number, I have supplied it each time. As I am doing this directly through the resolution process, I have to assume the buyer is getting these messages, such are the vagaries of some buyers.