Should I issue the refund or let ebay decide?

[totterstroveshop]

I sent an item to Australia by Canada Post parcel ground with no tracking. Canada Post says it can take 60 days for it to arrive. The listing showed the shipping type should have been Canada Post parcel air.

So I shipped it using the wrong type of shipping as was in the listing.

The buyer says the item hasn't arrived but I think it should be there by May 10th.

Should I issue a refund or ask ebay to step in?

[ricarmic]

Has the buyer opened a case yet?

Unfortunately the problem is that it was shipped the wrong way (however if it is small packet air that isn't tracked either).

Presumably you saved money shipping the wrong way.

If it were me, I'd fess up, tell them you noticed that it got shipped surface by mistake and that if they don't mind hanging on till about mid May, once it arrives you'll refund them the shipping difference, or at that time you can refund them the whole amount and when it does arrive later they can pay again for the difference. (I might even be tempted to refund them the shipping difference now)

Here is a link to my form letters I use for situations sort of like this, some wordings might help....

http://community.ebay.ca/t5/Seller-Central/RICARMICs-INR-where-is-my-package-updated-2016-form-lette...  

If this goes anywhere other than you partially refunding the shipping, the buyer should open a case so everything is documented....if there isn't already a case....

[femmefan1946]

It doesn't matter what Canada Post gives as the probable arrival date.

What did eBay tell the buyer - based on your promise to send Air Mail?

The buyer has 30 days from that date to open a dispute with eBay. After which eBay is not an option.

(He can go to Paypal for 180 days from payment, so you are not off the hook.)

'Fess up. Apologize. Ask if May 10 is acceptable.

If it is not, refund immediately.

And since you have been upfront about causing the problem, you can ask that the buyer return the refund (perhaps minus the difference in cost between Air and Surface rates) by using Paypal's Send Money service.

Many buyers are willing to return refunds, but don't know how, so tell him.

[recped]

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@totterstroveshop wrote:

I sent an item to Australia by Canada Post parcel ground with no tracking. Canada Post says it can take 60 days for it to arrive. The listing showed the shipping type should have been Canada Post parcel air.

So I shipped it using the wrong type of shipping as was in the listing.

The buyer says the item hasn't arrived but I think it should be there by May 10th.

Should I issue a refund or ask ebay to step in?

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If you ask eBay to step in you will lose, be forced to refund immediately and get an unresolved by seller defect.

The ONLY thing you can do is ask eBay for an extension but if there is no tracking showing recent movement they are unlikely to give you one and even if they do the same situation will come back in a week.

Canada Post's estimate of 60 days surface delivery isn't very reliable, it might be ok for some countries but for Australia probably not.

[rose-dee]

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@recped wrote:

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If you ask eBay to step in you will lose, be forced to refund immediately and get an unresolved by seller defect.

 The ONLY thing you can do is ask eBay for an extension but if there is no tracking showing recent movement they are unlikely to give you one and even if they do the same situation will come back in a week.

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I'm a bit confused by this.   Why would the buyer ask eBay to step in at all, triggering a possible defect?  My understanding is that it would be the buyer who would normally ask eBay to step in if an INR case wasn't resolved by the seller through a refund, etc.  

I also don't understand why eBay would grant an extension if the parcel was clearly sent via surface service, something eBay's own policies discourage.  I would think the only safe course for the seller (if the goal is to avoid a defect) would be to instruct the buyer to open an INR case, then refund immediately to resolve it and hope the buyer is honest enough to repay the refund if the item eventually arrives. 

As an aside, over the past few months I've had 2 items going to Australia (by Small Packet Air) take over 5 weeks to arrive (one did the whole route of the western Pacific before finally ending up in Oz).  So I can't imagine what the actual arrival date for surface shipping will be in this case.  Asking the buyer to wait a little longer could backfire by irritating the buyer further if the item doesn't arrive as hoped.  I'd be careful not to make any promises, and would ask the buyer (in advance) to go ahead and open an INR case the day after the agreed deadline, at which point I'd refund promptly.  

[recped]

Your post only adds to the confusion, you have "the buyer" on both sides of the transaction.

I'm a bit confused by this.   Why would the buyer ask eBay to step in at all, triggering a possible defect?  My understanding is that it would be the buyer who would normally ask eBay to step in if an INR case wasn't resolved by the seller through a refund, etc.  

If the actual buyer in this transaction has not already opened an INR claim, I'm not sure what the OP means by "ask eBay to step in", that's something that can only be done AFTER a case/claim/dispute  has been started by the buyer.

[rose-dee]

My apologies, hole in the brain, probably not enough caffeine at the time. 

Yes, you were referring earlier to the seller (the OP) asking eBay to step in, and that's what I was asking about that didn't seem to make sense. 

[ricarmic]

Hey Rose, I've discovered I can't drink enough coffee anymore to fix all the wee mistakes I like to make.....

[momcqueen]

Neither can I. I'd need to start drinking rocket fuel. 

[femmefan1946]

As I posted to another thread:

[momcqueen]

I need that tattooed on my forehead. Coffee is the last and only vice in which I allow myself to indulge, I love it more than life itself.  I think I've posted this one before, but here is an actual picture of me with my coffee. I was happy that day.