posted on March 8, 2001 05:27:04 AM
I have a seller who I've been a bit suspicious of since he bid on one of my auctions. He gave alot of excuses and was slow to pay. After he FINALLY sent payment, I mailed his item (a tie) out via first class mail. I wanted to get delivery confirmation, but was unable to because you can't get confirmation on first class mail. So, now, two weeks later he claims he didn't receive his item. I have some doubt about this since I've never had a first class package lost in the mail. Any suggestions on how to handle this? This person has 32 feedback with 1 negative due to nonpayment.
Thanks for any suggestions.
posted on March 8, 2001 05:50:53 AM
It may seem unfair Kristie, but in this situation you lose by default. It is the sellers responsibility to get the item to the buyer. Since you can't prove that the item was delivered, you're on the hook. I still can't understand why the USPS won't offer delivery confirmation on First Class packages. I would be willing to pay a buck a pop for it if it was available.
posted on March 8, 2001 06:24:05 AM
Kristie, don't just immediately send a refund! Any time mail does not show up, you can ask the PO to look for it by filing a "Lost Mail" form number 1510 at your local branch. I believe you must wait at least 2 weeks after date of mailing to file this.
It doesn't matter how the item was sent; you don't need to have used Delivery Confirmation or insurance! Your local PO will arttempt to locate the item and will forward a copy to the receiving PO to start a search. Oftentimes, the item is sitting at the local PO and it will get delivered. Either way, the PO will send you a letter after the search to let you know if it was found or not.
The best thing about this process is that the buyer will be sent a form to sign to verify that he never received the letter or package. Signing that form and lying about not receiving an item is a criminal offense; this often prods the buyer to admit that the item has been delivered.
IF he signs the form and IF the item is not found, THEN I would refund his money. This will take about 30 days. E-mail him to alert him to the fact that you are instigating a PO search and that if it isn't located you will handle it fairly, AFTER THE SEARCH PERIOD IS OVER AND THE PO SENDS YOU THE RESULTS OF THE SEARCH! Not before.
posted on March 8, 2001 11:10:23 AM
Busybiddy is absolutely correct! Sometime back I had bought an item (which I didn't receive) that was not sent Priority Mail but could still be tracked. I received the form, filled it out and sent it back to the seller. The PO records shown that my item was signed for at my zip code and it probably gave the seller the impression I was lying. I was at work when it was delivered and signed for! I live in a complex that has 2 street addresses with duplicate condo #'s. It just so happens that the person who lives in the unit with the same # as mine, ALSO has my first name as part of his last name! It's highly likely that he might have signed for it, tried to deliver it to me, left it at my doorstep and it was stolen? That's possible! We get each other's mail at times and we walk it over to one another. When I ship items from auction sales I always send them Priority with confirmation (sheesh, it's only .40 more). That way, both the buyer and I can track the item. I have one item now that shows a delivery attempt was made but no one was there to receive the package. I emailed the buyer to let me know when they pick up.
