posted on September 7, 2000 08:44:59 AM new
I have been selling online for 3 years. This year I have had more items lost in the mail than in the last 2 years combined!! I send about 100 packages a month. I had a sale in late May. I was paid and mailed the item. I get an email asking where the item is- they didn't get it. I sent mailing date back to her.Note: I was offering to insure items at buyers disgression at that time. I contacted the Post Office and they said that I had to wait 30 days from mailing date to do a package trace. I waited and did this for the lady.Now in September she is saying she never got a trace inquiry from the PO and wants her money back or another item. I have over 100s of positive feedbacks on all of my auctions with no negs- she is saying basically send me something or I will neg you.
Since that and a second lost package going to Florida I have made it policy that all packages have to be insured.Checking back with the PO - they won't even trace a lost package if the value isn't $10. They basically won't bother with packages valued over $10 that don't have a "premium service" on them either.What Blackmail!!Online sales have increased their business and profits- now they are forcing us to pay for extras- insurance- proof of mailing-in order to get good service!!
Can I respond to a Yahoo neg? I don't know because I've never had one.I feel that buyer chose not to insure. I mailed and did the trace. I have done my part.
What do you think about the PO's policies??
Do you require Insurance?Anyone have any experiences with lost mail??Am I right in not refunding her money?
posted on September 7, 2000 08:52:52 AM new
I have had 1 item lost (book) I had to send buyer there money back, I did not ins. this item, but If you offered ins. and they did not want it. I would say it is there problem, and yes you can reply to a neg. feed back, I have been thinking about starting to add delivery conf. on everthing I ship. Also you can put this in your desp. ins. is opt. but I will not be responsible for items lost in mail.
posted on September 7, 2000 09:05:22 AM new
I always give customers a choice but tell them they accept all risk if they dont take insurance or confirmation. I also recommend DC because 1)it's cheaper than insurance 2) you can prove you sent it and you can track it 3) I think that because it's tracked, USPS treats it more carefully. I have never had one get lost. 4) if buyer pays with CC or paypal, the DC is proof that you sent it.
I did have an insured package without DC get lost. PO made me jump through hoops for months, pay $7 for "proof of delivery" and finally send me a photocopy with an "X" for the signature and call it case closed. So I dont think insurance is worth anything.
If buyer pays for insurance, I use DC and call it "self-insured." The day it ever gets lost, I will have to refund, but so far that has not happened.
posted on September 7, 2000 09:11:49 AM new
The info the PO gave you is incorrect. They will trace a lost letter with no value (doesn't mean they will come up with it, but they will attempt to locate it).
I also use to offer optional insurance, but got tired of trying to get people to understand that if they chose not to insure, it was at their risk...buyers just don't seem to understand this concept. I now insure everything I ship and have not had any lost packages and sure beats trying to explain the concept to the bidders...and have had no complaints about the additional cost.
Delivery confirmation is about the most worthless service you can pay for...it only shows you shipped the package. Most bidders don't care if you shipped it if they don't get it! It is also not cost effective. For priority mail it costs 35 cents. You can insure the same package for up to $100 40 cents through U-pic. With the volume of packages you ship, I would recommend you look at their service. It is a wonderful low cost way to avoid a lot of headaches for you and everyone I have dealt with there is just wonderful. Their program is very easy to use and USPS claims are also much easier to handle with them than with the PO.
akt-I have placed a statement in my shipping section that says that I strongly suggest that they purchase the insurance and that I am not responsible once an item hits the hands of the PO!I do wonder if anyone reads this!!!Now I have gone to mandatory Insurance.
yisgood--"I always give customers a choice but tell them they accept all risk if they dont take insurance or confirmation." How do you get this across to them???- I have stated it- this lady obviously doesn't believe it!
auctionee-- I checked and you are right - the PO will take a lost package complaint form for any piece of mail. It then goes rorge Postal Insopector. If there is a claim against it- Insurance or if it can be traced- DC- then they look into where it might be. If there is no loss claim- they look for a loss pattern and if they see too many missing items they will investigate.Otherwise- O well!
I will look into u-pic. Thanks!
We all work so hard to find and list things' To be honest in description and dealings with the buyer!!It is sooo frustrating when the PO doesn't do their part. I was told that If there is damage that the buyer takes the stuff to the PO to be dealt with not the seller.
BTW- I worked at a Bulk Mailing center for Christmas one year and care is given to Insured and Tracked items- because no one wants to be the Center to lose or damage them!!
posted on September 7, 2000 04:33:58 PM new
I had the same thing happening a couple of years ago!
I used to require insurance mostly for confirmation!
I now do about what yisgood does, except I require DC on all Priority USPS shipments! Insurance is optional! I post such in my adds!
I have had no complaints! I deal mostly with collectors though who are usually are happy to find and item!
A parcel using DC is tracked at the point of origin and is traced at any other point it may stop until it reaches its destination point! You can track it on line at the USPS Web Site!
You have physical proof (DC #) that the item was sent from and received at! You can furnish this to the customer and it then becomes a local problem on the receiving end!
Could still get put in the wrong box!
Ditto on the insurance hoops! One customer had a damaged item and all kinds of forms from USPS I had to fill out!
posted on September 7, 2000 05:01:23 PM new
Every missing package is an agonizing problem but postal insurance is still more expensive than price effective.
Even at the shockingly high loss rate you indicate for this year of 2 out of about 800 paackages, purchasing $50 of postal insurance on each works out to $320 per loss.
Requiring or expecting customers to pay pay for this doesn't seem to be particularly good business practice.
Absorbing a loss of 1 per 400 packages would represent a cost of only one forth of one percent of gross even with losses running double to 6x what your experience shows is normal.
Third party insurance will cut the cost of insurance but it still tends to be a little high, unless you are dealing with fragile and at least somewhat more expensive items.
OTOH a local problem can lose a bunch of packages at once leading to a bit of a nightmare.
Yahoo makes it very easy to respond to feedbacks. Assuming you are signed in whenever you look at your feedback you should see a respond button by each.
re. other specific questions, my opinions (to which many will disagree) are:
PO policies relating to claims of lost mail seem to be very far from helpful.
Lost mail seems normally to be very rare, normally much less than 1 in 1000, but can happen in batches.
Requiring buyer pay insurance on such purchases is lousy.
I think refunding is likely to be appropriate, especially if you believe the buyer.
