eBay

pepper1202 · ‎10-22-2021

Bought an item on eBay, seller shipped, and USPS said it was delivered last night “at/in mailbox” outside of my normal delivery route. Since it didn’t arrive with the usual afternoon mail, I figured it would arrive today. I woke up to a message that it was delivered last night. Went out to the mailbox first thing and no package “in/at” mailbox. Asked my husband if he saw it earlier (6:30ish am) when he left for golf and he said no. I messaged the seller and asked if the dimensions would fit inside a regular mailbox and he said he didn’t think so. That means it was left “at” the mailbox leaning against the post I assume. I again messaged the seller to see if he insured it and he said well, not anything additional. I just did some research and looks like he sent it first class. (Yes, I know that means I’m SOL.) Then I wondered why he charged the amount he did, did a calculation on the USPS a website using our zip codes and found out he could have sent it priority with a few bucks to spare with what he charged me. I know that I’d only get $100 out of priority mail insurance but that’s better than nothing because I’m out $275 now. Seller is also not being cooperative furnishing his street address so I can fill out USPS forms. Any advice for what to do?

ainpie-10 · ‎10-22-2021

Regardless of what he charged for shipping that really doesn’t matter. He could make the shipping anything he wants if the person agrees to pay for it. Some sellers include postage, handling fees, eBay fees etc. The problem lies with the USPS. You will have to file with them a missing parcel. If shipping shows they mailed it and it was delivered it’s out of there hands.

muttlymob · ‎10-22-2021

@pepper1202 wrote:
I woke up to a message that it was delivered last night. Went out to the mailbox first thing and no package “in/at” mailbox.

The package may have been scanned in error. Or even intentionally. Packages that aren't scanned by the end of the day raise red alarms, so sometimes employees will scan undelivered packages as attempted or even delivered, just to avoid getting those red flags.

Before getting worked up about the package being stolen, check with your mail carrier or local post office to see if they still have it. It may be out for delivery today.

paramiti · ‎10-22-2021

I got a package with 27 books in it marked as delivered recently

Guess what?

i was right there with my postman

He handed me my packages

That package with the booklets was Not in my packages

Went to post office signed some things and complained

They have no clue what happened to the package

I cannot ask for a refund from the seller

But i did notify them of what happened

I am the one out of money

I loved the post office all my life no matter what city i lived in

Today things have changed marked as delivered when they are not delivered

Mail super slow because they dont want to use airplanes

looks bleak right now

dirk12955 · ‎10-22-2021

Tagging On:

Step 1) Ask the delivery person.

orangehound · ‎10-23-2021

@pepper1202 wrote:
I know that I’d only get $100 out of priority mail insurance but that’s better than nothing because I’m out $275 now. Seller is also not being cooperative furnishing his street address so I can fill out USPS forms. Any advice for what to do?

There are three possible explanations for what you are experiencing.

It was accidentally marked as "delivered" ... this is fairly common. A USPS worker just set up their scanner with the incorrect scan reason. You will continue to see movement of the package and eventual delivery, although the erroneous "delivered" scan will always appear as the top scan.
It was stolen from your mailbox ... this is the second most likely scenario. It is your responsibility to have a secure delivery location, and if this happens then you have a property theft. The responsibility of eBay, the eBay seller, and the USPS ends at the moment of delivery - even if the package was insured then this is not covered by USPS insurance (USPS insurance has covered such things in the past, but I don't believe they do any longer). However, some home-owners insurance policies will cover theft of items from your property. You can also report it to the police, but they will not typically act on these things.
t was delivered to the wrong address ... this is the most rare, but happens sometimes. You can go to your local USPS branch and ask the postmaster there to look up the GPS location of the delivery address (most packages will have this). They cannot tell you the address of delivery, but they can tell you if it was delivered to your specific address (yes/no). If misdelivered, you would then need to work with the USPS to see if the package can be found.
By the way, sometimes it is busy at a USPS branch, and the look-up can take 10 minutes, so sometimes you can just leave the information with the postmaster and come back the next day to get the results.

orangehound · ‎10-23-2021

Actually there is a fourth reason:

4. The eBay seller is scamming you with the "same zip code" scam. In this scam, they send your package to a different address in the same zip code - it looks like it has been delivered properly. This is discovered in the same way as #3 above (with asking the postmaster to look at the delivery data) - he/she can tell you if the package was addressed to your address or not. If this has happened, then you can file a claim with eBay for a package not received ... you will get rejected by the software (because the tracking says delivered), but then you'll need to appeal and submit a letter from your post office declaring that the package was addressed to a different address than your home.

pepper1202 · ‎10-23-2021

OP here with an update. Well, today I got a notice from the post office that they “tried” to deliver it but I wasn’t home (incorrect) and that I have to go to the post office because they are holding it ransom….for postage due. Seriously? Anyway, do you agree that I should ask seller to reimburse me for the balance? (It’s more than $5)

albertabrightalberta · ‎10-23-2021

@pepper1202 wrote:
OP here with an update. Well, today I got a notice from the post office that they “tried” to deliver it but I wasn’t home (incorrect) and that I have to go to the post office because they are holding it ransom….for postage due. Seriously? Anyway, do you agree that I should ask seller to reimburse me for the balance? (It’s more than $5)

I'm glad you updated because my comment was going to mention something along the lines of the seller underpaying for shipping.

If the seller shipped first class, that's a red flag. First class mail has to weigh < 1 pound and if something is too large for your mailbox, unless it's a huge feather in a very lightweight box, it's not going to be under a pound.

How much did the seller charge for shipping? And what service did you pay for? - first class or priority mail?

Some sellers have been known to try to cheat USPS and purchase a lightweight label hoping that it would go through and not be caught.

But the p.o. has been cracking down on the fraud and either returning items to sender for additional postage or charging the recipient for the postage due.

If you know how much you owe, contact the seller and demand that they issue a refund for the postage due amount. If you don't know the amount you owe, wait to pick it up and contact the seller after.

albertabrightalberta
Volunteer Community Mentor

albertabrightalberta · ‎10-23-2021

Is the item the towel racks for which you paid $15.95 for priority mail?

albertabrightalberta
Volunteer Community Mentor

santamonicajeweler · ‎10-23-2021

Definitely,

Ask Seller for Postage due. You've already paid for it. If not, open an INAD(item not as described), in this case, item delivered without proper paid postage

Write to Seller;

"Well", I hate it when people overcharge and under-serve

pepper1202 · ‎10-25-2021

Another update from OP. I retrieved my package from the post office today. The seller actually slapped a first class label on a USPS priority box and thought that was just fine. She actually overcharged me by twice counting in the ransom price from the post office. I’ve messaged her and said she needs to refund me (calculated amount) in 24 hours or I’m filing an INAD. We’ll see how she handles this since she was blowing me off from any information I was looking for last week.

muttlymob · ‎10-26-2021

@pepper1202 wrote:
Another update from OP. I retrieved my package from the post office today. The seller actually slapped a first class label on a USPS priority box and thought that was just fine. She actually overcharged me by twice counting in the ransom price from the post office. I’ve messaged her and said she needs to refund me (calculated amount) in 24 hours or I’m filing an INAD. We’ll see how she handles this since she was blowing me off from any information I was looking for last week.

You should not have been charged postage due. The USPS has had a system in place for a few years now called the Automated Package Verification (APV). All parcels pass through sensors in processing facilities that detect weight, dimensions, some package types (ie, priority mail supplies).

As the name states, it is automated. If discrepancies are detected between online label and actual packaging, the sender is charged by the payment method they used to buy the label. Postal employees are not supposed to charge postage due for online labels that should have been caught by the APV because that would be double-dipping.

It appears both the seller and your local PO are blowing smoke.