USPS Marked Package Delivered To Mailbox But I Did Not Receive It

[esp1138]

I have seen similar questions about this with no good solutions.

USPS marked packaged delivered at mailbox and there is nothing there.  I opened a case with eBay which denied my claim for a refund.  I was expecting to be covered by the Buyer Protection Program.  I talked to people at my Post Office and and I opened a case with the 800 number which takes an eternity to talk to someone.

The seller is protected because USPS marked it as delivered.  Then what do I do?

There is a substitute carrier delivering for my route which I think he fouled up and placed it in an incorrect mailbox.  I asked three neighbors in my complex who claim not to have an incorrect parcel.

[popblox]

This is one of the only things the eBay MGB doesn’t cover. I cannot even fathom the backlash if sellers were held financially responsible when an item shows delivered, but all a buyer has to say is “I didn’t get it”. I can assure you there would be a lot less reputable sellers on eBay and/or a lot more irritated buyers who had to get out of bed to provide signature confirmation for their deliveries.

Obviously, I don’t think that’s the case here, I’m just providing a little more insight as to why your case was denied. The best possible thing you can do right now is to quickly contact your local post office (this phone number can be difficult to find, but it won't start with 1-800), and let them know that your package shows delivered, but you didn’t receive it and request re-delivery. This has happened to me several times, but I was able to recover my package within 24 hours by contacting my local post office. Make sure to be as specific as possible, "I was at home at this time yesterday and I noticed there was a sub, not my regular mail person and they never even stopped...", etc. You get the idea.

If you suspect the package was stolen, the next step would be to file a police report with your local police department as soon as possible.

[nuvistors]

Ebay is not responsible for items stolen  from a mailbox after they are delivered.

[powell-memorabilia]

I’d contact the seller to explain what happened.  Be, he shouldn’t provide a refund, but he might send to you an at-cost replacement.  I just offered that up to one of my regular customers - seemed like the right thing to do.

[nobody*s_perfect]

Most of the carriers' scanners are equipped with GPS which will show exactly where the package was when it was scanned. Go back to your PO and ask them to look up the GPS details of the delivery for this package.

[teltuooutlet]

I have experienced this with all of the USPS delays. There were a few packages I sent out that were marked "delivered" but actually were not. USPS is either not scanning at all or scanning "delivered" incorrectly. One such package was marked "delivered" on December 18th and didn't get delivered until last week. The only thing you can do is keep following up with your local post office so they track it down. The seller, or Ebay, cannot be held accountable when the post office does not deliver correctly. That is as long as your shipping address was correct in the order and the shipper sent it to that address.

Good luck with your query!

[judithh320]

I had this happen , a package showed delivered on tracking , to my mailbox , a few days earlier . I did not receive a package so went to the PO  , the worker printed out a list of the scans for that tracking number and it showed delivered to my mailbox  .  The package was later found a mile from my place , same road , in a mailbox that was only checked weekly . So they don’t all have GPS , or it would not have shown my exact address as the delivery .

[simba6]

That is a loop hole big enough for a parcel to fall through.  If you paid by credit card, contact your card company. Some offer protection of their own.

[no_zero369 · Accepted solution]

@esp1138 

The correct procedure to follow when this happens starts with what @nobody*s_perfect  stated.  You need to get the GPS Coordinates (Address) of where the package was located when it was scanned as "delivered."

IF that GPS location is the address on your order then you were the victim of 'porch pirates" - i.e. someone stole the item out of your mailbox.  Buyers are responsible to have a secure place for delivery.

HOWEVER, IF the GPS location is NOT the address on your order, then you need to do the following to be made whole:  Get a letter, on USPS Letterhead, signed by an employee with the employee's telephone number (so eBay can call & verify).  Letter states the address where that tracking number was delivered.

IF you get that letter use it to "appeal" the decision to close the INR case.  With that proof you will win the case and be refunded.

Hope it works out in your favor!