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Lost in the post office
I shipped an item to a buyer on 9/18/26 the tracking number indicates "in transit arriving late" with the last update on 9/22/26. According to the USPS website it's officially missing if 10 business days have passed. The buyer reached out asking about it. I've refunded the buyer b/c it's not their problem and I've been going down the USPS rabbit hole trying to find out how to submit a claim. Does anyone know if ebay assists the seller in this case or am I at a loss unless USPS refunds?
3 comments
mr_lincoln
Mentor1 week ago · EditedHi @portholly
-No eBay does not help you with any of that
-You should NEVER refund unless the Buyer files an official claim through eBay in a case like this ... they would file a claim that they did not receive the item.
-Immediately go to the USPS website and file a Missing mail piece claim, sometimes that shakes things up and the package or tracking gets updated.
-Here is a Seller protection in cases like this IF certain criteria is met, which in your case it wasn't because you refunded outside an official eBay claim. But keep this in mind for the future:
If the following criteria is met eBay will reimburse you if the package is eventually delivered after you have refunded a Buyer through an eBay claim that they did not receive their package AND delivery is confirmed through tracking on eBay. eBay launched this new Seller protection in late 2025.
1. Seller prints the shipping label through eBay
2. Seller ships and gets a carrier scan within their Handling time
3. Buyer files a claim through eBay that they did not receive their package AND the Seller refunds the Buyer through the eBay claim
4. The package is delivered later and after the Buyer has been refunded, eBay tracking confirms the delivery
portholly
OP1 week agoThank you so much for this info. I was so worried about a bad review that I just did the refund. I guess it's a good learning experience. I'm saving your notes for future reference. Thank you so much!
mr_lincoln
Mentor1 week ago@portholly
You are more than welcome ... come here whenever you have a question on something you don't understand about eBay.