Misdelivered (Dropped Off at USPS Instead of FedEx) Return as a Buyer: How to Handle the Situation and Still Get a Refund?

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Summary: pokecara shared a situation where they mistakenly dropped off an eBay return package meant for FedEx at USPS, causing potential delays. They are concerned about meeting eBay's return deadline and shared that the seller, who is not responding, had approved the return. rfmtm advised that the package just needs to be scanned by the deadline, and if it isn't, they suggested contacting eBay directly through chat or social media for assistance. pokecara is seeking further advice on how to handle the delay and ensure a refund.

I'm writing this on September 10, 2026.

The Situation:

I bought two Pokémon cards that were listed as NM from a seller who shipped me the cards from Japan. Those in the trading card hobby would reasonably assume NM = near mint condition, as that is common terminology. Plus, in Item specifics it says "near mint or better" as the Condition. The cards arrived NOT in near-mint condition, so I requested a return. Return Reason: Item didn't match description.

Yesterday, on Sep 9, my mom dropped off the eBay package at the USPS collection box (important, because she didn't get a receipt for the drop-off, as this was contactless) along with another package I wanted to return. This is where the problem starts. The eBay package had a FedEx return label, while the second package had a USPS return label.

For "Check the status of your request" it says "Status: Your action is required - Respond by September 15, 2026" and "Ship the item back by Sep 15."

However, because the eBay package was given to the wrong carrier (USPS instead of FedEx), this will delay shipping and when the package will be in the system for tracking.

Same day of drop-off on Sep 9: I called my local USPS store, and they said their collection box had already been emptied for the day and is on its way to the Jacksonville center, so I couldn't get the package back.
Also, on Sep 9: My mom went in person to the post office to troubleshoot and learned that misdelivered mail is retrieved by their respective carriers about every 2 weeks from the Jacksonville center

The seller is not responding and didn't respond in previous messages when I brought the card condition discrepancy to their attention before requesting a refund (the seller approved the return request but still didn't respond).

How do I handle this situation so I can get refunded? I assume eventually the seller will eventually receive their cards back. I can't seem to escalate the situation to eBay to inform them of the potential delay.

Some Additional Information:

I have tracking for the other package that I dropped off that is with USPS, and a picture of the packages before my mom took them
I have videos of me packaging up the Pokémon cards into the bubble mailer for return
The eBay package is international shipping

Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!

pokecara

1 View listings

Posted Sep 10, 2026 at 6:13 PM · Edited Sep 10, 2026 at 6:13 PM·Last reply Sep 11, 2026 at 10:12 PM

4 comments

eastlaneave

MentorSep 11, 2026 at 10:12 PM

~Community Mentor~4701 View listings

@pokecara

Continue to work with USPS

The current policy is to discard UPS and Fedex packages that are given to them . They no longer make an effort to hand them to the correct carrier. So keep calling and hoping you can find your Fedex package.