Case closed in the seller's favor, but should it have been?
It's simple. Item not received. USPS tracking shows "Delivered" to my area code. A visit to the post office revealed the destination address was in a different neighborhood than mine, but same area code. I have never had any association with the destination address and my shipping address as indicated on the purchase is correct. My correct shipping address is the only one on file with ebay as well as PayPal, but the seller or their agent shipped it somewhere else. I have USPS printed proof of the destination address being different than my actual address! That didn't seem to matter. I filed an appeal but am not optimistic. Destination address turns out to be in a gated community. The apparent recipient has been contacted through the HOA (was difficult) but has not been helpful. Does the ebay community feel I am due a refund from the seller?
simba6
·1 year agoThe fake tracking number scam, again. It only has to be delivered to your zip code, not your address.
If you paid by credit card, contact your card company.
tobaccocardyahoo
·1 year agoI did not see anyone suggesting a credit card dispute aka chargeback.
Open the dispute with your credit card issuer. Make clear that the issue is non-delivery, in spite of what tracking says.
Your credit card issuer should request proof of delivery with the address it was delivered to. Unlike the automated Ebay software your credit card issuer will put the burden of proof on the seller or Ebay.
Add to that the financial incentive to the seller to refund. If he does not, Ebay will not refund the fees on the purchase, and will levy an additional fee when he loses the dispute.
xfire82
OP1 year agoOP again. My final. I brought the matter to PayPal. Within two hours they denied my claim on the same grounds as Ebay - that the item was "delivered to my address". Either the scammer has sent in some convincing, fake, material or these companies care not to take the time and effort to consider buyer's evidence ( I submitted to both). Evidence I consider solid in my case because it comes straight from USPS. It seems that if a scammer sends something, anything, to your area code, they win. Fortunately not a lot of money lost here. In hindsight there may have been two tips that the seller was potentially trouble that I missed. In hopes of contributing something to the community, here they are: 1) Image of item was a stock photo. 2) While the item was listed as being in Florida (and indeed "something" did ship from Florida), closer inspection reveals seller is in Israel. There will always be scammers and thieves that rise to any opportunity - that's no surprise. What does surprise me is the response I received from Ebay, and PayPal, and I'll say again that AI seemed to be very much at play. Those short, typical American names in the responses, all saying the same thing, or nearly the same thing. The result of all this will be me curtailing my activity on Ebay and shifting my purchases to a different platform. Of course Ebay now has an even more emboldened scammer. It was a very simple case that could have helped solve a big problem. Too bad.
Thanks again to all who gave advice and comment.
kensgiftshop
·1 year ago@xfire82
Since you went to Pay Pal, there's nothing else you can do through Ebay.
If you paid using a credit/debit card, contact them, but don't say you didn't get it, tell them it's the fake tracking scam.
ittybitnot
·1 year agoMake clear that the issue is non-delivery,
@tobaccocardyahoo
That is likely NOT a good idea. Claiming with the card company INR, will result in them forwarding the claim to eBay who responds with the same phony delivery confirmation. That will cause the victim @xfire82 to lose again. If they chose that reason with PayPal instead of "shipped to wrong address" that is why that case was lost. They should claim via a credit card chargeback as suggested by @kensgiftshop FRAUD/Fake Tracking/Wrong Address scam, and make sure that reason is very clear.
tobaccocardyahoo
·1 year ago@ittybitnot
Credit card issuers are not likely to just accept tracking as proof of delivery. They require evidence of the delivery address, and may not accept an address which is not associated with the account. It is not uncommon for a seller to lose a claim when the item was a gift. And Ebay foots the bill if the seller has tracking if the address was on the order, but not associated with the credit card holder's account.
The seller has the ability to provide documentation which shows where the delivery was made, unlike the buyer. And credit card issuers are a lot brighter than the people who run internet marketplaces.
xfire82
OP1 year agoWell Ebay denied my appeal despite the fact that I sent a USPS document proving the item was sent to a different destination address than mine. I had three more exchanges after the denial happened, then it struck me - I was likely communicating with an AI enabled computer that was using generally short American names to identify, Sue, James, etc. The responses regurgitated what I had said then essentially repeated the content of the previous exchange. There was really no sign of human intelligence to be found. One truth I have discovered. Ebay does not have your back.
mudshark61369
·1 year ago@xfire82,
"It's simple. Item not received. USPS tracking shows "Delivered" to my area code.
If you filed an item not received dispute, it was turned down because ebay's computers checked the tracking info for a Delivered scan, which is all it is allowed to do due to Federal and shipper's privacy policies.
"I have USPS printed proof of the destination address being different than my actual address! That didn't seem to matter. I filed an appeal but am not optimistic".
If your printed proof is from an email you received, the appeal will be turned down as well. eBay will not accept emails as proof because they can be faked. However, you do have one more ebay option, and that is to contact them through one of their social media platforms. Before you do that you will need to get proof that is acceptable to ebay, which means another trip to your P.O..
"A visit to the post office revealed the destination address was in a different neighborhood than mine, but same area code".
Because it seems your P.O. is willing to give out info.
When you to go to your P.O., You need to bring a copy of your order details page which shows your address and the tracking number with you. If you bought using a phone or tablet, you can bring that to show the clerk the order details. You want to ask the clerk to check the label address against yours on the order details page, and also to check the Package type/size/weight info to see if was is appropriate for what you should have received. If you can look up the Mfr.'s specifications for the item and bring that with you as well.
If the info does not match up, you ask the clerk or Postmaster to write a note on USPS stationary saying in general that the shipping label's address was not the same as the one on your ebay Order Details page, and if applicable that the package type/size/weight was not right for what you should have received.
Do not ask them to write specific address or package info, they are not supposed to give it out. Have the clerk or Postmaster print their name then sign and date the note.
You can then Appeal, via social media, (links below) and can add a CLEAR photo or scan of the note to the appeal. That should be enough to win the Appeal and get a refund. You need to write out basically what happened, give the seller's username and the ebay item number (not the order number with hyphens in it) Add the scan/photo, then sign the message with your real and ebay username. The reps handling social media messages have the power to overturn the previous decisions, and issue a refund from the seller's account.
https://www.facebook.com/eBay/
https://www.instagram.com/ebayforsellers/
https://x.com/askebay
Since the scam is hard for ebay to beat and therefore becoming more common especially with China and Middle East based sellers. You need to check each seller's feedback profile page, before buying from one. It also helps to sign up for the free enhanced tracking information offered by: USPS Informed Delivery, FedEx Delivery Manager, UPS My Choice.
They have info in them that can be used to win appeals saving you the trouble of going to a P.O.
xfire82
OP1 year agoOP here. Thanks everyone for the detailed responses. I obtained a printout from the post office that shows both the origination and destination addresses - the destination address of course not being mine. I scanned the print and sent it to ebay as part of my appeal. Ebay stated in their original finding that the seller provided proof that the item was delivered to my address. Such proof cannot exist, so I do not know what ebay was referring to. Zip code, yes, but not my address. I've spent hours on this in post-office lines and am done. If my appeal is not successful, I'll contact PayPal and see what can be done, while I seriously contemplate closing my ebay account. By the way, the seller has good reviews, but I discovered they are based in Israel. The item was supposed to have been in Florida and yes the origination address on the usps print is a Florida address. This is an extremely simple case. The wrong destination address was specified by the shipper. Again, that makes it impossible for any real proof to exist of delivery to my address, yet ebay referenced such proof. Did the zip code convince them?
kensgiftshop
·1 year agoGo to your purchase history and click return item and choose doesn't match the description as the reason for the return.
Seller will have 3 days to accept the return and pay return shipping or refund.
If they don't, return to the case on day 4 and ask Ebay to step in.
If you have to return anything, return what you received from USPS, the printout showing it was not addressed to you.
hencoleman78
·1 year agoThis just recently happened to me. I contacted the seller with my concerns in a not too happy message. Visited my local Post Office. The Post Master tracked the item and luckily gave me the address (I don’t think he was supposed to, but I think he seen the look on my face). I went to the really nice home it was delivered to and they told me nothing had been delivered with my name on it. After driving around town and looking on peoples porches, I sent a few not too nice messages to the seller. They responded and “supposedly†shipped another one via FedEx. I have an account with FedEx so I’m actually able to see the address where it is coming from and my address. The item is supposed to be delivered tomorrow. We will see. I hope you get your refund and I really hope (not holding my breath) eBay does a better job on their end shutting down the scammers.
roccotacodad54
·1 year ago"(not holding my breath)'.....
INAD.................?
tinsoldierunderground
·1 year ago@xfire82
This has become an all too common scam on ebay, we hear about it on a daily basis on these forums.
The person who received what the seller/scammer sent was no doubt chosen at random.
Typically, a cheap ball point pen or a pack of gum, etc. are sent to an address chosen in the buyer's zip code, instead of the often expensive item they purchased. The advice given by kensgiftshop is the current remedy for this, since ebay is virtually useless in this situation.
kensgiftshop
·1 year agoYou know as long as this has been going on, you would think Ebay would do something about it.
It wouldn't take much to have a couple people work these cases and contact the carriers and see if the package was addressed to the buyer.
tinsoldierunderground
·1 year agoAgree 100%!
roccotacodad54
·1 year agoAmen..............
mudshark61369
·1 year ago@kensgiftshop,
"You know as long as this has been going on, you would think Ebay would do something about it.
It wouldn't take much to have a couple people work these cases and contact the carriers and see if the package was addressed to the buyer".
The problem with your solution is: Federal postal regulations do not allow shipping agencies to give out specific label information to a person whose name is not on a shipping label, much less to a person claiming to be a rep from ebay which is unverifiable.
kensgiftshop
·1 year agoJust like Ebay, the carriers have a fraud department and looks like they could get together and figure out a way to stop it.
How hard can it be to call and ask if the shipping label was addressed to this address?
If not, refund the buyer and suspend the seller.
kensgiftshop
·1 year agoYes, you're due a refund, but the fake tracking can be a little tricky.
If you INR appeal fails, you can file an INAD.
Seller won't be able to deny that and if they want something returned, return a copy of the information you received from USPS.