Seller scamming the post office
I won an item that cost $99 plus $17.99 shipping. Instead of delivering the item the post office delivered a notice saying I owed an additional $82 shipping. When I asked the seller about it this extra shipping charge he accused me of being a lier and a scammer, saying somehow I owe the post office and it's my problem. When I went to the post office, they said the seller is trying to scam the post office! In any case, I refused delivery and they are mailing it back. He will have to pay the $82 if he wants the item returned. I've been on eBay for 25 years and have never had something like this happen to me before. Now the seller keeps pushing the date back on when the item will be arriving, so I can't be refunded from eBay for the original cost of the item and shipping. Help! How do I report him? He should not be allowed to do this to other people.
kma1471993
OP2 years agoWow, this guy and a friend at his local post office are both scammers! I visited my post office today, and the item is showing it was delivered to original sender in SC, and one minute later delivered to my front porch in PA with the same scanner ID, carrier route, and facility finance number. So now I'm filing a report with US Postal Service.
az93
·2 years agoPlease explain how the the seller is able to change the date on when the item will be arriving,
kma1471993
OP2 years agoeBay contacted the seller and he adjusted the delivery date. In any case, after I refused delivery the item was sent back to SC and I just received notification that the package went from SC yesterday morning to delivered on my front porch in PA yesterday afternoon. No package here or at the neighbors. And who paid the extra $82 shipping charge if it was delivered? eBay says since it was delivered I won't be getting a refund, yet I still don't have the package. Stopping down to the post office this morning to try to find out what is going on. This has been a nightmare and after 25 years of positive experiences I think I'm done with this platform.
mudshark61369
·2 years ago@kma1471993,
"I contacted eBay customer support and they are suspending the seller and refunding me my money".
If you called an ebay customer support phone number that you looked up online, you did not speak to anyone who is connected to ebay in any way.
Even the customer service reps who you can receive a call back from, if you used the Contact us button at the bottom of this page to get one, do not have the authority to suspend a seller or issue refunds, and they would probably have difficulty even finding your issue in the play book they have to read from.
"The item was a framed print, the post office said due to its weight and size it was more expensive to ship"
Large items like that fall into what the USPS, FedEx & UPS call dimensional weight shipping. The shipping cost is based on the size not actual weight of an item to be shipped. Unfortunately, is seems that ebay's shipping calculator doesn't automatically take that into consideration when a seller adds the measurements to it.
Your seller might have been willing to believe you if you had gotten a signed note on USPS stationary from the clerk explaining the reason for the postage due, and scanned or clearly photographed it to add to a message.
kma1471993
OP2 years agoI did include the scanned slip that indicated postage was due from the post office.
kma1471993
OP2 years agoI contacted eBay customer support and they are suspending the seller and refunding me my money. The item was a framed print, the post office said due to its weight and size it was more expensive to ship. So all is well, except I'm out the print I really wanted. Hopefully I can find another one like it. Thanks all for the suggestions!
monica-sells
·2 years agoI can only comment on one aspect that is somewhat odd......
If the seller printed a shipping label, the USPS would not ask you (buyer) for additional postage, it would have been billed to the sender without you even knowing.
What was the item and why was the shipping so high? Did they use media mail for a non-qualifying item?
I know other members will pop in to assist you, but it looks like you may have done the right thing. Keep all the correspondence handy.
lakefor94
·2 years agoOver the years here, I have seen where some postal units take it upon themselves to collect the owed monies.
I agree that it should be billed back to the purchaser.
Perhaps the seller put a plethora of stamps on the package and thought it might fly?
lacemaker3
·2 years agoYou're right, that is normally the case.
But, they can only bill the additional postage to the sender, if the postage was purchased online (as in through eBay, or pirate ship, or click-n-ship, etc.)
If the sender purchased the postage at a counter at the post office, and the package was later found to not qualify (e.g. used Express or Priority shipping supplies but was not shipped with the matching service, or was shipped media but was not eligible) then they would not be able to bill the sender, so they would ask the buyer to pay it "postage due".
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoThe estimated delivery date won't change.
Check your purchase history for the estimated delivery date and open an INR a day after.
When you open the INR, choose postage due.
lakefor94
·2 years agoDid not know postage due was an INR choice. Good to know.
nobody*s_perfect
·2 years agoYou have to prove that there was Postage Due.
lakefor94
·2 years ago@nobody*s_perfect @kensgiftshop
I just looked. Postage Due is not a choice when filing a return.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoIt wouldn't be a return, it would be for an INR.
Unless they've changed it, you could file an INR and choose postage due for refusing the package.
nobody*s_perfect
·2 years agoYes, exactly.