Do not ship to GUAM
Summary: bizgreat0110 shared an experience where a high-value item shipped to Guam through USPS Ground Advantage led to tracking issues, a non-receipt claim, and a refund to the buyer. After delivery was eventually confirmed, the buyer refused to return the item. ferncliff-39 suggested using eBay's Seller protections for reimbursement if eligible. mudshark61369 advised checking postal services and estimated delivery dates for territories like Guam, and suggested using Priority Mail to avoid such issues. bizgreat0110 appreciated the advice but expressed frustration with the situation, suggesting some buyers exploit delivery timeframes to their advantage.
A couple of weeks ago, a customer from GUAM purchased one high-value item (over $300 ) and chose USPS Ground Advantage. I had no experience shipping to GUAM at that time and shipped it without checking the information online.
The tracking stopped updating after it departed the port in the US; then the buyer filed an NR claim and got his money back. After a while, the tracking reappeared, and the item was delivered. I messaged the buyer and provided a prepaid label to get my item back; the buyer refused and responded very rudely. The buyer has hundreds of feedback ratings, and I think he knows the rules and the shipping time very well.
I can do nothing now. I hope this experience could help future sellers avoid possible losses.
mudshark61369
·1 week ago@bizgreat0110 ,
You really should have checked the postage rates and shipping times for the services you offered to U.S. protectorates/territories. Since you use calculated shipping, your buyer should have seen an extended shipping time frame over the standard 3-6 days Ground Advantage one, for shipping within the continental U.S. shipping.
I see you no longer ship to U.S. Protectorates/Territories and Alaska and Hawaii. You can ship to those locations safely with much shorter delivery time frames if you only ship to them using Priority mail. Most residents of those places know there can be some delays and higher shipping costs, and are happy just to be able to buy items because so many sellers will not ship to those locations.
Unfortunately, ebay's estimated delivery dates (EDD) time frames to Al. Hi, and territories using Ground Advantage do not adjust from the standard 3-5 days domestic times to the actual 3-8 weeks ones, but Priority Mail time frames are automatically adjusted. You can set your shipping to adjust selecting services to state/territory sales by doing the following search.
Does ebay's calculated shipping time frames take into account delivery times from the U.S. to its territories in the results you will find the following link for Shipping Rate Tables. That should adjust ebay's EDD times.
You can also add info to your Shipping notes stating the extended delivery times to those locations, and add a red text in your Seller description stating AL. Hi, Territory buyers should click on the Shipping See details button for accurate delivery time frames.
I do that and have many happy buyers from those locations.
bizgreat0110
OP1 week agoThanks so much for your information. I read your post thoroughly, and I fully agree that I may avoid future problems if I set up the shipping properly. What makes me really sad is that the buyer refused to return it and responded rudely. He received the item about one week after he disputed and got the refund. He has hundreds of feedback ratings and should know how long USPS Ground Advantage takes, as you mentioned "Most residents of those places know there can be some delays and higher shipping costs". I read another post, and it said, "There are several scammers in Guam who buy knowing it will arrive late and eBay will side with them on a claim. They eventually get it and pay you nothing." It is too risky to ship high-value items to those locations.
bizgreat0110
OP1 week agoI recall the buyer also said it took at most 2 weeks for USPS Ground Advantage delivery before he opened the claim. It smells fishy.
mudshark61369
·1 week ago@bizgreat0110 ,
"He has hundreds of feedback ratings and should know how long USPS Ground Advantage takes, as you mentioned "Most residents of those places know there can be some delays and higher shipping costs".
I hope you do realize that Guam has 3 big and several smaller U.S. military bases on the island, and there are many contract civilian support personal who move there for varying lengths of time, that live off post, who do not get their mail from A Base APO or FPO, and If they recently moved there, they may not be aware of the long shipping times.
ferncliff-39
·1 week ago@bizgreat0110
If you used an eBay label you do have some Seller protections:
Additionally, we’ll protect you if you use an eBay label and the item is delivered to the buyer after you’ve issued a refund. We'll automatically reimburse you for the item, remove defects, and exclude the case from service metrics.
https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-policies/seller-protections?id=4345&from=EBAY_AI&origin=EBAY_AI
bizgreat0110
OP1 week agoThank you for your information.
ferncliff-39
·1 week ago@bizgreat0110
If you're not automatically reimbursed, contact CS from the bottom of that linked Help page above to ask. Open the chatbox, and type "agent" or "human" to get around any bot questions and eventually you'll see the live agent options.