Why is an item marked as "shipped" just because a shipping label is made out ?

[studebaker2]

Why is an item marked as "shipped" just because a shipping label is made out ? It should not be listed as shipped until the shipping vendor actually has it in possession.

[eburtonlab]

Because printing an eBay shipping label is one of the few events that eBay can keep track of online when it happens, and eBay uses that to trigger a "shipping has begun" message automatically.

eBay has no way of knowing if a seller drops a package off at a shipping service or puts an envelope in a mailbox.

[studebaker2]

Well, that sucks, as you can not cancel an order when ebay lists it as "shipped".  I have had several items that shipped way after the shipping label was made.

[eburtonlab]

you can not cancel an order when ebay lists it as "shipped".

The buyer can request a cancellation, but only the seller can actually cancel the transaction, because only the seller knows when the item is actually handed off to the shipper and is actually shipped. Not all sellers are one-person operations; some sellers use fulfillment services or a separate shipping department, and once an order has been placed, the seller may not be able to recall it even if it has not officially "shipped".

Sellers are not required to ship as soon as a label has printed -- sellers have until the end of their chosen handling time to get an acceptance scan from the shipping service before eBay considers the shipment to be "late", but, again, not every seller gets an acceptance scan.