Buyer purchases two items and claims he did not receive one. Scam?

[copper.eagle]

A little while back I had a buyer pay for two coins one was $1.20 the other was $90. I combined the shipping and remember packaging the items together. After the buyer received the items he claimed that I did not send the more expensive item. I checked every place the coin could have been, and I could not find it. I am very confident that I shipped them out. After about a week of him pestering me I caved in and gave him a refund. How could I handle a situation like this better in the future? 

[rosachs]

#1 - Did you ship with tracking?  USPS Ground Advantage includes $100 coverage automatically at no additional cost.

#2 - Did you post that tracking info to your eBay sales record?  This lets eBay and your customer know the purchase was shipped and what tracking is available.

#3 - Did the buyer open an INR (Item Not Received) case?  For a purchase that you shipped, with tracking, that shows a delivery scan, eBay will cover you in an INR case.  No tracking = no coverage.

Shipping multiple sales in a single package is a great way to save.  Just be sure to post the tracking number to ALL the items included in the package.  If you use eBay Labels, there's an easy way to do this.  Other labeling services have the same (we use ShipWorls / Stamps.com at work).

-Bob.

[ajs_coins_and_alchemy]

He pestered you? Did he open a case? I would not have refunded had he not opened a case...

[cooolccou_0]

Check the tracking. I always keep my postal receipts or I use GoShippo for my shipping needs and both Ebay and Shipping Apps have tracking available to check. If you click on the Ebay listing under Sold and click on Delivered it will actually show you the locations where it has traveled and Where and when it was delivered. You should always keep your receipts and even write a note for which item it was but if it says it was delivered then there is no need to refund. 

[dirk12955]

If the buyer did not open a case with ebay,   I would not have refunded.

This smells of a buyer who has pulled this scam before.   

[sextons-sweet-deals]

Selling currency is easily one of the top 10 items for scammers.

The red flag for me was buying a $1.20 coin and then a $90 coin. 

1. I would have shipped with signature required.

2. Did you ship with a tracking number and uploaded on both orders?

3. Do you have the USPS receipt showing weight of package? That could show some evidence that both coins were shipped. 

4. Do you do your own packaging or someone else that you depend on?

5. did you review the buyer's profile / full feedback history as a buyer, seller, & left for others?

6. are you printing and keeping records of sales?

7. Do you take photos of the packing process? Not that is full proof, but it may help depending on if buyer opens a case. 

Sellers have to be vigilant! 

I have some currency listed and only allow local pick-up with best offer and no one wants to pick-up. We all know there are thousands of collectors / resellers near to us all. Cracks me up! Some day, I will probably just take to the bank and deposit. 

[coinsdepot]

I sell numismatic items, and have had the same scam pulled.  It’s somehow always the most expensive item that gets lost…. I see this as a HUGE reason NOT to follow eBay’s suggestion of leaving feedback as soon as the buyer pays you.  I always wait, because if there’s something hinky about the way the order goes down, this is the sellers only opportunity to reference it.  Yes, I read through a buyers good feedback, & often times you can find problems referenced by other sellers.

[buyselljack2016]

and you can not leave negative feedback (well you can but against policy) for a buyer, and if you do how would it solve anything?