Buyer received my empty package.

[inhawaii]

Item shipped First Class Mail in a #2 ebay padded envelope arrived opened and empty with a USPS sticked  indicating  "this package was unsealed".

For those of you familiar with a ebay padded envelope, the are pretty secure when they are sealed. 

A) There was a mishap and the package was accidentally opened and the contents fell out?

-or-

B) A US postal worker decided to help himself to a $25 shirt. A early xmas present?

The customer has been fully refunded.

Another example of "just part of doing business" like getting scammed.

Have a great weekend everyone.

[yuzuha]

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@a_c_green wrote:

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Maybe it got squished hard enough to pop open at the end...? If the USPS put an Unsealed sticker on it then at least you know the buyer wasn't playing sillybuggers here. As for option B, no, the USPS has better things to do than rifle through squishy padded envelopes looking for clothing.

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It's definitely possible if all of the air wasn't squeezed out  before sealing it. I once bought a shirt where that very thing happened-- the envelope got popped open at the end and the shirt ended up falling out.

[dbfolks166mt]

     Contacting USPS is probably a good idea although since first class packages do not carry insurance, unless you purchase it, I am not sure how much assistance they are going to be able to provide but it would be interesting to hear what they say. 

[dbfolks166mt]

     But first class does not come with insurance unless you purchase it. 

[biggymoe]

To me this falls into the category of $hit Happens, because it does happen.

[gdrei2]

It could be a scam...I was scammed by a buyer last year for a $1,000+ item. He claimed his porch camera somehow didnt catch the delivery happen, or anyone stealing the contents while simultaneously claiming the box was completely empty. Ebay fked me in the a%% by refusing to force the customer to ship back the box. I had proof from USPS that it weight significantly more than "an empty" box. Fk ebay and their fk policies.

[katzrul15]

Agree.

Unfortunate carpola, but carpola none the less.

I always tape over the pull strip area and reinforce the ends.  Have never experienced an exploding envelope, but if someone stepped on it wrong, it was drop smashed from some heavy parcel from a certain height, guess, I could see it.  Maybe it self-combusted in the belly of the plane. 😉

[little*blackdog]

Also the self-sticking strips on USPS envelopes and bags, and the adhesive strips on USPS boxes DO COME LOSE in heat... and we've all had a lot of heat! 

Possibly the adhesive was heated, gummy, and came lose and "opened" enough for the shirt to work it's way out.  Coulda had a bit of help since it apparently wasn't recovered on a floor, under a table, or in a hot truck... just sayin' anything's possible.

Any USPS "self-stick" product should also be taped up for a more secure seal in summertime.

[wastingtime101]

Cold can cause glue to freeze and tape comes unstuck. It can be more of a problem than heat melting the glue. Just sayin' ... make sure packages are well sealed no matter what the weather.