Yup - you are spot on. The very idea of asking anyone in my local post office to do anything more than the bare minimum mandated is absolutely hilarious. They will not even scan a package for me - it's " use the kiosk" .... next in line......I have a story about a carrier who refused to pick up scheduled packages - even with notes to remind him - took a year to resolve - he finally disappeared, and all went back to normal after a year of visiting the office to report the problem, letters & phone calls. Maybe he was promoted LOL.
When I asked my local post office officials about opening a package in front of them for filming to prove receipt of correct items - the result.... blank stare and then "no" we don't do that we don't have time.... next in line please. Dismissive is the politest way to describe the response.
The unfortunate bottom line is for all online platforms - don't sell what you can't afford to lose. Pad your profit to absorb losses. Know that most transactions go well but know that some will go wrong and just know that in most cases the seller will take the loss. Factor in your time and emotional health - it is probably not worth it to stress over this since the odds are stacked against sellers. Calculate your time, heath, cost of goods, shipping and potential return costs and if a loss or return will cause stress - sell it on a local pickup platform.
Knowing that as a seller you can do everything "right 100% by the book and still get worked over by a buyer leaving you as the seller holding the bag is just a reality. There is little if no protection. Trying to get to an experienced eBay customer service representative to assist with an issue is really difficult.
The minimum eBay should consider doing is allowing sellers and buyers access to real live people with eBay experience to deal with problems and concerns. But.... in my view we are in cost cutting bot land and that will never happen.
