eBay

someday_man · ‎12-01-2017

An item I sold recently was Out for Delivery in Alexandria, VA as of yesterday, 11/30. The delivery scan never came, and around midnight last night the tracking status changed to "Delivery Status Not Updated". I hoped it would delivered today and the status would change to Delivered, but it has remained "Delivery Status Not Updated" all day today and now this evening.

I know this can sometimes happen when the mail carrier simply forgets to scan the package at the delivery point, or if something is wrong with the scanner so the information never gets uploaded to the tracking system. I have not yet heard from the buyer, so I hope this is the case, but it is early yet.

Fortunately I did send this package insured, so theoretically if it is lost I should be able to get reimbursed. The package value was $100.

As this has never happened to me before, I'm looking for some advice on how to handle this situation. Is it best to keep quiet until I hear from the buyer? And if I do hear from the buyer, that he/she has not received the package, what then? My concern is if the buyer wants a refund due to INR, and I go ahead and give them their money back, and then the package is delivered shortly thereafter, I will be out of luck, as the buyer will have both their money back and the item.

How best to handle this situation? Is it possible after issuing a refund, to instruct USPS to return the package to me if it is found?

Hopefully it will not come to this, but I want to be prepared in case it does. Thanks for any widsom/advice you can provide!

trustedbasset · ‎12-01-2017

I never even check on the tracking unless my buyer tells me they haven't received it. I would be wasting a lot of time doing that. I do enough wasting time looking at the tracking for the stuff I buy.

Dear God, please help me to be
the person my dog thinks I am.

castlemagicmemories · ‎12-01-2017

@castlemagicmemories wrote:
Possibly buyer has received it and has no idea there is a problem.

And in that case, thank God this is not a buyer who runs to file an item not received case if they see the tracking info is wrong!

Once in a blue moon, I get an item that does not show delivered in the tracking.

But I would never take advantage of that; I got my item and that would be just plain wrong.

buyselljack2016 · ‎12-01-2017

@trustedbasset wrote:
I never even check on the tracking unless my buyer tells me they haven't received it. I would be wasting a lot of time doing that. I do enough wasting time looking at the tracking for the stuff I buy.

I don't sell that much, so it does not take a great amount time out of my day to make a few clicks to babysit my sales.

I'm a low, low, low volume buyer, so that gives me extra time to waste checking on sales:)

rustictrollop · ‎12-01-2017

@chrysylys wrote:
USPS tracking is seriously messed up right now and I don't expect it to get any better until at least mid-January.

Right on. I've got two separate packages where tracking has been showing them jumping back and forth between postal stations, as well as 'out for delivery' for four days now. And the postal service site at my end is flashing a red warning box explaining that CPC and USPS are backlogged and deliveries will be taking longer than normal. Am thinking this is going to be a regular occurance for a while. I just went through this nonsense last week. Guess that was just a warm-up. Here we go again.....

At least no 'where's my package???' messages from the Buyers yet. Totally not going to poke those sleeping dogs.

castlemagicmemories · ‎12-01-2017

Buyer may not even know anything is wrong and is very happy with your item that has already been delivered.

Did you leave feedback for the buyer? If not, maybe posting that would inspire the buyer to post for you and you will know that way if it was received.

If you already have, no worries, as there is no guarantee that posting feedback will get a response from the buyer, anyway.

magicjohnsonsvariety · ‎12-01-2017

@tamaralea wrote:
One other word of wisdom....Don't check tracking, especially this time of year. You will drive yourself crazy.

Agree, a good rule of thumb is not to check tracking unless something is brought to my attention.

Over the years I'm sure I've had a few "Delivery status not updated" tracking that came and went and I never even knew about them.

Legitimate buyers don't check tracking after delivery...really, what's the point once you have it in your hands.

Only a dishonest person would feel they need check tracking after delivery.

Now if the package were truly lost, that's another thing completely but not at all likely. USPS has only lost 1 of my packages in 10 years.

funfinds122 · ‎12-01-2017

@someday_man wrote:
Agree, my next step will probably be to visit my local PO to see if they have any additional info. I am certainly not going to contact the buyer before he/she contacts me. As I've heard it said in other similar posts, don't poke the bear!

I bet your local PO will not have more info than the USPS site. Just sit tight & wait. Chances are, the mailman didn't scan, this happens all the time. I wouldn't contact the buyer.

Everything is always okay in the end,
if it's not, then it's not the end.

anthemshop247 · ‎12-01-2017

The people in the post office will not be able to dig deeper to be of help to you. What they would see, as far as tracking information is concerned, is the same thing that you and your buyer see. It us better to open a case with USPS via Usps.com . Select Help > File a Claim. You can choose to get an answer from them via email or phone call. Most likely the postman just did not scan it, but to open a case will give you closure, peace of mind and documentation.

themagicmountain · ‎12-01-2017

Yes, the carrier either lost it, stole it, or refused to scan it. Postmasters have told me that failing to scan or get signatures by the delievery people is a problem.

it means that as far as USPS goes, they lost your package, so file for your insurance claim.

The carrier might have just dumped the package at the buyer's door, so don't refund unless you hear from the buyer. They may have it.

But it was a postmaster who told me that it was important under these circumstances to file for the insurance so the USPS can track who is not doing their job.

themagicmountain · ‎12-01-2017

I did not realizethat this just happened. Wait, because you may find it updated properly within a day or two. That sometimes happens.

annsattictreasures68 · ‎12-01-2017

If you have issued a refund,keep on top of the tracking.If it shows delivered,contact ebay,you should get your money back.This has happened to me with a parcel select package(perfume).Never again will I sell perfume!

enzo7117 · ‎12-02-2017

My priority package was never scanned at all. I dont know if it was stolen or what. Hoping someone notices it in the truck or something.

fern*wood · ‎12-02-2017

I always regret looking at tracking, so I definitely try to refrain from ever doing that. I was bored last summer and clicked a couple of mine and immediately found one showing not delivered. Then it became an obsession with me. I checked that thing almost every day for well into the second month and finally lost track of it. It never showed delivered, I never received feedback, I never heard from the buyer, and I only wasted time and worried for no reason.

a_c_green · ‎12-02-2017

@castlemagicmemories wrote:
Possibly buyer has received it and has no idea there is a problem.

Given the details posted here, that's the most likely outcome in this case; yes.

At the start of the carrier's route, following sorting, the in-house tracking will indicate the total number of packages that are Out for Delivery with him specifically. As each package is scanned as Delivered, it's deducted from that number, so by the end of his route, that number should be zero (other than perhaps packages that couldn't be left, etc.).

Each and every package scanned as Out for Delivery has to have been updated by the end of the carrier's route (as "Delivered," "Notice Left" or other status). If it hasn't changed after exactly 14 hours from the time it was set to Out for Delivery, it goes to "Status Not Updated," what was seen here. That's supposed to set off alarm bells at the PO, although at this time of the year, their collective response may just be "Oh, well, stuff happens."

The tracking seen in this case shows that the last person known to have the package was the carrier. It's highly unlikely that he did anything nefarious with it, since, well, the system shows that he was the last one to have it. The most likely possibility is that he forgot to scan it at delivery: perhaps it was in a pile of packages for that address and just got overlooked.

The key here is that the buyer hasn't said anything, and the most likely reason for that is that he got the package and all is well. The worst possible thing to do is contact the buyer about it, as that tells him that you apparently have no idea where it is. If he calls you, then you have a problem, but not before.

someday_man · ‎12-02-2017

This is the OP here. Want to thank everyone who has chimed in. Some great information in this thread.

It's been 2 days and status is still the same, "Delivery Status Not Updated". No change.

At this point I'm fairly confident that the package was indeed delivered, and the carrier simply missed the scan. This does seem to be the most likely scenario.

The more time that passes that I have not heard from the buyer, the more confident I become. I'm going to remain quiet...and optimistic.