eBay

dealswat · ‎10-30-2016

Is this a new SCAM? Buyer asked to return a purchase and asked for a pre-paid shipping label. We purchased a Priority Mail shipping label with tracking from the USPS Website and e-mailed the USPS label PDF file to him. He removed my address and photo-shopped another residential address in the same town onto the label. An EMPTY PACKAGE was delivered to the other address and the USPS tracking service marked as delivered! So, eBay refunded his purchase price, even though I never received the returned item. I thought that USPS Priority Tracking numbers would ensure delivery to the right address or at least kick it out if there is a mis-match. Apparently, they still deliver to the listed address and disregard the tracking mis-match. Anyone have this experience?

hafoster · ‎10-30-2016

@dealswat wrote:

An EMPTY PACKAGE was delivered to the other address

How did you persuade USPS to reveal details for a package not addressed to you?

needleinahaystack714714 · ‎10-30-2016

It isn't a new scam, apparently it has been in use for a while, but mostly from sellers. You need to have the USPS open an investigation, file a police report and report to IC3 as internet fraud. MAYBE then you can get the case over turned and your money back.

couldabeenworse · ‎10-30-2016

An EMPTY PACKAGE was delivered to the other address and the USPS tracking service marked as delivered!

How would one find that out? If you can verify that, I'd file a complaint with the postal inspectors.

couldabeenworse · ‎10-30-2016

And no, it's not a new scam, but I think it's mostly a mythical one.

vikingsandpintos · ‎10-31-2016

Yes, this is a common scam.

I had one this summer, I sold an item, and the buyer sent a piece of junk to another address in the same zipcode. I was lucky in that the local post office and mailman helped to retrieve it from the other address. I called Ebay, which seemed less than interested in helping, but it finally worked out for me.

From what I've seen on here, if the post office will work with you, you have a chance. If not, your chances are not good. Sorry this has happened to you!

hafoster · ‎10-31-2016

@vikingsandpintos wrote:

the local post office and mailman helped to retrieve it from the other address.

Did your buyer buy the return shipping label?

vikingsandpintos · ‎11-01-2016

No, it was a really messed up situation.... It was a tail light, shipped to California. They got it, a couple of weeks later I had an email from Ebay saying Ebay cancelled a sale due to a "Suspecius buyer who is no londer a registered user". It was for the same item, how I do not know. Next day, I got a request to return the item, saying it was wrong. Shipping to Cali was as expensive as the item, normally I would just tell them to keep it and refund to save paying the return shipping, but had a wierd feeling with the cancelled order.

I sent a return label, hoping they would just forget about it. Just before the item had to be back here, tracking showed it was delivered, but it didn't come here. After going to the post office, they tracked it down as going to a local restuarant in the same zipcode. The prepaid label had the return address altered to the new address. In the small box was a junk car ignition coil. To top it off, the package was mailed from the EAST coast! Tracking showed it coming from there, and the stops along the way till it got to the altered address.

I called Ebay, they wouldn't do anything until I sent an email to the buyer asking them why they did that...lol!! Then since they never responded back, imagine that, the case was finally closed in my favor. I was still out the return shipping, but at least didn't have to refund the scammer!

Ebay wasn't much help, I was lucky my local post office helped, or I would have had to refund since tracking showed it was delivered... Smh!!

dealswat · ‎08-24-2017

I went to the Post Office and talked with the manager and he talked with the employee who delivered the tracked package. He confirmed that the address on the pkg was different from the tracking number address. He indicated that postman placed the small package on another route with the address on the pkg and scanned it as delivered even though there was a scan mis-match. Postman delivered it to the address on the pkg and disregarded the scan tacking number as an error. I filed complaint and all I got back was "Sorry, we can't find your package." The case was closed by USPS 6 months later. BTW, after 2 months of investigating, footwork and calls, I finally found out where the pkg was delivered. Called a person at that address and they said they thought they received a piece of junk mail and threw it out.

dealswat · ‎08-24-2017

I went to the Post Office and talked with the manager and he talked with the employee who delivered the tracked package. He confirmed that the address on the pkg was different from the tracking number address. He indicated that postman placed the small package on another route with the address on the pkg and scanned it as delivered even though there was a scan mis-match. Postman delivered it to the address on the pkg and disregarded the scan tacking number as an error. I filed complaint and all I got back was "Sorry, we can't find your package." The case was closed by USPS 6 months later. BTW, after 2 months of investigating, footwork and calls, I finally found out where the pkg was delivered. Called a person at that address and they said they thought they received a piece of junk mail and threw it out.

dealswat · ‎08-24-2017

No, I puchased the label and they altered the mailing address.

dealswat · ‎08-24-2017

I bought and e-mailed the label to him.

dealswat · ‎08-24-2017

I went to the Post Office and talked with the manager and he talked with the employee who delivered the tracked package. He confirmed that the address on the pkg was different from the tracking number address. He indicated that postman placed the small package on another route with the address on the pkg and scanned it as delivered even though there was a scan mis-match. Postman delivered it to the address on the pkg and disregarded the scan tacking number as an error. I filed complaint and all I got back was "Sorry, we can't find your package." The case was closed by USPS 6 months later. BTW, after 2 months of investigating, footwork and calls, I finally found out where the pkg was delivered. Called a person at that address and they said they thought they received a piece of junk mail and threw it out.

dealswat · ‎08-24-2017

Not mythical at all. It happened to me, twice.

myangelandmyprincess · ‎08-24-2017

@needleinahaystack714714 wrote:
It isn't a new scam, apparently it has been in use for a while, but mostly from sellers. You need to have the USPS open an investigation, file a police report and report to IC3 as internet fraud. MAYBE then you can get the case over turned and your money back.

Well it's really an unnecessary scam for buyers considering a buyer can return anything and as long as it snows delivered eBay will refund so sending a different item to a different address in the same zip code is overkill.

“Birth certificates show that you were born. Death certificates show that you died. Photographs show that you have lived.” -Unknown