Delivery Delay...what to do when buyer contacts me?

[purrcubed]

Hi all, 

Apologies in advance if there have been a million of these threads, but I just do not know what to do at this point. 

I have read through the Holiday 2020 shipping notice and I still have some questions about a specific item/buyer. 

This item was shipped out on Monday, Dec. 7. It is still in transit. Its last scan was Dec. 11, 2020 when it arrived at the Jersey City distribution center. It has been there since. I opened a package research case, and they closed it, citing the usual holiday delays and pandemic shortages. 

The buyer indicated this was a Christmas gift and I told her that there may be delays upon shipping the item out. So far, not a peep from her. 

I am concerned because: 

1) The item was ~$150 including taxes/shipping.

2) I stupidly shipped it out First Class (it was under 1 lb). I never had issues with First Class so I didn't think anything of it. Therefore, there is no insurance on this item and even if there was, it would not cover the full amount. 

When and if the buyer contacts me and requests a refund, what am I supposed to do? Refund her, but then what happens if the item is delivered? I obviously don't want to run into the scenario where she gets her money back and also receives the item. I also did read that eBay is asking for a 10 day time frame from when the buyer asks eBay to step in but, I thought we would be penalized if eBay were to step in and the seller did not answer an INR case. 

Should I file a missing package case preemptively or just ... wait? The last 2 times I filed a missing package case it turned up at the recipient's home 7 days later. First class packages too.

Thanks in advance and please feel free to ask me to clarify if needed. 

P.S. Not my selling account. 

[simba6]

Ebay said they were giving a time extension for items not received cases to allow for the long shipping delays.  You can advise them all forms of shipping have bogged down to the large amount of packages shipped.

[donsdetour]

First did they open a case??

Second they told you it was for a gift and well time may be up for that:

third if the item has shown no movement you may not get an extension in a case:

I would advise to try a package intercept on that value of an item.

and refund them.

[threshold.sales.group]

OP, do not voluntarily refund. If eBay forces a refund via a lost INR dispute, then immediately file a package intercept  with USPS to get the item returned when it resurfaces.  When contacted explain the situation with USPS and let the buyer know you will file a package trace and update if you get any new information. Other than that just sit tight.  

[magic*moonbeams]

I would NOT refund unless or until it gets to the point that eBay forces you to.  It WILL eventually show up.  Since you mailed it so long ago, it's walled in by all the incoming packages since then, so now it's like, newest in, is first to go out, and all the stuff that's been sitting there still is.

Do NOT refund before you are forced to because when is DOES show up, you will have NO recourse to make the buyer repay you, and eBay will do NOTHING about it either.

In in NJ, I've had a package sitting since like, Dec 12th in the Jersey City facility with no movement, yet today I received an item I bought last Friday.  The priority or "seniority" of packages sitting there the longest does not exist with the USPS.

eBay seriously needs to put a hold on the ability for buyers to file INR cases, not just let them file and give it an extra 10 days.  If the INR case is filed, that money is held against the seller in the meantime which is NOT right.

Also, just a suggestion, I would never ship an item with that value, First Class.  Even if you offer free shipping, which I don't know if you did or not, but it's worth investing in Priority with Insurance just to cover yourself.  I'd rather be out an extra $5, than be out $150.

[purrcubed]

No, they did not open a case yet and I don't want to contact the buyer. The general rule I always see on ebay is: "let the buyer contact you." I feel kind of bad because I care about my buyers and I even opened a package research case. I think the buyer sees this but she has not messaged me yet for whatever reason. 

I will try package intercept, but I think I should do that AFTER an INR case is opened and I refund them, AND the package is still "in transit"...correct? 

[purrcubed]

Hi, thanks for stopping by. Not going to voluntarily refund, and the buyer has not contacted me yet (16 days since it was shipped and it was only going from Massachusetts to New Jersey). 

At what point is a good time to do the package intercept (never did it). After the INR is closed? Not right at this moment, right?

Would a timeline look like this: 

INR case opened--I refund-->file Package Intercept?

I also want to file a missing package case because everytime I do open one of these cases up, the package turns up within 7 days or so. However, it will ask, "Where would you like this package sent to?" And then I would have to choose my address or the buyer's.  So not sure what to do here. Thanks in advance.

[purrcubed]

Hi @magic*moonbeams Thanks for stopping by. I agree, INR cases should not be allowed to file atm. Has your Jersey City package moved at all since DEc. 12? That was around the same time (Dec. 11) that I got a scan for Jersey City. What the HECK is going on in Jersey City? 

Thanks for the suggestion re: First class vs. Priority. I was going to write a P.S. Please don't lecture me on how I should have done Priority vs. First Class but you beat me to it.

I debated this with myself  and used to ship Priority for items that had more "value" but I trusted the USPS in delivering my packages until this season. I've never actually had a package LOST by the way, just significantly delayed. In other words, I had faith in the USPS until this year.

I thought Priority Mail only covered up to $50 or $100. The merchandise itself cost me $80, and the rest was a slight profit + taxes. 

[magic*moonbeams]

Just as a Jersey person... Anything in Jersey City seems to be moving the SLOWEST..  Whether it's something I shipped or something I ordered... It seems like anything that lands in JC is just sitting there.  We also have Kearny, Teterboro, Newark... but it's JC that seems to be an abyss.

Also just as a person in NJ, with regular, no delays in shipping kinda thing... it seems like it's the slower packages (like Media, Parcel Post) that land in JC that seem to take longer in general.  

I wish I had answers for you beyond that, but that sorting facility in general just seems to be moving at a snail's pace 😞

[purrcubed]

@magic*moonbeams 😞 so frustrating! the package was going from MA to NJ, which usually takes a few days at most since it's on the same coast, and not far. 

Since you responded, I'm gonna ask you a question about package intercept 😛

At what point is a good time to do the package intercept (never did it). After the INR is closed? Not right at this moment, right?

Would a timeline look like this: 

INR case opened--I refund-->file Package Intercept?

I also want to file a missing package case because everytime I do open one of these cases up, the package turns up within 7 days or so. However, it will ask, "Where would you like this package sent to?" And then I would have to choose my address or the buyer's.  So not sure what to do here--send to the buyer or myself in hopes that it will "perk up" the Jersey City hub lol. Maybe not a good idea in this case but who knows!

Thanks in advance!!

[no_zero369]

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@purrcubed wrote:

No, they did not open a case yet and I don't want to contact the buyer. The general rule I always see on ebay is: "let the buyer contact you." I feel kind of bad because I care about my buyers and I even opened a package research case. I think the buyer sees this but she has not messaged me yet for whatever reason. 

I will try package intercept, but I think I should do that AFTER an INR case is opened and I refund them, AND the package is still "in transit"...correct? 

---

@purrcubed 

Sorry, I don't agree with what is "generally accepted."  I'd rather over communicate with buyers than say nothing.  In my experience buyers appreciate that something is being done to get the package to them.  So report that you filed a Missing Mail case and anything else you do.   (There are two steps to the Missing Mail process, have you initiated the second step?)  

I think in this pandemic, most would understand the delays if explained to them.  Also, being proactive can help stave off INR cases, while waiting on a buyer to get mad enough to do something like contact a seller doesn't help.  By the time a buyer is pizzed enough, anything a seller says is going to look like an excuse and they might just think the seller is a scammer.

But hey, there are hundred of threads here about sellers with a large number of packages in limbo.  Most appear to be crossing their fingers, rather than being proactive.  Any seller can choose what steps to take: "hope" packages don't turn into INRs or try and do something to help buyers understand and perhaps stave off some INR cases.

[magic*moonbeams]

Oh also, I just asked my father, who lives not too far from me and has been complaining about a package not received yet that he bought on here...

His package was last scanned in Jersey City on 12/6... NO movement or scan since then.

It's like I said, stuff that they were already backed up with are walled in by newer incoming packages, so the newest stuff is getting sent along before the things walled in that were sitting there the longest.

Hopefully USPS will learn a lesson from this year and change the way they take incoming packages so that the oldest ones aren't sitting there the longest... it's not that hard to change the sorting process if someone with half an ounce of sense thinks about it.

[purrcubed]

@no_zero369 Right, so this goes against my personal moral compass but it has worked in the past. I've asked for advice several times on here and it's: stay quiet or else. I am the overly pro-active type of person in real life and sometimes on ebay. Not when it comes to awkward situations where the buyer might get pissy though. I did notify the buyer BEFORE shipping out the package, and she did say she understood about the delays and it was a Christmas gift. 

I don't want to rock the boat. I totally get what you mean because I actually have my own business (not ebay) as my livelihood and customer service is priority for me. But because we are selling on ebay and there is a certain "culture" here of not rocking the boat, I do feel conflicted about saying anything. She can see herself that that package research case has been opened and closed. I have a screenshot from her local post office telling me: 'Sorry nothing we can do about this. Just be patient. We have staff shortages due to COVID."

If I rock the boat, and IF she opens the INR, then that would be more than unpleasant. What do you suggest? Send her a message the day before Christmas Eve and say, hey, your package is delayed and you won't have it in time for Christmas. But, I was proactive and filed a case on your behalf, which they closed. Please be patient; the package should get there, but it might take a little longer."

As for missing package, I did not file yet because the predicament here is it will ask, "Where do you want the package sent, if located?" Buyer or return to sender (me). Where would YOU send it knowing that the package likely will arrive and also not knowing when the buyer will file an INR demanding a refund? 

What do you mean by two steps? 

It's 2 separate services. I did the first one, not the missing package one. 

[purrcubed]

Oh gosh, so sorry to hear about your father's package. Was it First Class or Priority? 

@magic*moonbeams You said you had a package sitting in Jersey City since 12/12. Has it moved since? Was it First class or priority? 

Just trying to figure out something that might not be able to be figured out 😛

[purrcubed]

I also want to say that I put huge "SHIPPING NOTICE" warnings in bold and underlined text in my listings AND send all buyers a thank you note + there may be delays before shipping out. There is also the high shipping volume in tracking when they go to track their package. Additionally, there is  a "Holiday 2020" shipping section on ebay.com's front page/homepage. This buyer has been registered since 1999. I don't think she's ever sold before but, I would hope someone using ebay for 21 years would be more understanding.