General Delivery address return question

[terri57]

I just sent a heavy package cross country by FedEx Ground (more affordable) to an address that had no street listed.  It was buyer name, General Delivery, city, state, zip.  It is being returned to me as undeliverable.  I called FedEx and they said because there was no address.  My buyer states that only USPS is delivered to that address and he has never had a problem in 16 years.  Was I suppose to know that FedEx won't deliver to a General Delivery address??  Is that general knowledge?  To be honest, I didn't really pay attention to the label when I printed it.  Anyway, I will refund him when I receive it back but my question is:  Am I obligated to refund the shipping cost paid by him?  I don't want to get a negative feedback score but I also feel that it is not my fault that it could not be delivered.  He acted like it was common knowledge that everyone should know.  Live and learn?

[missjen831]

Um......some may disagree but I do think you share a little of the blame. General delivery means the item is being shipped to the recipients post office. I do think a seller should know where fedex (and UPS) will and will not deliver. I don't think you should eat the entire original shipping cost though.

[pburn]

Yeah. I think it's common knowledge that FedEx requires a street address. But now you know for next time. It's probably also a good idea to glance at the mailing label in any case.

What kind of shipping did your listing indicate? Did your item listing say you were shipping FedEx? Or just a general "economy shipping" statement?You might consider making the decision whether to refund shipping based on what your item listing said . . .

P.S. I'm a buyer only.

[sam9876]

"Was I suppose to know that FedEx won't deliver to a General Delivery address??  Is that general knowledge?"

Yes.

[orangehound]

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@terri57 wrote:

Was I suppose to know that FedEx won't deliver to a General Delivery address??  Is that general knowledge?  To be honest, I didn't really pay attention to the label when I printed it.

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Whereas I think "general delivery is only USPS" is general knowledge, shipping via FedEx should mean that you are looking at that street address just in case the buyer has a P.O. Box ... also a USPS thing.

If this were me, I would take full responsibility for it because I believe that knowledge of how shipping services operate is the responsibility of the seller .... I would also reship the item to the customer via USPS if they still want it (with an apology and no additional charges).  And, yes, I would do this even if this meant taking a loss on the item.

[pjcdn2005]

Many of the op’s listings show generic shipping, not a specific method. If that’s the situation with this item,  imo the buyer should receive the original shipping back as well as they didn’t know how the item would be sent.  In the sellers defense though, it looks as if they have PO boxes blocked but apparently that doesn’t include general delivery.