Phony USPS up charges. Fraud Alert

[jaker40]

I'm a Seller on eBay and received an email from eBay, (on their site), indicating that an additional charge for USPS postage was due on a recently mailed item. eBay automatically charged my PayPal account for the amount of $3.12. The problem is that the reason given for the charge was that I had placed a USPS Media Mail label on a USPS Priority Flat Rate envelope, (which costs more). The fact is that I had wrapped the item in packing cardboard and have the photos to prove it. I contacted the Buyer and sent him a photo of the package before I sent it, and he confirmed that it arrived in the same package. Not in a USPS Priority envelope. I contacted eBay and was told to talk to the USPS. I took my information to the post office and spoke to the manager. He declared the charge a scam. USPS would have either requested extra postage payment from the Buyer, or sent the package back to me. The manager said he had never seen anything like the eBay messages I was showing him. I was at a UPS store later that day, and asked about a similar earlier incident when I had received another eBay up charge claiming that the package I had left was 1 inch longer on one side than I had stated before printing out the label. I asked at the UPS store if that was how things were handled, and received baffled stares.

[1786davycrockett]

@jaker40 

This happens more often than you might imagine -- the USPS scanner catches one item on top of another item, and assumes that both are somehow connected.

This happened to me a couple years ago, and I also had received an email through my eBay account.  I simply called the USPS phone number listed in the email, and talked with a human being (!!!) at USPS, who confirmed that this is a common occurrence.  She wrote down all the information from the email, and confirmed that USPS will make a photo check of the shipment; and, if USPS found that I was not at fault, I would receive a refund from USPS.

A few days later, there was my refund.

Make the phone call -- it's faster than responding via email -- and you actually speak with a HUMAN BEING!!!

Good luck!

[yuzuha]

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@robbie31415 wrote:

It happens,

The email from eBay should have given you information for disputing the charge.

What most likely happened is that your package got scanned by the APV system with a priority envelope on top of it.

When you enter your dispute that should be able to check the pictures to see that this happened and credit you back.

You can call it a scam, but it's all automated and with all automation errors do happen.

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I had that exact thing happen once. I had shipped my item in a box, but someone else's Priority Mail envelope had ended up on top of the box when it was scanned. I filed a dispute and received the money back in a couple of weeks because it was quite obvious from examining the pictures that my item was a box rather than an envelope.

[jaker40]

OK, I contacted the USPS via the number provided by the up charge alert from eBay, and everything seems to have been explained, and I should be receiving a refund soon. I've told my lawyers to stand down on this issue. I wouldn't have been freaked out if the eBay Customer Service Reps. I had spoken to could have explained what had happened, instead of passing the buck to the USPS. And, of course, I will be talking to my local USPS Manager, who called the whole thing a scam. My pulse rate has returned to normal. THANKS eBay Community! Now stop sending me stuff.

Note to eBay. I don't mind heavy accents when dealing with Customers Service Reps., but when I can tell that they are on the other side of the world, that's a problem with your Customer Service Training.

[robbie31415]

Why wouldn't the eBay employee's pass the buck to the USPS?

eBay didn't make the adjustment and increase the charge. eBay doesn't know what happened.

You chose to use the USPS, this was YOUR carrier. You are responsible to deal with carrier issues on your own. All eBay did was pass on the charge that USPS applied.

Dealing with carrier disputes is part of seller's responsibility and the more you sell the more you will have to handle it.

[christinros136]

USPS fraudulently charged our eBay account for three properly and correct packed and labeled items. One item they charged me $1400 EXTRA! We paid alot for shipping that item already. They took all of our profit on that item. I sold the item for a lower price and then USPS took the money. They are allowed to just charge the accounts at will.