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Post office closed

Here in the deep south we are having a winter storm. All post offices are closed in my area and probably 200 miles around(Also we are advised to stay off roads). I have shipments due and are worried about late uploads. Wondering if ebay will overlook late shipments or if i'm SOL?

Message 1 of 16
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15 REPLIES 15

Re: Post office closed

They do in some weather events.  Just have to see about this one.  It's big, but you never know.  I switched to 3 day handling to help a bit with that.

Message 2 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

You've known it was coming for how long and didn't prepare ahead.

Have a great day.
Message 3 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

I have my handling time set for 6 days so a little snow here in Louisiana won't affect my shipping.

 

Message 4 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

Handling time should always be longer in the winter time. 

I don't think eBay can overlook the whole nation with late shipments during bad weather.

Quick shipping is just not possible in bad weather conditions.

Top Rated Plus...you work very hard to keep that...I think it's just too hard to keep that status and I can't imagine the stress it puts on a seller.

 

Message 5 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

I am so sorry you find yourself in this pickle. A situation you certainly did not cause.

 

Above all else, the safety and well-being of yourself & your loved ones is priority one.

 

You can ask the platform for an exception if there is a reprisal.

You can ask the buyer for understanding if there is a delay.

 

Please remember, at the end of the day we all want what we want but no stranger is going to worry about your well-being as much as you do.

 

If I am buying a "fill in the blank" from you, I may have general human concern & compassion for your well-being, but my demands & your desire to "make it right" no matter what will not heal your wounds if in desperation to get it done you wrap yourself or your car around a telephone pole.

 

I implore you not to be melodramatic, but as an individual wired that way as well who has made that mistake in the past (any number of times) and been blessed to survive catastrophic results only to question myself afterwards as to why I took such risks.

 

This is not the Armed Services; this is a retail platform.

 

Some of us can't help it because that's how we are wired.

The fact you are worried about it shows you are similarly wired.

That's where other people wired the same way need to intervene.

 

There is no amount of good will worth risking your life for & believe me no one will appreciate it in the context of retail goods & services. They won't even know what happened.

 

Best of luck with shop & sales.

Message 6 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

Hi @thesix . eBay frequently offers seller protections for weather events, and when they do they announce it here, but you should never count on it happening. Make use of eBay tools in advance of situations like this.

 

You're in the South so this specific announcement may apply.

 

I see you have taken no action on your listings. I suggest immediately putting your store on Time Away mode since you cannot ship. You can still allow sales while on Time Away, but it will extend your handling time (with exceptions). General info on Time Away below.

 

----------

 

Here's the page about Time Away settings:

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/selling-tools/time-away?id=5137

 

If you allow sales while away, make sure you read all the exclusions carefully.

 

Plan to have any auctions or offers end a week before you leave.

 

There's an option to set up an out of office auto-response within the Time Away settings.

 

Keep in mind you're still responsible for handling any return requests, claims or payment disputes that are filed while you're away.

 

https://www.ebay.com/rtn/Return/SellerRules

Message 7 of 16
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Re: Post office closed


@12345jamesstamps wrote: ... Top Rated Plus...you work very hard to keep that...I think it's just too hard to keep that status and I can't imagine the stress it puts on a seller.

 


Top Rated Plus is not a seller status, it's a listing status.  If a seller extends their handling time beyond one day, then any listing with longer handling time will no longer show the TR-Plus badge -- but that badge will reappear when the roads clear and the seller reinstates 1-day handling.

 

That's yet another reason for sellers to keep an eye on the weather and plan ahead, rather than relying on the mercies of eBay staff who are based in lovely San Jose where it never snows.

Message 8 of 16
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Re: Post office closed


@thesix wrote:

Here in the deep south we are having a winter storm..... I have shipments due and are worried about late uploads....

 

And yet some of your listings are still showing the TR-Plus badge, which means that if a buyer pays for an item today you are expected to ship tomorrow.  You should at least meet eBay halfway if you expect them to overlook your late shipping. Until the weather and roads improve, you should extend your handling time and/or put your listings in Time Away mode.

 

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/selling-tools/time-away?id=5137

Message 9 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

Boy you are a ray of sunshine. Everything was up in the air until Saturday when it looked more like reality. Then I extended shipping time. Friday and Saturday are the concern. 

Message 10 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

'listing status' does need a 'seller' to list one-day shipping.

It's a listing seller status that is hard to achieve 365 days a year...at some month it will not be achievable whether it's an emergency in the family, household or weather and so on.

We are not Amazon but try to be? 

And the benefits like I don't know more exposure and 10% discount eBay fees, etc....is it really worth it with the stress it is put on a seller.

It never snows where I live but I still would not have one-day handling.

 

Message 11 of 16
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Re: Post office closed


@thesix wrote:

Everything was up in the air until Saturday when it looked more like reality. Then I extended shipping time. Friday and Saturday are the concern. 


That's one way Time Away is effective. Even if weather report is "up in the air" you can set Time Away mode and still allow sales. If the storm doesn't hit just end Time Away early and ship as normal. No harm to your account, plus bonus for your buyers who will get their items earlier than expected.

 

With Time Away you still maintain the TRS-Plus discount for next day shipping; that's lost when you manually change handling time instead of using Time Away.

 

Waiting to see what happens means you can end up in your current situation, with late shipments and hoping eBay will extend protections because you didn't use the tools available, plus the potential to disappoint buyers with late shipping.

Message 12 of 16
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Re: Post office closed


@thesix wrote:

Boy you are a ray of sunshine. Everything was up in the air until Saturday when it looked more like reality. Then I extended shipping time. Friday and Saturday are the concern. 


 

You could have set Time Away Friday and got everything shipped, so you wouldn't have the problems now.

Have a great day.
Message 13 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

And this is why I moved to the desert state of Nevada. (Picture is from my home state of Massachusetts)

 

snow.jpg

"Laissez-faire capitalism (AKA The Great Material Continuum) is the only social system based on the recognition of individual rights and, therefore, the only system that bans force from social relationships." ~ Ayn Rand
Message 14 of 16
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Re: Post office closed

Hey, at least they could get to their car. Here's our front door in MA exactly ten years ago this week.

 

Gothland snowy door 2015.jpg

Message 15 of 16
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