eBay

si-204776 · ‎06-27-2020

Hi guys, I ordered something from Ebay on Wednesday and the seller shipped the item on the same day, couple of hours later I got the tracking information and it said USPS awaiting item, I figured the tracking would update after a day or so.

I checked the tracking on Friday and it said the same thing...USPS awaiting item. I contacted the seller and he assured me that he shipped it on Wednesday and sometimes it takes the tracking a while to update. He mentioned the item should arrive by Friday or Saturday. Well today is Saturday, nothing so far and tracking info still says USPS awaiting item.

Now before taking action, I'm thinking of giving it until Monday to see what happens. However I find it hard to believe the tracking info wouldn't update after 3 days, unless he hasn't actually sent it. The seller lives in the same city as me - New York, so I thought it would've been here by now. Has anyone experienced something like this before or could the item be lost?

Thanks

orangehound · ‎06-27-2020

@si-204776 wrote:
Has anyone experienced something like this before or could the item be lost?

I doubt it is lost.

Assuming the seller actually mailed it, then (a) the seller did not get an acceptance scan, and (b) the tracking bar is probably unreadable by an automatic scanner ... such as it is bent around a box or torn.

eenus-56 · ‎06-27-2020

I'm in NYC too and my post office takes up to 5 days to perform an acceptance scan. Sometimes they don't do an acceptance scan at all. When that happens the tracking will just say "Preshipment" until the item arrives at the destination post office. So if I were you I'd wait at least a week or so for the tracking to update. If the item sat in the seller's post office for several days and then departed the post office without getting an acceptance scan it probably wouldn't show any tracking results until the morning it goes out for delivery.

buzzapparel · ‎06-27-2020

Don’t babysit the tracking. Sometimes, crazy things happen then the packages just shows up.

tools* · ‎06-27-2020

@eenus-56 wrote:
I'm in NYC too and my post office takes up to 5 days to perform an acceptance scan. Sometimes they don't do an acceptance scan at all. When that happens the tracking will just say "Preshipment" until the item arrives at the destination post office. So if I were you I'd wait at least a week or so for the tracking to update. If the item sat in the seller's post office for several days and then departed the post office without getting an acceptance scan it probably wouldn't show any tracking results until the morning it goes out for delivery.

My NYC post office has been sitting on packages for an average of 5 days before the packages go out and receive their first scan. It's always been a terrible post office, but the pandemic has turned it into an unbelievably terrible post office.

si-204776 · ‎06-29-2020

Its been 5 days for me now and it still says pre-shipment. The seller is in Staten Island and I'm in Manhattan never thought it would take this long to get delivered in the same city! Or at least get a scan or something.

I had another USPS package come in from Seattle. Shipped on Thursday and arrived this morning and was fully tracked a long the way. So don't know if somethings up with NYC USPS and they have major issues...

orangehound · ‎06-29-2020

@si-204776 wrote:
Its been 5 days for me now and it still says pre-shipment.

Most likely, it has not yet been given to the USPS.

si-204776 · ‎06-29-2020

Yes I am also thinking that too. The seller keeps saying he shipped it last week Wednesday, but who knows at this point.

buzzapparel · ‎06-29-2020

I just had this happen, a buyer bought an item on the 12th. It didn’t scan for 10 days. Don’t babysit the tracking things are crazy right now. The post office sits on packages for days, they don’t scan very often and some packages may even slip through those cracks and take longer and get no scans until delivery.

cream_couture · ‎06-29-2020

If the seller says it shipped, I would believe them for now. They failed to get an acceptance scan, so sadly it could be lost and they will be out the money. I would wait a few more days because everything is delivering way later it seems. If it doesn't arrive in a few days, I would file an item not received claim.

gloryglorygifts · ‎06-29-2020

Staten Island doesn't have a main post office. EVERYTHING goes through either Brooklyn or Queens. It really depends on the postal carrier. My guy scans it the minute he picks it up. The people that cover for him take everything back to their office, where it may or may not get scanned that night. My carrier actually had coronavirus and wasn't working for the entire month of April and half of May. What I did to make my life easier, was to schedule pick ups every day. They have to acknowledge that pick up by the end of the day. This way, at least you have a record of a pick up and your tracking. But I do know that it can take up to a week for my mail to go from my address to another, even in Staten Island. There have been times when things have been delivered without getting any tracking uploaded. It's rare, but it happens if it isn't read correctly while moving on the belts.

si-204776 · ‎06-30-2020

So after 6 days the tracking has finally updated from pre-shipment to in-transit. Its arrived from Staten Island and currently at the JERSEY CITY NJ NETWORK DISTRIBUTION CENTER.

I'm literally 5 miles away from this place across the Hudson, but all the reviews at this center are really bad with packages stuck there for days or weeks. I'm assuming USPS wont be delivering on Friday and Saturday this week, so I really hope I get it in the next 2 days. I'm away from the city for a few months after Friday.

cerberic · ‎06-30-2020

Hi, I was having the same problems with the packages I shipped out. I spoke to a USPS supervisor who said they are having problems with shipping distribution centers mainly in the middle of the US due to the virus. Lots of packages are being scanned but not showing up in the tracking. We just have to wait it out even if it takes a while. Buyers and sellers can not do anything once the package has been handed over to the shipper except wait. If it is declared lost then the seller will issue a refund. Buyers need to cut the sellers some slack during these difficult times.

cerberic · ‎06-30-2020

It is unfair for you to assume that a seller did not send the package. #1 if there is tracking then the seller obviously paid for shipping. If that's the case why would he/she not send it. #2 there is a pandemic going on and even in good times the USPS has been terrible, how do you think they are doing now with reduced employees?
I have two packages I sent that were scanned at the counter but did not show up in tracking. The USPS supervisor I spoke to said distribution centers are overwhelmed and don't have the staff or carriers to do the work. Packages are just going to be delayed and we have to GRACIOUSLY be patient.

si-204776 · ‎06-30-2020

Its not unfair for me to assume that. Before I purchased the item last week I contacted the seller and let him know about my circumstances, why I needed it before Friday this week and if it was possible. He confirmed he would send it overnight via Fedex or UPS and this confirmed my purchase. Well he didn't do that because as soon as I purchased the item he shipped with USPS.

I do understand theres a pandemic and staff shortages but in this case I'm right to feel aggrieved that he lied to me just to get the purchase.