Well I finally did something really stupid selling on ebay and don't know if I'll get burnt on this or not.  I agreed to ship a listing to an ebay buyer, but he wanted it shipped to a different address than his registered one.  I received a message from the buyer recently asking where the package was, and when I track the package it shows as being delivered 2 days ago.  Also, I didn't think to request a signature for the delivery!  I asked him if he's sure he has not received it, and he insists it has not been delivered.

 

The buyer does seem friendly enough, but I'm wondering what happens now? Am I screwed in ebay court if it comes to him filing a claim that package has not been received? I have my shipping documents and everything. (shipping from Canada to the USA) I'm interested to hear if anyone else has had this problem and what the result was?  Why did I agree to do this!!  

 

Thanks!

 

I would say yes, you probably lost your item and money in this case. If I'm not mistaken seller protection only covers registered shipping addresses

If he sent the change of address request through eBay messages and if the item was under $250, you may have a chance. Call eBay.

Also, call his local post office (you can get their phone number by using Google and the zip code - i.e, Post Office 11111 Telephone number should bring it up) and ask to speak to the carrier who delivered mail the day it shows delivered. Postal employees often remember packages, and you can describe to him exactly what it looked like. 

 

Mail fraud is a serious crime in the U.S. - if this guy is legit, he'll cooperate with postal investigators. If he's not, this might scare him into "finding" the package himself.

Also, call his local post office (you can get their phone number by using Google and the zip code - i.e, Post Office 11111 Telephone number should bring it up) and ask to speak to the carrier who delivered mail the day it shows delivered. Postal employees often remember packages, and you can describe to him exactly what it looked like. 

 

Mail fraud is a serious crime in the U.S. - if this guy is legit, he'll cooperate with postal investigators. If he's not, this might scare him into "finding" the package himself.

Ok thanks for the tip, I'll do this for sure! 

Ok thanks for the tip, I'll do this for sure!

Hope you get this sorted out! Keep us updated.

well if he requested it be sent to that address i dont see that as an issue.

I am pretty sure you have to ship to the paypal confirmed address in order to be eligible for paypal protection. I am assuming the same would be true in regards to ebay protection (ebay confirmed address). Next time ask that they update their shipping address before you ship which is a very easy process for them. Like others have mentioned, if the request was done through ebay messaging, there might be some hope.. and yes, mail fraud is a felony, and postal inspectors do not fit into the stereotype of a front line USPS employee. I would imagine the mention of "mail fraud" and "felony" would most times make a scammer think twice (but don't threaten just maybe bring up in an informative or polite way). That's my two cents anyway. From what you described it does kind of sound like a scam to me (changing address then claiming they didnt receive even though DC says otherwise). What is the buyers feedback? Although a high positive feedback doesnt mean they are not a scammer, it would be better than low feedback on an account that was just registered. Food luck! Hope it wasn't a high dollar ammount item.

I am pretty sure you have to ship to the paypal confirmed address in order to be eligible for paypal protection. I am assuming the same would be true in regards to ebay protection (ebay confirmed address). Next time ask that they update their shipping address before you ship which is a very easy process for them. Like others have mentioned, if the request was done through ebay messaging, there might be some hope.. and yes, mail fraud is a felony, and postal inspectors do not fit into the stereotype of a front line USPS employee. I would imagine the mention of "mail fraud" and "felony" would most times make a scammer think twice (but don't threaten just maybe bring up in an informative or polite way). That's my two cents anyway. From what you described it does kind of sound like a scam to me (changing address then claiming they didnt receive even though DC says otherwise). What is the buyers feedback? Although a high positive feedback doesnt mean they are not a scammer, it would be better than low feedback on an account that was just registered. Food luck! Hope it wasn't a high dollar ammount item.

The buyers feedback is 100% positive, with about 45 reviews.. But again that doesn't really mean anything.  The item was about $350 so I sure hope I can get this resolved.  Unfortunately the address request wasn't done through ebay messaging either, so we'll see what happens here.  I'm hopeful its not a scam, and it doesn't feel like one to me. Fingers crossed! I assume if the tracking says delivered I have to believe that to be true?

 

Thanks for your input

At over $250, signature confirmation is required for PayPal protection, and there's no getting around that one that I know of. If this is a scammer, I'm afraid there may be no hope. That and the fact that it didn't come through eBay messages that eBay can review, and you're probably stuck. Let us know how it turns out, and EVERYONE take this as a lesson to KNOW eBay and PayPal's seller protection rules and follow them. Both sites have a lot of informative pages that sellers should read and re-read frequently.

Thanks for posting your problem, hope you get something back.  It does help, for us newbies, hearing about those little mistakes.

At over $250, signature confirmation is required for PayPal protection, and there's no getting around that one that I know of. If this is a scammer, I'm afraid there may be no hope. That and the fact that it didn't come through eBay messages that eBay can review, and you're probably stuck. Let us know how it turns out, and EVERYONE take this as a lesson to KNOW eBay and PayPal's seller protection rules and follow them. Both sites have a lot of informative pages that sellers should read and re-read frequently.

Thanks, I'll let you know how it turns out for sure!

"I assume if the tracking says delivered I have to believe that to be true?" If it says delivered I would feel pretty confident that it was indeed delivered. I once had a neighbor sign for an item that was sent with signature confirmation though so you never know if something like that happened.

 I have great news!  I received confirmation from the buyer that he DID receive the package.  Thank goodness!  But let me tell you the scare on this transaction has opened my eyes and i'll NEVER ship to an unregistered address EVER AGAIN    Thanks for all your input on this one, I did learn a lot regarding seller protection throughout this ordeal.

 

Cheers everybody, and happy labor day long weekend eve!

Whew, glad it all worked out! And REMEMBER signature confirmation on shipments over $250 - without that, even with delivery confirmation, they WILL win an item not received claim through PayPal!

Whew, glad it all worked out! And REMEMBER signature confirmation on shipments over $250 - without that, even with delivery confirmation, they WILL win an item not received claim through PayPal!

yes I'm obviously very glad!  I'm in Canada, and I learned that in Canada you need a delivery signature for items totaling over $325. Just a tip for all you Canucks out there.

Glad this worked out for you. I lost an expensive item in my early days of ebaying this same way. Always ship to the confirmed address. And if they want it bag enough tell them to get the alternate address confirmed. If they aren't willing to do that then you don't need to sell to them.