I was wondering how y'all would respond to a something like this.

 

Guy won a minifig from me on 4-5-14 (Saturday)

I shipped it on 4-7-14 (Monday) via USPS First Class in a 4" x 8" bubble mailer.

He said the tracking showed initially it was supposed to be delivered on 4-10-14.  He mails me today 4-11-14 saying he hasn't received it and is wondering why shipping is taking so long for such a small item.

 

I tried to contact USPS but all i got was their automated system on the phone and just had to submit a problem through their form.  Is there anything I can do about this or do I just ask my buyer to please be patient and apologize for the inconvenience?

 

Will he be able to leave negative feedback for me even though this looks to be the USPS' fault?

 

Thanks for any advice!

You can request tracking updates at usps.com - they'll send you status updates via eMail.

 

I generally let the buyer know I've requested tracking updates and give them a date that I will refund or replace (on a first class package item, I don't ask them to wait more than a few days past the estimated date, so if it was mailed on 4/7, 4/10 is a decent estimate, asking them to wait until end of day on Monday, 4/14, is about all I'd do, unless the tracking updates indicate it's about to be delivered on Tuesday or something.

 

If the figure doesn't arrive by then, I'd refund or replace and ask them to mark whichever package they get last as "refused" so it can make its way back to you. If they don't do this, you have little recourse, but it doesn't hurt to ask.

 

And yes, they can leave you a negative. It's your responsibility to get the item to them, and if your shipping company (in this case USPS) fails, that's on you, not the customer. All part of being in business.

Just be polite with him an let him know that you shipped it Monday and it shouldn't take longer than a week to arrive. Ask him to touch base Monday if it hasn't arrived yet.

Most likely it will show up tomorrow or Monday and you will have been a good communicator.

It bothers me that eBay puts the estimates on there and people get angry of it's not accurate. I always ship within 24 hours of payment and don't have any control over the USPS speed. Most of the time, it is fast but there is the occasional stray that takes a full week.

Thanks for the response!

 

So if the package is lost in some USPS void, can I go them and request reimbursement for the value of the item? or am I just out?

tell him to chill. as long as you sent it within the time posted in your listing then you fulfilled your obligation. once it leaves your hands it is out of your control. save your receipts and tracking numbers for future reference, as they will provide a paper trail in case he opens a case. if he leaves bad feedback for it being a day or two late even though you shipped it when said you would then he has more problems in his life than his minifig not arriving within a nano second of you dropping it off at the post office.

 

I just had a buyer in California buy a 4842 the burrow from me. I shipped within 1 day of payment, standard post(8-10 days), as stated in the listing. I live in Wisconsin. after about 11 days he messaged me that he hadn't received it yet. I looked at the tracking, and the wonderful usps got it to California within three days of me shipping it, but then they sent it to Memphis, Tennessee for some reason, where it sat in a warehouse for a few days before they sent it back to California and finally delivered it. my point is, sometimes the usps likes to send packages on unnecessary joy rides. my buyer was cool about it, and left positive feedback. 

Thanks for the response!

 

So if the package is lost in some USPS void, can I go them and request reimbursement for the value of the item? or am I just out?

If it's lost and you didn't get insurance, you're out the money.

tell him to chill. as long as you sent it within the time posted in your listing then you fulfilled your obligation. once it leaves your hands it is out of your control. save your receipts and tracking numbers for future reference, as they will provide a paper trail in case he opens a case. if he leaves bad feedback for it being a day or two late even though you shipped it when said you would then he has more problems in his life than his minifig not arriving within a nano second of it arriving at the post office.

 

I just had a buyer in California buy a 4842 the burrow from me. I shipped within 1 day of payment, standard post(8-10 days), as stated in the listing. I live in Wisconsin. after about 11 days he messaged me that he hadn't received it yet. I looked at the tracking, and the wonderful usps got it to California withing three days of me shipping it, but then they sent it to Memphis, Tennessee for some reason, where is sat in a warehouse for a few days before they sent it back to California and finally delivered it. my point is, sometimes the usps likes to send packages on unnecessary joy rides. my buyer was cool about it, and left positive feedback. 

Have had this happen several times and I usually don't even notice until the buyer asks what the hell is going on with the tracking and why did I send it to the other side of the United States?  It always gets to where it is supposed to, but USPS likes to send packages to the wrong side of the US on occasion.  Or like you said, send it to the right place, only to reverse course and send it somewhere after making it 90% of the way in the right direction.

If it gets lost it ends up here: http://www.govdeals.com/index.cfm?fa=Main.AdvSearchResultsNew&kWord=lego&whichForm=vehicle&searchPg=Main

It is a bit frustrating as we (as buyers) should see that the tracking shows it was accepted by USPS that Monday, so it's out of your hands. I'm pretty sure First Class is 3-5 days, so it's still within range. 

presumably one could deduct the loss from one's taxes in such a case so it would not be a total loss

It will show up, just give it time. In my 15 years on eBay, I've never had a package disappear. It's not impossible, just unlikely.

Sent from my iPhone using Brickpicker

Ive shipped over 400 items and ive only had one pacakge get lost. Usually they are just impatient.

As a buyer, I am far more upset about sellers who take multiple business days to ship rather than some made up estimate once shipped. But maybe that is just me.

Tell him you are sorry and sometimes USPS can have issues delivering stuff. Also remember to look at it from his point of view. He may have needed the item by a certain date and ion reality it should not take this long for him to get it. (Even if it isn't your fault)

 

I actually ordered something from ebay LAST Thursday, seller shipped first class Monday, and it still isn't here yet. Unfortunately I need the item by this Monday or I have no use for it.

First class mail is always a gamble.