Item missing, courier says delivered - what now?

[BabCNesbitt]

I bought a fairly big item just over a week ago which had delivery listed as Royal Mail. However, the seller used a courier company who claimed that the item had been delivered, although no card was left for me. Seller told me to contact the courier, who told me that the driver said at first it had been left in the back porch. (We don't have a porch.) The company then got back and admitted that the driver said he had just left it by the back door, but still claim that the item was therefore delivered.

Seller tells me to make a claim with the courier and that there's nothing she can do as they've said it's delivered. I've read that eBay sides with the seller where the item is described as delivered. Is this true? Am I just stuffed because of a useless/lying delivery driver?

I'm fairly sure that according to international carriage laws, he who pays for the transport is responsible for the goods until the recipient has received it. Anyone with any sense makes sure the recipient has to give a signature.

You don't have what you paid for. The seller has not fulfilled their pet of the contract. It's their problem.

Can't you raise a refund request through eBay?

Sometimes the couriers tell fibs about delivery as the are running behind. The item may still arrivde if that is the case. If not you can't usually do anything directly as the contract was between the seller and the courier. Will have to be filed as a dispute but since you didn't sign for it and they were meant to use royal mail, you should be refunded

Thanks! The seller has said there's nothing she can do and has just announced she's going on holiday and will deal with it when she gets back. WIBU to file a dispute while she's away?

(I've just had a look at the courier's T&Cs and it says they won't be liable if they have left it in a safe place and left details of where it is, neither of which they did here. But in that case, their liability is still to the seller rather than to me.)

You can't make a claim with the courier - you have no contract with them. The seller has to deal with the courier. Meanwhile you can lodge an item-not-recieved case with ebay/PayPal and get your money back. If she uses a crappy unreliable courier to save money that is simply not your problem.

As long as the seller has "proof" that the item has been delivered, you won't win a dispute I'm afraid .

All you can do here is try to stay on the sellers good side and convince them to take it further with the courier - they have to be the one that does this, not you. The courier won't get involved with you as their contract is with the seller.

I don't believe that's correct lottie carriage contracts are very clear and the sellers abligation was to have the buyer receive the goods, which hasn't happened.

If the seller is authorised or required to send the goods to the buyer, delivery of the goods to the carrier is not delivery of the goods to the buyer.

www.compactlaw.co.uk/free-legal-information/consumer-law/ownership.html

I'm sure there's more complete information online.

MrsJW I'm only referring to an eBay case to claim the money back. If the seller can provide an electronic status that shows the item as "delivered", then the case will go in their favour.

After that an option would be the small claims court for the OP.

Just to update, in case anyone might be interested - I didn't hear back from the seller, and the courier company said that there was nothing they could do as once it's registered on their system as delivered, that's that. I put in a claim for a refund on eBay, but eBay refused the refund as they said the item had been delivered.

So basically, if you buy something on eBay and the courier doesn't do what they're meant to do, you have no recourse at all.

That's awful babc hope it wasn't expensive? See she could have lied or anything, maybe a 'friend'works for her chosen courier she decided to go with That's a bit extreme but who knows? 😳
Or it could be entirely genuine.