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Original poster

MISSING ITEM - whos should lose out?

27 replies

Flocci · 29/03/2009 22:57

I bought some shoes for £75 and they have not arrived. Seller says they were posted 10 days ago regular post. Obv they should be here by now.

i assumed they would be sent Special Delivery because postage was £5.99 and I don't think they will be heavy shoes, but seller has said that listing clearly said they would only be sent normal post, and what did I expect for such a low postage cost. She says i should have specified if I wanted them to be posted SD.

I don't mind waiting a little longer in case they miraculously turn up, but if not, what happens next? I think lost items are normally only insured up to about £35 - so one of us is going to be out of pocket.

Of course I think it is her - she should have posted SD. At the end of the day i have no proof that she even posted them at all, or that they even existed. AIBU to make a paypal claim and leave her to claim compensation from Royal Mail as much as she can?

OP posts:
Simplysally · 29/03/2009 23:02

I'd make a Paypal claim as it can take ages for the dispute to be settled. You've emailed her and no joy so open a dispute. You can cancel if the shoes do turn up or she refunds you. You haven't missed a 'you were out' card have you? Your shoes might be sitting at the local sorting office.

I'm a bit anti-ebay though as I had to open 2 disputes this year over undelivered goods (one of which the seller took 2 months to admit had been returned to her) so I'm not the best person to reply for impartial advice .

Original poster
Flocci · 29/03/2009 23:07

I think I will have to open a paypal claim to protect myself.

OP posts:
Rachmumoftwo · 29/03/2009 23:16

I would look out for yourself- the shoes may never have existed, or she could have labelled them wrong and someone else may have them now, or they could just be lost in a sorting office somewhere. But you should get your money back as you never received the goods.

mygirllollipop · 30/03/2009 10:10

Ring your local sorting office - if there's no parcel there for you then open a claim through paypal.
Paypal would find in your favour so it would be the seller who lost out financially assuming she did post the shoes. She should have protected herself by posting trackable with enough insurance for the cost of the shoes.

Funnybunnyyumyum · 30/03/2009 15:58

As far as i know she should reimburse you and then make the claim herself to Royal Mail with her proof of postage. If she says she hasn't got proof of postage and she's a regular ebayer then you know something's up. Royal Mail will then contact you to get confirmation that you haven't received them and then compensate her. I think.

Geepers · 30/03/2009 16:00

She should lose out. Open a claim through Paypal.

Original poster
Flocci · 30/03/2009 19:17

Have opened a claim and hope I will get my money back now. I do feel sorry for her as she seems quite genuine actually, and she is going to be out of pocket. Hopefully she can put this down to experience and ALWAYS use SDin future!

OP posts:
Original poster
Flocci · 30/03/2009 22:18

HELP ......... I have opened a claim on paypal. In the meantime the buyer keeps on referring to her paypal postage reference as her tracking reference. I have told her this isn't proper tracking, and doesn't really mean much. She has now come back and says that actually the paypal reference proves that she sent the shoes therefore she is not liable for the loss.

Clearly she is not going to let this go without a fight, but really, I don't honestly know that she even sent them - so what if she printed a label off paypal?

How can she just announce that she is not liable. Am I right that paypal should back me up with this?

OP posts:
pebbles79 · 30/03/2009 22:40

Explain to her that the paypal receipt is proof of postage not proof of delivery. When you print off a label through paypal it also prints off a receipt that you take into the post office and get them to stamp and sign. A pair of shoes wouldn't fit through a post box so she'd have had to go into the post office to send them anyway.

Original poster
Flocci · 30/03/2009 22:43

Ah - good point about the PO stamping the paypal receipt, I didn't know you could do that.

OP posts:
carrielou2007 · 31/03/2009 08:43

Makes no difference, in a pp dispute they will require a tracking number for special/recorded delivery. If she did not pay the extra then she will lose out and you will win the dispute.

It is up to the seller to ensure the item gets to their buyer and if she is a reg she will know this. I always send items recorded for the extra 70p or whatever and anything over 36 pounds value special. I include that in my postage price and mention in my listing. Sadly I do this due to the many scammers who try it on.

You paid for goods and you didn't receive them so if they are not in your sorting office then you will win the dispute!

LauriefairycakeeatsCupid · 01/04/2009 09:24

I'm surprised at the responses as it's up to the buyer to check that the seller will send recorded for an extra 93p?

She didn't offer to send recorded, only normal post - did it even say in her listing that she would get proof of posting from the PO?.

TBH I think the only way you will get your money back is if the has used paypal to print off the label as then it would have been stamped in the PO.

As far as I know this is one of the biggest scams. High postage, no offer to send recorded or even proof of postage. I really didn't think buyers had a come back from this if they didn't request recorded/special delivery.

sixlostmonkeys · 01/04/2009 10:12

recorded is for the seller's benefit not the buyer's

mygirllollipop · 01/04/2009 10:18

The buyer always has a come back if they paid through paypal as it the a sellers responsibility to ensure delivery not just postage.
If a buyer lodges a dispute via paypal for item not received paypal will ask for tracking and if seller cannot provide a tracking number paypal will automatically refund the buyer from the sellers paypal account.
If the seller has printed postage from paypal and had it stamped at post office, that is just a proof of postage which has no tracking and paypal would still refund the buyer for item not received under these circumstances.
There are lots of cases of items not received talked about on ebay's help pages and forums and all of the advice is the same.

Blessingsdragon · 03/04/2009 17:05

Buyer will get money back - as Six says the tracking is for the sellers benefit not the buyers

Tryharder · 04/04/2009 11:17

Further to this, some sellers indicate in their listings that they will not be held responsible for items going missing in the post and that they always obtain proof of posting which they will forward onto you in the event that RM lose the item. Can they do this??

BTW, I sell and buy on ebay and RM have lost one or two of my items, I have just refunded the buyer without a quibble even though i had proof of posting etc.

sixlostmonkeys · 04/04/2009 13:00

no they can't do this . many do put this on their listing but it's pointless. The seller has to use the pop to get a refund from RM. Sooner or later sellers who put this realise that paypal will always over ride any nonsense they put in listings and will issue refunds unless a tracking number is provided.

Blessingsdragon · 04/04/2009 13:04

totally as six says - also if they are a buisness seller - delcared or not its against the DSR to have this in thier listing

Tryharder · 05/04/2009 08:42

I agree that buyers should be refunded if they don't get their items but at the moment, there seems to be no protection for sellers against buyers who claim that their item didnt arrive (when it probably did), claim their money back and so have their item for free!

EldonAve · 05/04/2009 08:47

Sellers can protect themselves by sending by recorded

staryeyed · 05/04/2009 09:10

It is actually sellers responsibility to gett the item to you not just send it out. Therefore, if the item does not turn up they are responsible as is any company that fail to get their goods to you.

Karokaro · 25/04/2009 15:42

This is absolute rubbish. I am seller myself on Ebay and offer both, first class and recorded delivery. If buyer is stingy and doesn;t want to pay the extra for recorded delivery for their peace of mind then why would the seller not only loose the money but also the item. You can;t be sure that the buyer just simply received the item and now wants to get the money back so he/she has it for free. If you pay for first class postage especially for something that has a higher value than the compensation offered by royal mail than don't expect that seller will refund you the money easily!

Flightattendant25 · 25/04/2009 15:53

The seller needs to take responsibility for insisting on recorded delivery or SD for their benefit. The buyer shouldn't get the choice unless the seller is willing to risk a missing parcel.

The buyer has no control regarding how, and indeed whether, the seller posts their item to them. The seller has a contract with RM for delivery of their item, and until it reaches the buyer, the buyer has no control over this.

RM loses the parcel, they compensate the seller.

sixlostmonkeys · 25/04/2009 16:35

yup, what Flightattendant25 says.

sorry Karokaro but you are completely wrong. be careful if you sell on ebay because if you don't cover yourself as a seller then paypal will simply do the refunding for you. Also, by offering the option you may find a buyer may chose the standard postage knowing full well that they can claim non-delivery (as no tracking number will be available) and simply get a refund.

TheOtherMaryPoppinsDiets · 26/04/2009 11:36

FA is right, it's all down to the seller to prove DELIVERY not posting out. If an item goes missing in post then paypal will lways refund the buyer in full and it's upto the seller to claim compo from RM. Her own fault if item was worth £75 that she didn't get extra insurance.

File your claim and pp WILL find in your favour in full.