Royal Mail delivery ‘pending’ for 2 weeks

[LumpyandBumps]

Hi,
I am just wondering what my liability is in this situation.
I advertised an item for collection only on Facebook marketplace.
I was persuaded to post it. Buyer paid by bank transfer. I made a mistake with postage cost, but accepted that I just got a lower net amount for the item.
I posted straight away via Royal Mail tracked 48.
The tracking showed delivery attempted on 2 consecutive days, that the delivery is pending
and a redelivery can be booked.
The buyer says he had no card left. I had already given him the tracking number, and then sent him a link to the tracking page so he could arrange re delivery.
I haven’t heard from him for 2 weeks, so assumed all was well.
I checked the tracking today and the delivery still shows as pending.
I think something has gone wrong somewhere.
I don’t want the buyer to be out of pocket, but ideally neither do I want to be.
I suppose it’s possible that he has the item now and Royal Mail records have not been updated. It’s also possible that for whatever reason he has failed to rearrange delivery or collection.
I’ve checked their website and they suggest that the buyer contacts the seller to sort out any problems.
The item is vintage and the only proof of value I can provide is the marketplace advertisement, or similar items on EBay, etc.
I assume that even though it’s a private sale and I did everything I agreed to do I will have to reimburse him and hope I get something back from Royal Mail?
I won’t take any action unless he contacts me.

You should contact Royal Mail to see where the item is. How much was it worth (your sale price) and is it covered for the full value of that?

I wouldn’t contact the buyer as it may have been delivered then they try it on. Let the buyer come back to you.

call RM, I’m not sure you will get far with it. If it is waiting for collection and isn’t then it will be returned to you.

The buyer does not have a contract with Royal Mail so cannot claim compensation from them. They can claim their money back from you.

Royal Mail should return the item to you if it still hasn't been delivered or collected after 18 days. If it doesn't come back to you and the buyer has not received it, you can claim compensation from Royal Mail.

Thank you all for your replies.

The sale price of the item is below the £75 compensation limit.

I can see that there is a time limit for
claims, but I have a while yet, so will leave it a little longer to see if it’s returned.

You can contact RM by phone, they can often follow where an item is and chase it up. I’ve had to do this on a few occasions, they’re usually quite helpful.

I have sold on Ebay and elsewhere or 20 years, mostly international. I don't go chasing around after buyers. If something goes wrong its up to them to notify me. I cant be looking at every tracking number as I would do nothing else. If its a domestic parcel and it hasn't been delivered it will make its way back to you.