Buyer says they have not received item - tracking shows delivered

[mysterious_cities_of_mold]

I have received a message from a buyer saying the parcel I sent them is marked as delivered on Ebay but they have not received it. I tracked the parcel on the Royal Mail website and it has been delivered. The buyer says they were out all day and no note was left by Royal Mail and no sign of the parcel. They have checked with their neighbours and the parcel was not delivered there.

They believe the parcel could have been stolen by the postman as one of their neighbours told them the same thing had happened to 2 of their parcels recently. They said the signature for the parcel was just a scribble. To me, it looks like the postman probably signed it themselves, but I have had postmen do this during the Coronavirus situation when they leave a parcel in your porch and they are still doing it now, it does not mean they are stealing them.

The buyer is asking me to look into the situation but I am not sure what else I can do from this end. They say "the complaints must come from the sender" but I thought it would be up to them to contact the Post Office from their end and maybe even the police if they think it has been stolen. I had uploaded the tracking number and it show as delivered so I doubt I myself could claim anything from the Post Office.

Any advice on how to proceed with this would be appreciated.

[loftpens]

You've got tracking to prove the item you've sent has been delivered. Do not entertain refunding the buyer, and if the buyer decides to open an INR case, you are covered by eBay's Seller Protections because you've posted the item with tracking. If an INR case happens, eBay will refund the buyer out of their own pocket, and be investigated further to see if they're a fraud. 

There are times where buyers will con a good seller to get a product for free,  and times where it's a genuine Royal Mail mishap. There's no way to tell which it is, and as far as you're concerned the item has been delivered safe and sound.

[gothicrosegallery]

Odd that their neighbour is claiming the postie "stole" two of their parcels. Maybe the neighbour has it but plans to keep it.

Postie's signing for signed for parcels is standard practice, has been since March 2020. Recipients are no longer asked to sign fot them because of covid. Restrictions and social distancing are still with us, so postie's will continue to sign on the customers behalf. They are supposed to mark the signature as CV-19 (or similar).

If you ring RM they can have a look at the GPS coordinates, they cannot tell you what it says, but they will be able to confirm if the package was left within 10 metres of the correct property. If it has, the buyer has no claim. If not, then you can claim lost. Also RM will payout if they do not record the GPS coordinates for a delivery.

[plpmr]

" If an INR case happens, eBay will refund the buyer out of their own pocket, and be investigated further to see if they're a fraud. "

No they won't refund or investigate.

OP is covered as long as they have followed eBay requirements - entered tracking before the last estimated delivery date and before a case is opened.

[tsmgmd]

As a business seller your legal obligation is to make sure delivery is completed fully.

That means unless previously arranged that delivery could be made to a neighbour or left in a safe place the item must be delivered to the person at the address given.

A responder has stated that if GPS proof shows it was delivered within 10mtrs  the buyer cannot claim.

Sadly that is wrong where a business seller is concerned. 

Unless totally 100% proof that delivery was made to the correct address can be obtained your buyer will win.

[loftpens]

eBay investigates the buyer if there's a pattern of suspicious INRs or fraudulent returns. Most of the time, to keep the buyer happy, eBay will refund with no effect to the seller.

[bravergrace]

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@gothicrosegallery wrote:

Odd that their neighbour is claiming the postie "stole" two of their parcels. Maybe the neighbour has it but plans to keep it.

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Or both neighbours are telling the truth, the postman has taken to leaving parcels on doorsteps or behind garden gates (which they are not generally allowed to do), and the local thief is following the postman down the street and pocketing them all.

Or else the postman is actually taking the parcels back to the sorting office if nobody's at home, but isn't "unmarking" them as delivered.  If that's what's happened, then the parcels will eventually be returned to sender, as long as the sender's address is on the outside of the parcel.

[fitzshop_17]

I can only say that today I have received an email from ebay and the Royal Mail tracking shows that the parcel I've been waiting for "recorded delivered "to my address at 01.57am.   The parcel still has not arrived, and we have had our RM delivery today.  No doubt there are some purchaser's who claim non receipt but most claims of non receipt are probably genuine. I don't trust RM tracking and trace online. Clearly no parcel was delivered to me at 01.57.  This is the 3rd Royal Mail ebay purchase that I have not received in about as many weeks.  Postman/ woman should be made to take a photo of the parcel at the door it is delivered to. They used to do this at the beginning of the pandemic, but perhaps only Recorded delivery.  So if my item does not turn up after the weekend I will be a very unhappy customer. And the items are often rare that I order - irreplaceable.    

[ojewellery]

I have seen too many different scenarios to judge who is telling the truth so I'm cautious in my approach.

My first check is the tracking number history - does it show delivery to a neighbour.

Then I have a quick skim read of the buyers feedback and critically feedback left for others to get a meassure if they're one of those incredibly unfortunate soles who appear to have every parcel lost yet even though they have very high losses keep buying (and getting refunds)!

Next I do a request redelivery attempt to the buyers address using their postcode and the date delivery was suggested as tracked - I've had instances of the wrong button being pushed when a parcel has been scanned and taken back to the sorting office.  Sometimes the sorting office scan to say available for collection sorts this - sometimes they also don't appear to scan.

Next I send a very sorry this hasn't been a smooth transaction message.  Please could you check with neighbours, check any potential places parcels could be left etc message.  I request the buyer wait a couple more days to see if the item materialises.  This gives a redelivery attempt a chance to arrive and the parcel to turn up from a neighbour several doors away or be located in a safe place.

I sometimes offer the buyer the same item again at a significant discount (if I have a duplicate) - sharing the cost/ burden of what ever has gone on (typically 50%).  This has a very high take up and I think most people are understanding that sometimes things just go wrong - its not a blame game.  They still want their item but appreciate that whilst they haven't intentionally done anything wrong, neither have I.

I've had items delivered a street away same house number different street, left several doors away then the neighbour has gone on holiday, wrong box ticked and item ultimately gets back to me or gets redelivered if I remember to attempt a redelivery.  Then there is the delivery denial.  The case  gets closed by eBay/ or historically paypal in sellers favour due to tracking, to be swiftly followed by a significantly not as described claim.

I don't think we'll every know the whole truth.  Technically Royal Mail should be knee deep in undelivered parcels - yet they aren't.

[jackpants]

Why on earth would a postie bother to scan an item if they were going to steal it ? All that does is show that they had it when it went missing - if they dont scan it no one would know they had it in the first place.  Their PDA scanners have GPS to show exactly where they are at any given  time. 

Ebay will support the seller on this one, and if it came to it Royal Mail can check the doorstep scan. Have ebay step in to resolve it, youve done everything you can. But be polite and sympathetic to the buyer, sometimes its just been mislaid or misplaced, rather than stolen by anyone.

[garyh3876]

And there is also times when a buyer has shelled out good money and recieved NOTHING! Please do not make sweeping assumptions to imply fraud as that is pretty disgusting! I have been a buyer for over decades, I pay promt on the end of autions, I have always had a 100% raiting. I do not lie and I find it very anoying that such attitude from sellers presist. I too have been a seller and I paid back customers when things were lost. Being wrongly delivered or stolen outside the house happens. Look at the stats and the for the theft of parcles from outside a house, its a real thing.

Now I am not the only honest buyer on Ebay, there will be millions, so how about a bit more thought before typing such poor thinking and poor advice to others!

[palison_123]

Do thay @loftpens  ?

If they do ,then ,they may look at them but don`t take action.See below.and this is with several negatives taken out .

They still have a live account.

[lyndseyrfc1]

..

[lyndseyrfc1]

I've been on both ends of this. As a buyer and, recently as a seller. Very easy to assume there at it. Sometimes they are. Sometimes there not.  

[fitzshop_17]

I have had the experience as a buyer where Ebay says that the item was delivered. But I didn't receive the item. The tracking with some companies is not always reliable. I believe that was the case with this particular item. And the seller was unable to provide clear tracking evidence of having been sent. The problem could be solved by using the most reliable tracked method for sending. Both seller and buyer ought to be able to have the reassurance of this. But cheaper methods of sending are often not really trackable in any way that one can see clearly the stages of delivery.  As a buyer , I have had more than one experience of non delivery. But fortunately most items do arrive safely eventually.  In the UK Royal Mail tracking is wholly inadequate.  But I've had Royal Mail and Hermes items just left outside the door, or worse - not delivered at all.  These are in the minority - most items arrive.  

[crissy.annie]

I have sent my buyer an item with royalmail, they opened a case against me on 20th June to say their item has not been delivered. I have got a photo of the tracking number and their postcode and also a photo from royalmail to say the item was delivered on 21st June. The problem is I cannot download the 2 photos. I have tried to appeal but eBay have said they have refunded my buyer with £18.35 as I did not win the case. 

[busterbuttonmoon]

I'm having same trouble on Royal Mail says it was signed for and their name only contacted me yesterday brought it 4 th june

[gothicrosegallery]

Appeal the case. Send the link to the RM tracking page and delivery confirmation.

[gothicrosegallery]

Contact RM and ask them to confirm the GPS coordinates for delivery match the delivery address.

[Anonymous]

Me too.

I had a notification from a courier that a parcel had been delivered, the gps co- ordinates were showing a different road  on the estate. We managed to get a screen shot of the door/hall mat. It wasn't at the house the co-ordinates were showing, it wasn't the same numbered house around the corner from it but it was the one with the same number directly behind us! The house owner claimed she had ordered a dog bowl and thought she'd been  sent a loaf tin by mistake!