Parcels confused by Royal Mail

[a.bavarian-72]

Hi everyone,

Sorry guys, long message, but I really don’t know what to do…

something very weird happened, I never thought that’s possible. I sold a milk frother on eBay, and as always, I sent it off via Royal Mail collection. It had been collected and I thought everything was good, but I haven’t got any notifications that the item has been sent out to the recipient. It was sent by 48 hrs tracked. After a couple of days there was still nothing, it’s now 7 days ago. Royal Mail told me I need to wait a couple of days more until I can report it missing. Unfortunately the recipient needed it as a birthday present soon, which is very unfortunate. 5 days after I later I sold a Phone (which was not cheap!!) to another seller. I sent it via Royal Mail collection (48 hours tracked and signed). I was a bit unsure about it all as the buyer of the phone had 0 ratings and recently joined. I’ve got today a message that the Phone was delivered and signed. 10 min later I’ve got a message, that he said he didn’t get the item. I immediately thought he wants to scam me. Then I’ve got another message he received a milk frother!! I looked at the delivery photo from in the Royal Mail app and I couldn’t see much, but it really does look more like the milk frother. I was thinking, how’s that possible, the milk frother has been sent out before I even received the order for the phone on eBay  (I can prove that all!!). I asked the buyer of the phone if he can send me the photo of the frother, but he just said I’ve scammed him and that he reported it to eBay and he opened a case and reported it also to the police. However - it seems Royal Mail confused both parcels (although they’ve been collected 5 days apart!!), and the phone is now missing. Such a mess! 

[hull_media]

it's unlikely that the royal mail confused these two as the first item would have alrady had a label on it and be in the system if you sent it several days earlier.

A few Things are possible hear.
You could have accidently sent the wrong package to each address? are they noticebly different sizes?

it's possibly a complex scam. order a cheap item, order an expensive item, resend the cheap item to the expensive items address and claim you recieved that but not the expensive item.

The fact they mentioned birthday immediately scream scam to me. Generally anybody who claims "it's a for a birthday", "you've ruinined my kids birthday" etc. it's always a scam trying to pressure you into returning their money without raising an issue becasue they know ebay has access you their account and will be able to tell it's a scam.

Definitely get ebay resolution centre involved, and always make them return the item before issuing a refund.

[bennotbill]

Are the addresses close to each other?

Maybe this is a new one. Two "friends" order two different things then swap them......................

[hull_media]

thats what i was thinking. the dynamics of the whole thing seem very off.

I think the best evidence would be royalmails image of the parcel at the iphone address. the buyer has no control over that so it would be pretty clear if the parcel delivered was the phone or not.

[a.bavarian-72]

Hi, thank you for your reply!  

It's not possible that I confused the parcels, as the milk frother was already collected before the phone was even purchased on eBay. 
 As the frother was still sitting at the post office as the phone came in, they might have confused it there?! No idea... the "milk frother" still shows as not despatched 7 days later. 

[a.bavarian-72]

But the strange this that one of them got lost...

[a.bavarian-72]

It's about 100 miles from each other... 

[hull_media]

How do you know it was still sitting at the post office if you used royalmails collection service?

I don't see how they'd confuse them if they both had labels on. either you put the labels on yourself, or your royalmail collection will bring the label with them. either way, both parcels will have been labelled at seperate times and there's no point at which royal mail could have then confused them. They are effectively as different as if you and I had both sent a package each.
Sent 5 or so days apart, your two parcels are unlikely to have ever crossed paths in the sorting centre.

[a.bavarian-72]

Yeah that's very true, I can't understand how they could have crossed paths! 
I never stuck the label on it, I always choose the "bring my label" option.

i thought it is still sitting in the post office as it says on the tracking app:

"We've got it

Saturday 03 February, 9:32 am

Item was collected as per request on

03 February 2024."

And that's the last I've got. I sent RM a message and they replied: 

"Per timescales for your item we must allow until the 14th February if the item was not received by then a claim for loss would be required by the senders.

I’m confident for further updates and delivery soon.

Apologies for the delay."

[hull_media]

so long as you made sure that the label did actually get stuck on the parcel and it didn't just get chucked in a van.

with parcel tracking (all companies not just royalmail) those initial tracks saying things like "its with us" "leave it to us" and things along those lines are effectively just place holders used to generate the tracking log.

The first actual scanning of a tracked item doesn't happen until it reaches the first automatic sorting centre. then it'll say which centre it's at etc.

thats why they make you wait a few days to see if tracking information updates. it could be sitting in the back of a van on the way to another region or it could be wizzing round a conveyor. until it passes one of the scanners nobody actually knows were it is.

But as i said in my first message, this does have hallmarks of an ebay scam.

[a.bavarian-72]

That's the problem I guess, I just asked my husband (he gave the out postie from Royal Mail the parcel as I was working), and he told me she didn't stick a label on it... just collected it. But each time I got message that it has been collected. 

[whisky_and_bourbon_breweriana]

Did you select the option where they bring the label to you or did you print a label yourself? 

Regardless, the advise above is incorrect- the first scan for the collection service is when they collect it. 

A few thoughts:

1- Did you prepack your items? Any chance you shipped the wrong box (or your partner grabbed the wrong one) if they were already packed?

2- If you open the tracking in the RM website (not on ebay) for the item that has been delivered, there should be a photo of your parcel being delivered, does it look like the item you sent?

[hull_media]

my point was that the first scan just registers it on the system, it doens't include an actual 'tracked' location.

[a.bavarian-72]

thank you for your reply! 

It's not possible that I confused the parcels, as the milk frother was already collected before the phone was even purchased on eBay.  I double checked that.

The problem is: my partner said the postie didn't stick the label on it and she didn't scan it, she just collected it. But both times I've got the email confirmation that it had been collected. 

The photo quality on the Royal Mail app is bad, but it definitely doesn't look like the phone box, that's why I don't think that he scammed me, although it all seems fishy.

it would help if he would send me a photo of the milk frother, labels etc. but he refuses it and said he reported it to police and wants to do it trough eBay. I don't understand why he doesn't understand it got mixed up. If I wanted to scam him I wouldn't send him a new frother which sells for £55. And he can see in my history that I recently sold one.

[a.bavarian-72]

Sorry I forgot to write - I always choose the option where they bring your label.

[a.bavarian-72]

Do you know if it had been scanned when I've got the email confirmation that RM successfully collected my item? 

[whisky_and_bourbon_breweriana]

Whoever collects your item has to scan the label to generate the first actual tracking update (apart from label generated).

On the RM website/app, this will show as "Item collected".  On Ebay is shows as " Collected (Doorstep) "

Clearly the location is where you booked the collection from, it does not need GPS coordinates as you booked the address for the collection!

My point just on the boxed being mixed up- I know one was purchased a few days before the other- but is there anyway you prepacked both items before you sold them and mixed them up from the off (and it just has not come to light yet as the first one is missing). The logical explanation for all this, from reading all your details, is this is where the mixup took place (somehow)

You should always make sure labels are on the packages before they leave your location. Most of my guys won't put them on for me and just hand me the label (I often have more then one.)

Some other thoughts:

1-Do you have a ring or any security system that would have captured one or both pickups? 

2-Put your tracking into the full RM website as the photo should show up better on a computer (the app does not have an option to full open or click on it).

3- The first buyer, what sort of Ebay record do they have? Their is no way, barring being in cahoots with the postman too, that they could influence the first item going missing. RM can see scans they don't reveal publicly as the item moves through the system so they should at least be able to tell you if it ever got scanned again after the postie did when it got collected. 

4- What sort of case have either of your buyers opened? And have you replied within them?

5- Have you spoken to Ebay?

[a.bavarian-72]

Thank you for your reply, I appreciate it!

Ah, I see what you mean. It’s definitely not possible I’ve got the parcels mixed up, as I didn’t pack them at the same time. The phone has been packed on the evening before it got collected, the milk frother had been picked up a few days before. I even took some videos, showing how I packed the phone, and I took photos of the serial number of the phone etc.

Yeah, I’m not using collection at all anymore now, in future I’ll bring my parcels to the post office.

Unfortunately I don’t have a security system.

That’s a good idea to have a look with my laptop, I’ll do that.

The first buyer (frother) was very trustworthy, lots of positive reviews, polite replies , member since more than 10 years. I also googled him and he’s definitely living at the address and genuine (eBay photo shows same person like online etc).

The second buyer (phone) opened a refund case on eBay. The first didn’t open any case yet, he also spoke to Royal Mail, he wants to wait if the parcel still arrives, and buy a new item in a shop. I guess he wants to report it going missing to Royal Mail when he’s able to (After 10 days, so Wednesday).

I didn’t speak to eBay yet, as I still try to figure out what happened, it’s really strange.

I’ll definitely call Royal Mail customer service this morning, as it was yesterday already too late.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

what i find scary about all this is that although i try and be aware of the various scams i have never heard of this one!!   Thank goodness i do not have any expensive items to sell!

[1956glyn]

Ok this is what i would do.

You have the names of both buyers.   Look on FB and see if they are friends.

Not that i would ever pull a scam BUT my BFF of over 50 years lives 120 miles from me. 

Another very close friend lives 4 hours away......both we see regularly.