Item that I posted in postbox never got scanned by Royal Mail.

[siybon]

The buyer is claiming that I never sent the item and is starting to sound angry and threatening. Amongst other things, they are telling me they will call the sorting office for some reason. I've maintained polite and respectfull comms throughout.

I've learnt over time that items that aren't sent tracked can go in the post box. And I used to take pics of every single item I posted, but I no longer do that. It all just saves me time and the post office staff time. But the downside is that Im not in control of when the item gets scanned.

I've had one item go missing this year using these methods. 

I'm genuinly concerned the buyer a) will leave negative feedback for something out of my control. And b) something worse, like try and locate me. 

The item was £4, and I've told the buyer I'm happy to refund them. But the buyer shows no signs of any kind of understanding. Thankfully this has never happened before, but it's all leaving a sour taste in my mouth. 

Is there some way I should approach this that Im not considering. I fully anticipate blocking the buyer after either the item arrives, or I process a refund. But this buyer sounds a bit unstable, and Im concerned it will anger them further. 

Cheers 🙂

[**peaseblossom**]

If they've been abusive report them to ebay and that would support your application to remove a neg, if they leave one.   Here's the link:

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/buying-practices.html

I very much doubt they will try to find you but if you're worried report them to your local police.

Best of luck.

[siybon]

Thanks

So far they have told me they will negative feedback. And they simply wont take my side of the story and am essentialy claiming that I'm lying.  They have very negative energy that seems at odds with actual events (its always frustrating when something goes missing, but making unfounded claims is another thing).

Hopefuly as you suggest,  the way theyve communicated so far will stand me in better stead in the event of negative feedback.

[porte2425]

Threats should never be taken lightly. Report them to eBay. Any threat of violence from someone who has your address I would inform them you will report them to the police if they threaten you again – and actually follow through. Better safe than sorry. No one should have to tolerate this behaviour, even if most are empty threats.

[style_wise]

Feedback doesn't matter. The money doesn't matter. Personally I would have blocked them immediately. Then I would have waited to see if they opened an Item Not Received case, and I would have only messaged when absolutely necessary for that case. Most of the time if you can slow down the comms and make things official it gives people a chance to calm down. Plus you have a centralized paper trail in case you need to report the rare unbalanced person to eBay, or the police.

[porte2425]

While it is true an average person will calm down given a bit of time, some will escalate their threats if they feel they are being ignored – and for some that could be taking more than five minutes with a follow up response! Someone who starts accusing a seller of lying about sending a £4 item is, well, lets just say, not in the best mindset!

Personally, I respond to all issues asap, and I am very diplomatic through a buyer’s complaining and stupid comments (as was the OP, by the sounds of it). But the moment any personal attacks occur I drop the hammer. I let them know I won’t tolerate it, and that if they persist they will be reported (depending on the severity, to eBay or to the police).