Item delivered but buyer says then stolen before they got home

[destinationfashion_outlet]

I have a buyer who opened a Item Not Received case, so I checked the Evri tracking and it is marked as delivered to secure porch.

The image shows the item outside the buyers front door (large heavy item) but inside as they live in a one up, one downstairs block of flats.

They were given a one hour delivery slot in the morning but said they were out until 8pm that evening and it had gone when they got home.

How do I proceed?

I bought the postage through eBay/packlink and this is on my personal eBay account, not business.

Will the buyer be covered and eBay refund the money and pursue compensation from Evri?

or am I going to have to refund and lose out myself?

[tressygirl]

If you have tracking to show delivery to the name and address eBay provided on the order details, then neither you nor eBay need refund the buyer.

Little the buyer can do if the item has been stolen.  They can report it to the Police probably not for any hope of retrieving the item,  but it's logged with them,  and there could be a spate of burglaries in the area the Police need to be aware of.

Or,  more likely a one off, a chancer seeing an item on view..... took it.

If it was left in an unsafe place,  they could try Evri, though I hear they are not too forthcoming in giving out refunds readily !

@destinationfashion_outlet 

[style_wise]

As advised, your job was done when Tracking showed delivered. They won't be able to open an INR case.

EVRI's job was not done correctly as they left the package in an unsecured place but marked 'secure' (they have form for doing this). (The delivery window and Buyer's work schedule do not matter, EVRI has a duty of care.)

If I were the Buyer, I would get eBay on the phone and explain the situation. If it was Simple Delivery, eBay should refund them and let you keep your money from the sale. If it was not SD and I were the Buyer, I would get onto EVRI Customer Service to complain about their mistake.

Depending on how communication with the Buyer is going, you could point them in the right direction as a courtesy.

If it was SD and they leave Negative/Neutral Feedback related to delivery issues, then ask eBay to remove it.

[4_bathrooms]

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@destinationfashion_outlet wrote:

The image shows the item outside the buyers front door (large heavy item) but inside as they live in a one up, one downstairs block of flats...

...I bought the postage through eBay/packlink and this is on my personal eBay account, not business.

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Unless the carrier was DHL it definitely sounds like you purchased a Packlink label rather than a Simple Delivery one. Was the value of the item less than £450?

[destinationfashion_outlet]

yes, packlink through eBay - it was just under £50 with best offer accepted

[eastern-lights]

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@style_wise wrote:

As advised, your job was done when Tracking showed delivered. They won't be able to open an INR case.

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Sorry to be pedantic, but my experience is the buyer will be able to open an INR case, despite tracking showing the item was delivered. They just won't win the case. Unless the seller decides to refund.

I had an INR opened against me recently, seven weeks after the item had been delivered. Tracking was on the listing from day 1, and following it a photo could be found. I went through the motions of adding a tracking number to the case, but the tracking number was already there in the case so I saved it unchanged. The buyer closed the case himself a couple of days later. 

[4_bathrooms]

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@destinationfashion_outlet wrote:

yes, packlink through eBay - it was just under £50 with best offer accepted

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Direct the buyer to open an "item not received" case if they haven't already. You then need to ensure that you upload the tracking you have to the case which will close the case in your favour. You should then direct your buyer to file a dispute (chargeback) with their payment provider; even if their payment provider decides they are entitled to a refund you will still be protected by eBay due to the tracking you have. 

eBay only requires an online delivery confirmation for items under £450 in value for the purposes of defending an INR claim.

[destinationfashion_outlet]

Thank you for your help