Has This Happened To You? What To Do? eBay Selling...

[HenneFan007]

Hey everyone,

Figured I would write this up and see if anyone else has had this happen to them before.

Nearly 2 months ago I shipped a card that I sold on eBay. 2014 Barry Sanders Valor Patch/Auto /25. I never insured it (dumb*** move but never had a problem before) but I went and used eBay's shipping service with DC. The card literally disappeared after it left Indy. Just vanished and never popped back up. The buyer obviously wanted a refund after about 2 weeks of nothingness and I went ahead and refunded him.

I put out a package intercept on the package so that if it ever showed back up again it would just get returned to me, or so I thought. After about 3 or 4 days I was notified the package intercept was cancelled due to no activity.

Well I continued to check the DC every other day just to see if it ever would pop back up. Yesterday, it shows up in Charlotte NC and it was suppose to be delivered to San Diego, CA all the way on the other side of the country. I go back to place a package intercept on the package and it will no longer let me place a package intercept on it because I had already done so.

Needless to say I go to the post office right when they open this morning to tell them about my situation only to be told that they can't really do anything other than give the final destination's post office a call to try and halt it there. They say I should contact the buyer to have him return it to me upon delivery, but I have very little faith in people's ability to do the right thing anymore, but did so anyways.

So there it is, I'm up a creek without a paddle it would seem. Without the "shoulda placed insurance on it" reply since I would have eventually lost that battle due to them claiming they never lost it in the first place probably, what would you all do? Has this happened to anyone before? Should I contact eBay? I, like my package, am just a bit lost at the moment....

Thanks
Andy

[CM Sports Memorabilia]

Not sure what you sold the card for and this is the reason that I only use paypal shipping. Depending on the cost of the card/item insurance is built in along with DC.

I would contact the buyer and ask that when the card finaly makes it to him, could he please send it back (that way he knows you're watching the DC). Throw a couple of dollars to him through paypal for shipping.

I would also contact ebay and then keep an eye on the DC and once it gets to the buyer make sure ebay knows.

I never had this happen (fingers crossed) though I've had my share of shipping nightmares. Good luck!

[sheetskout]

Tough situation. I feel for ya.

If the package does get delivered to the buyers' address won't it show up on the tracking as ultimately delivered? Or, are they not tracking it any longer?

I would think if the person doesn't return it right away you could use the tracking information with eBay/Paypal. It may take a while though as I would wait a couple days to allow the person to return it as you reached out to them first - you have to give them that chance now.

[HenneFan007]

It is currently still tracking the item and I am now going to receive a text with any and all activity it goes through so I will be able to know if and when it gets delivered. I did say that I would pay shipping for its return in my message, hoping the original buyer has some code of ethics and will do the right thing but not exactly holding my breath on it.

[sheetskout]

It is currently still tracking the item and I am now going to receive a text with any and all activity it goes through so I will be able to know if and when it gets delivered. I did say that I would pay shipping for its return in my message, hoping the original buyer has some code of ethics and will do the right thing but not exactly holding my breath on it.

I wouldn't either (hold my breath there), but you may want to proactively contact eBay/Paypal and ask them what happens if you've already refunded the money. I think you may be alright in the end if the guy keeps the package, anyhow, as long as the tracking shows delivered. They may just recharge him the sell price.

[jdhaugh11]

How many transactions does the buyer have? Do they have a great rating? If both are high, then I would say you have a chance. Most people that do a lot of buying/selling online do not want to get a bad reputation over one "free" score, so hopefully they do the right thing.
I would also suggest to never give a refund after just 2 weeks, I have had a few cards take up to a month. Had a $10 auto this month that took nearly 4 weeks, since it got temporarily lost due to the busy holiday season for the post office.

[MNmoose78]

I sent a Shaq graded rookie card that said it left the post office a town away and never updated from there! That was about 3 months ago, lucky it was only a $20 sale but the post office customer service said they would look into it and get back with me, but they never did! Shcoking huh!!

[rconde]

years ago i bout a few cards from a seller on ebay. they got lost and i sent an email to the seller that they had never made it about 2 weeks later. we waited it out about another week and then he refunded me my money. about 6 months later i finally got the cards and i sent him another email to let him know and what was his paypal address to resend the money. he told me he was happy they had gotten there and not to worry about the money. i felt bad anyway so i ended up calling ebay to ask for his paypal address and i still sent him the money. i was shocked that they had arrived as i had really wanted them. so sometimes stuff does get lost in the mail.hopefully that guy is as honest as i was.

[freethrowtommy]

I sent a Shaq graded rookie card that said it left the post office a town away and never updated from there! That was about 3 months ago, lucky it was only a $20 sale but the post office customer service said they would look into it and get back with me, but they never did! Shcoking huh!!

This shouldn't be surprising.

POs go through thousands of packages per day. It is literally a needle in a haystack if a package gets lost. Outside of their own tracking system, which you can view yourself online, I doubt there is much more any individual postmaster can even do if you tell them directly.

I can count on one hand the number of packages that have gotten lost at some point. Then I am down to one or two fingers of packages that NEVER turned up again.

Nobody likes when their stuff gets lost, but there are protections for yourself if it does.

[HenneFan007]

Hey everyone,

Somewhat of an update. Card is expected for delivery tomorrow and looks like it is on pace to meet that goal. I've reached out to eBay who said that if the item does reach it's destination I can reopen the case and just need to call them to make things right since I did the right thing by providing a refund in the first place. I've also reached out to the buyer multiple times asking what he wishes to do with nothing replied to yet. Buyer is probably hoping he can just pocket the card and slide by...

Thanks
Andy

[oldgoldy97]

The PO is great until something goes wrong. Then you're pretty much screwed.

[CCSportsCards]

I don't know why you think the buyer will keep it/not pay. I've had multiple packages get lost and eventually found. I have always been repaid or they have shipped the item back. Most recently I shipped a box to Canada that ended up in Germany bounced around for 2 months before finally reaching its destination. Buyer repaid immediately.

[HenneFan007]

As of right now I'm uneasy about it because he has yet to respond to my messages. I notified him early Friday and have yet to hear back. Not saying that he/she won't, just saying that I'd feel better if I receive a response. Depending if I get one the day it's delivered (Monday), that will lead me more into how I feel this will all go.