First "lost" package... now what?

[ShortyBoo]

So for the first time in almost 4 years of selling and trading, I have someone claiming they never got their package. I dug out the receipt (I keep them all just in case) and entered the tracking into the USPS site and it's showing that it was delivered on 11/30. I gave them the tracking number and pointed out it said it was delivered, and they're still insisting they didn't get it. I have no idea what to do since I've never dealt with this before. Is Paypal going to refund their money? I sent it to the address Paypal gave me, so unless they have the wrong address listed in their Paypal, it should have been delivered last Saturday.

EDIT: Well, they confirmed the address I had was correct. They also said that they have another package from someone else that's also missing, which makes me think that they have someone stealing their mail. What kind of bugged me was the fact that they kept insisting the package was lost before checking with the mail carrier or the post office, which seems to be jumping the gun a bit. Especially since the mail is busy this time of year. I know if I didn't get a package right away, I wouldn't immediately think it was lost. Not until I ruled out every other possibility.

[Rhubarbpie]

Yes, people will always jump to the conclusion that a package was not shipped rather than, it got lost in the mail or stolen. Fortunately for you, you have tracking and proof of delivery, you have done your bit and are under no legal obligation to refund or otherwise reimburse the buyer.

Post theft and in-transit losses are unfortunate and sadly happen too often. The seller cannot be held accountable for such incidences.  However, should you wish to offer a partial refund/replacement pony, it may help ease the situation and end the transaction on a positive note, but this is entirely up to you of course 

[ponylady]

If the buyer says they didn't receive the item, but it shows it was delivered, then there's only 3 possible scenarios:

1) The buyer is simply lying and they really do have the item.

2) Somebody stole the package from the mailbox or doorstep.

3) The item was delivered elsewhere by mistake, like the neighbors for example.

I wouldn't automatically assume the buyer is lying, it's just a scenerio. This same situation has happened with things I've sold a couple of times and it turns out the package was delivered at the neighbor's house by mistake and it takes another 2 or 3 days for it to be returned to the PO and then delivered to the correct address.... or the neighbor eventually takes it to the correct address themselves.


A couple of things to keep in mind:

Calling the buyer's local post office is a good idea, but tell the buyer you're doing it first before you actually do. Sometimes packages mysteriously "appear" when the buyer realizes that an investigation is going to be started to determine the whereabouts of the "missing" package.


Also Rhubarb is correct, if the buyer opens a claim for INR (item not received) and the delivery confirmation shows it was delivered, they buyer will lose the claim.

[Galactica]

I've had packages stolen from my doorstep.
I've also had our packages go to our neighbors (and we get theirs) because one of the mail delivery guys is blind lazy or both.

My guess is stolen though.  That is why we have a huge locking mailbox, and anything bigger goes to my office.


Once the package is delivered, the risk of loss is on the recipient, not you, ponylady.

[CupidStrikes]

It's possible the tracking was wrongly updated and that it's still in transit. Here, the post company knowingly update tracking to "final delivery" when a package is retained for import charging. They told me that's just how they do things when I complained    Hopefully your package will get properly delivered in the next few days or something This is not a fun situation for anyone.

[ShortyBoo]

Well, they're supposed to check with their mail carrier and I'll ask them to check with their neighbors to see if it was delivered to the wrong address.