Pony lost in the mail- what to do?

[SailorEarth]

This is something I've never had happen before so I'm hoping some of you could give me some advice. I mailed a pony first class international on the 16th of July going to the UK and found out this morning that it never showed up. I've never had anything get lost in the mail before so I'm not sure what I can do. It didn't have tracking or insurance on it so I don't know where to go from here. I cleaned out my purse a week ago and shredded all the receipts that were old so now I don't even have that. I don't think it would have helped to locate it anyway as it only showed the destination and the date/time I mailed it out. I know some places have trouble with packages getting stuck in customs but I didn't think the UK was one of those. Any ideas as to how I can find her pony? I hate to think of it being lost in the void 

[Shenanigans]

I sent my friend in the UK a package one time and thought it got lost. It showed up almost 2 months later so there is still a little hope in it showing up If it is lost though I have no idea what to do International shipping is difficult and mail does seem to get lost more often than non international

[Ringlets]

  I'm going through the same thing (only I'm the buyer), and I know its awful for both people    I'm in the UK too, so maybe its a customs thing (although in my case the parcel was sent at the beginning of July).  There is still hope that your parcel will show up since sometimes it can take 4, 5 or even more weeks on occasion. Its rare for parcels to go missing completely but it happens sometimes.  Unfortunately without a receipt you cant prove that you sent the pony , and even with the receipt , first class only has a customs number so you can check when it left the US but you cant see whereabouts in the UK it is. Also with first class you cannot make a claim to get your monies back from the PO for the missing parcel (which sucks!  ) .   
The only thing you can do ATM is to refund your buyer, and if the parcel shows up then she can resend the money back to you  (  If she opens a paypal claim you would have to give a full refund anyways) or alternatively , do you have something else that your buyer would want as a replacement?. 

[teresat]

If you don't have the receipt, do you have the other half of the customs form?  It will have a customs form number and will look something like LCxxxxxxxxxUS. If you have that number, you might be able to find some info on the package if you type that into tracking at USPS.com.

[ponylady]

Ringlets has great advice. 

Although is it rare a package goes missing it can happen.  And without any proof that you shipped, well it leaves you in a bind with your buyer.
I think your best bet at this point is to make sure you keep good communication.  Perhaps asking them to wait a week more to see if maybe it is just caught up in customs.  If it does not show up by then you could offer her a refund and like Ringlets mentioned she can resend the money when it arrives.

Also just in case have you double checked the address where it was going?   

[SailorEarth]

No, I shredded the customs form along with the receipt. It'd been so long I figured it got there and she just forgot to let me know. Won't be making that mistake again :/ I do have my bank statement showing where I paid the cost of shipping on the day I mailed it but of course that doesn't show names or locations. I'm hoping it'll still show up but in the meantime I'm keeping in touch with her and have already told her I'd refund her money if I can't figure out a way to locate it. She's being really great about it ^_^

Thanks for the advice everyone! It makes me feel better knowing it might not be lost after all. Ringlets, I hope your situation gets resolved soon!

[Galactica]

Once I had this happen and it turns out that the Royal Mail had retained the package for payment of a customs fee (even though the package was marked gift) - you might ask your buyer to check with her local post?

[Sarahlacewing]

It's hard without proof of shipping.  Is this an Arena transaction or an Ebay transaction?

If it is an ebay transaction you will probably be forced to refund their money and take the loss.  You cannot prove it arrived without tracking so there is absolutely nothing you can do if they feel like opening a case.  That's why many people don't ship internationally without tracking because even proof you sent it isn't enough, you have to prove it got there and it's really expensive to do so.  There is also nothing to keep a bad buyer from getting it and claiming they didn't since they know you can't prove it.  But that is the worst case jaded by selling on ebay scenario. 

If it was here on the Arena there are a few ways to handle it.
1. Refund the seller and take the loss.  After all they can always reissue payment if it shows up and you can send it back if it returns to sender.
2. Split the cost down the middle so you are both out the same amount and even up when the pony arrives somewhere.
3. Ask for more time and hope it is just stuck in customs.
4. Refuse the return on the grounds they new the risks and did not opt for better shipping.

Different situations and different dollar amounts cause for different things.  I would imagine without proof of shipping your buyer will want a show of good faith and a refund/take the loss would be most appropriate.  That way there is no doubt that the error was the post and not yours.  And you will make your seller happy. 

Thoughts others?

[shelti]

What was the Value SailorEarth you marked on the customs form?
This might give you an idea if it's being held in Customs for Tax's

I always give my customers the option of choosing shipping for international, as Ringlets well knows
with implications for both options if an item does go missing.  It could show up still though.  I had a first class go to a member here at the Arena who was in China and believe this, it took 11 months to clear through and get to her.
 

[RockinPrettyBeats]

If it was a ebay or paypal transaction wouldn't the custom number or the tracking number still be in the database? Or has it been too long?

[Ringlets]

Thanks hun   In my case, it was an Arena sale,  I checked with my seller but there werent any ponies to replace the ones I bought, so the seller and me went half and half with the monies. I will resend my half of the money if my ponies show up.
 

What was the Value SailorEarth you marked on the customs form?
This might give you an idea if it's being held in Customs for Tax's

Thats a good point ^^   If you marked the pony as  anything but a gift, and the value is worth more than £18, it will be held for a customs tax. Even if you marked it as a gift but the value was more than £40, then it will still be held for a customs tax.  They dont even send out the letter  asking for the tax until they've held the item another week in customs... so add that onto the normal time it takes to get here   Then your buyer would have to pay up before they would deliver the parcel....

[SailorEarth]

It was an Arena transaction and since it was shipping internationally I wasn't able to print the shipping label through Paypal like I normally do. Doesn't the post office keep a copy of the customs form? It has three copies, one of which they keep but I'm not sure how long they keep it on file. I'd have to send my husband to ask about it as I'm working 11 hour days plus Saturdays right now- all during business hours. I'll try to talk him in to doing that tomorrow.

As for the value, it was less than $10 with shipping and the cost of the pony so at least that's good. Still, that poor lost pony The cost on the customs form was $2. It doesn't sound like they'd hold something of such a small amount but don't they sometimes hold or inspect random packages? I also marked it as merchandise. I don't normally mark the gift option unless they ask me to since it's considered mail fraud. Although I don't know how often people actually get caught doing that so I may be worried about nothing.

I've already refunded her payment but I'll let her know about the possibility of it being stuck in customs or just taking an extra long time. I'll update once my husband goes to the post office, hopefully they still have their copy and I can at least see when it left the country.

shelti- 11 months?!  Wow, that's a long wait.

Thanks again for all the suggestions!

[shelti]

hummm, the merchandise may have triggered some bells, the value should not have,
 I always mark my form as Other unless it is a Gift, which I do quite often to a friend with large box of baits.

Yup, the China thing was an all time record.
The Next time she had it shipped to her home in Germany instead, go there much faster  LOL

[Sarahlacewing]

Some countries don't allow toys and some are really strict on toys. It's hard to say. Sometimes they open them to inspect them. Or th labels get damaged. I hate it when items get lost because who knows what happened to them. It makes me sad because they might not get their love. I think you did the right thing. And I really really hope she turns up.

[shelti]

Some countries don't allow toys and some are really strict on toys. It's hard to say. Sometimes they open them to inspect them. Or th labels get damaged. I hate it when items get lost because who knows what happened to them. It makes me sad because they might not get their love. I think you did the right thing. And I really really hope she turns up.

Another Reason I always mark my Ponies as "Used" Horse Figures and include the disclaimer suggested here several years ago...


CAUTION:
This/these item/items are intended as a vintage collectible. It has not been tested for lead or phthalates and should be kept out of the reach of children.