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Just to clarify
Audra and I have had a friendly customer-postal worker relationship for quite a while. I sold on eBay for many years and dealt with her on a practically weekly basis. I complement her monthly new hair styles regularly and she goes out of her way to be helpful and straight forward with me as best as she can be given her employee status. Some things she may be comfortable telling me that would be inappropriate for her to tell other customers, ie: Brian. This definitely falls into that category. I have tried to explain this to thru pm not wanting to drag this out here but you disturbed by the tern stolen. Would you have felt better if I simply wrote lost/stolen? If it would make you feel better I would be happy to change the thread title to lost/stolen but I can’t and don’t see what difference or change of circumstances it would make. We are still here...same situation, same no package, same request for refund and same: I would simply resubmit payment if this package somehow shows up in weeks or months from now. How many weeks/months do you feel would be appropriate before you issue a refund as per forum (ie: Leon’s) policy on his forum? It’s now been almost 2 months, so what...3 months? 4 months?
On a side note, I am truly glad to see your recovery is going well. |
lots of different opinions for sure...
ftc says... Two federal laws — the Mail, Internet or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule and the Fair Credit Billing Act — offer protections and procedures so you don’t have to pay for merchandise you ordered but never got. But first things first: Contact the seller to try to resolve the problem and get a refund. |
A true Secret Santa
Ok, I wasn’t going to post this but my wife and I just finished watching It’s a Wonderful Life, AGAIN and I cannot help but share this story of a fellow member’s most generous offer during this joyous holiday season. He may wish to remain anonymous and is clearly modest in his reference to what he did but here it is.
After reading about my plight, this member made the most generous offer to refund me out of his own pocket, clearly wishing to spread some holiday joy. And told me to simply pay him back if the card eventually shows up. I was beyond shocked. I politely declined explaining that at almost 60, retired and collecting a generous pension, money is not an issue. For those who already know him, his identity will not be a surprise. But for those who do not, please realize that you have amongst your membership, the most generous person I have ever had the privilege of conversing with...thanks again Casey!! I wish you a long and Wonderful Life |
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Long story short, eBay paid for my "delivered" card that was not, and did not ding the seller. But they made me fill out a police report to allege the package had been stolen since the USPS officially deemed it delivered. Not sure this was fair either, but eBay just wanted a police report number to give to their insurance company. After that, they were more than happy to pay me out under their "Buyer's Guarantee." A rare occurrence, at least for me - but prices and fees be damned, this is why I still lean heavily on the eBay marketplace. I'm covered by both eBay and PayPal if the seller doesn't want to cooperate. And in the increasingly likely scenario that the United States Postal Service totally F's up...I'm covered by eBay there regardless as well. |
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Missing packages
I came across this today. I used to live in Laurel, and am very familiar with this business.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifes...aurel-leather/ Bill |
Serious question:
If I sell a card here on Net54, and USPS tracking shows it as being delivered, have I satisfied my obligations as a seller on this board? For the sake of keeping it simple, let's assume a PayPal Goods & Services payment. The buyer enters their own shipping address for those transactions. |
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Something like this does not happen often however. I think there is only so much a seller can do to a certain extent. If the card is extremely valuable, I would think overnight it, or if possible an in person pickup would probably be the best bet in terms of the transaction being conducted. Obviously this is not always possible, but at the moment, with the way things are going with the postal service, I would say it's the best option. I'm not sure if this really answers your question though. Just my thoughts on the situation. |
"Delivered"...doesn't always mean delivered
3 weeks ago I made a purchase from a very trusted member of a Facebook collector's group. We had great communication, and I paid immediately via PayPal "Goods and Services." She mailed my package the next day via USPS Priorty Mail in Cincinnati, OH. The package was estimated to arrive at my PO Box address in Lexington KY (approx. 80 miles from the seller's shipping point) 3 days later, on a Saturday.
...On Friday, tracking showed that my package had arrived at the Lexington regional distribution center (nearly always says that the day before I get a package.) ...On Saturday, I checked the tracking before going to the PO to pick it up. Tracking says "Arrived at USPS Regional Facility, Des Moines IA." Well that's an interesting side trip. ...On Sunday, tracking shows it arrived back at the Lexington Distribution Center. ...On Monday morning, the package arrived at the Versailles KY post office (about 20 miles from my PO). ...Later on Monday afternoon, 1:26 PM, the package arrived at my Post Office. PO Box mail at my location is always placed in boxes by 11am. ...At 5:12 PM on Monday afternoon, the tracking now shows that my package was "Delivered, In/At Mailbox" ...Packages too large for the PO Box are placed in a lobby locker with a key left in the PO Box (I get them like this all the time, no issues). ...It is now 2 weeks later and I still have never seen the package, nor the locker key. To recap...Seller clearly did her part; USPS screwed the pooch; who knows what actually happened to the package? (Probably mis-delivered and not returned by the improper recipient, but who knows); tracking shows "delivered"; ...and I never got the package. Even if there was such a thing as a Net54 BST "policy" (which Leon says in this thread he has no intentions of instituting), or commonly accepted "board etiquette" (which is clearly not commonly accepted by everyone), there would still be cases where it is just not simple and clear cut. |
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As for PayPal, as long as seller shipped to the confirmed address and package shows as "delivered" or "available for pickup", they are clear. If the buyer pushed the issue with them, PayPal would probably reimburse the buyer themselves. |
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This comment is not meant to describe or imply anything similar with the transaction in question that started this thread, but I simply wanted to toss this out there in response to your post.
I was scanning a lot of the posts in this thread, so this may have been discussed somewhere along the way and I just missed it. If not though, here is one way that a seller could scam a buyer, but still provide tracking. The tracking number is provided once you buy the label, at least with the Ebay/USPS system. Clearly the seller has purchased postage in which to send the package. That number is now recorded and trackable. The package enters the system and we watch it move from A to B. Finally, it arrives, and is scanned in as delivered. The seller has now fully delivered on their end of the deal. The buyer opens the package, and to help drive my point home, even notices that there seems to be no alteration of the package. It is sealed, no rips, tears, resealing, tape, etc. Here is where my biggest fear of seller fraud comes into play. The buyer reaches into the package for their prize and the package is EMPTY! There is now proof of tracking and delivery, but the seller has simply sent an empty envelope. I do not believe the buyer has any recourse at all at this point and it is a matter of his word against that of the seller. We hate to think of it, both as a buyer or a seller and thankfully it seems to happen infrequently enough, but there are people out there that are just looking to screw others, period. I will now share the largest scam I was party to, since I started buying collectibles online. Thankfully the number of bad transactions is a tiny blip on the overall count, otherwise I probably would have quit online trading/buying a long time ago. This was on the Beckett boards, I think. It's been a very long time, maybe 25 years, so the details may be a little hazy. I am obviously still sore about this after all these years, as i am sharing the story once more. A collector was looking for Brett Favre cards. He was offering one of those certified Topps Willie Mays autographs that were pack inserted. I should have seen this coming, but I allowed myself to trust the guy and ignore some red flags. I don't recall any of the negotiations, but ultimately ended up sending him an appropriate amount of Favre cards equalling the BV of the Mays. Red Flag #1, this guy is willing to trade me a Mays auto for a stack of $2-5 Favre cards that add up to the Mays value! Who does that? He gets my Favre cards and is happy with them. The Mays card arrives to me, as promised, except it is a regular commemorative reprint, not the hand signed one. The card was his 1954 Topps card. Those have facsimile autographs on them to begin with, but an authentic Topps autographed card would have had a 2nd signature, the facsimile and a real signature too. I let him know it was not the autographed version and he claims that he had no clue, that his local shop even confirmed it was the autographed version, red flag #2. Anyone with eyes and a clue would not have mistaken this card for a signed one. He continues to communicate with me, claiming he'll make it right. In the end, I agree to some vintage FB star cards equal to the value of the Favres, red flag #3 similar to the first flag, who trades vintage star cards for common new inserts? Needless to say, I never got anymore cards from him. Eventually he just stoped responding, after giving me excuse after excuse as to why he had not sent anything to me yet. Did I mention, he claimed to be in a wheelchair at some point after the trade was made. Perhaps that was true, but it just seemed a little too convenient for the scenario. I traded about $150 worth of Favre inserts for a $4 reprint card. Not the end of the world and glad i can call this my worst, especially at today's values. I'd still take the hit, but the gap in value would have shrunk considerably bewteen the late 90s and now. Quote:
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Delivered
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I have had only two different PO boxes in over 30 years. At each PO, nearly every clerk new me and each Postmaster also knew me due to my daily drop-offs and pickups. They went to great lengths whenever there was a problem, to find the item or get it to me.(like a 52 mantle that Fedex dropped off at the wrong house that got taken to the PO by the elderly recipient and the lady at the PO new to contact me).. Even now I sometimes go in and ask for some help on one stuck in the system and they get me the internal detailed report.
On the two occasions that I had postal insurance claims back in the old days, each was promptly paid without delay. They hold my packages and even call me when I have several registered or other express items so that I can come get them. It certainly doesn't hurt to develop and maintain a rapport with those handling your valuable items.... |
GPS on packages?
Hi Rick,
So the postal service can actually track packages via GPS? Is that on all packages or does a package have to be shipped priority or by another delivery method? What is the GPS attached to, the label with the scan bar code? Thx for this info. Larry Quote:
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I would assume the GPS tracker is part of their hand held scanner. Wherever that scanner is when it scans the barcode and marks the package as 'delivered', then that is the GPS location.
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Gps
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The problem is that some carriers don't want to carry their scanner around the route, so they scan several packages while they are inside their vehicle, which is against the rules and doesn't provide useful tracking data. I always spot checked the scans my carriers were making to make sure they were not making the delivery scans until they were actually putting the package in the mailbox. If a customer had a problem, and the carrier didn't perform the scan properly, I would have the customer come to the Post Office so the carrier could explain why he didn't do his job properly. When used properly, the info on Google Maps will show, within a few inches, exactly where the delivery scan was performed. As far as what James said about some employees being too lazy to provide this information, he is correct. When I was still working, several times a day I would receive an email or a phone call from neighboring Post Offices asking me to look up the GPS information for them. I didn't mind because I loved trying to track packages for customers. |
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Your tracking number just got a hit....you have movement!!!!!!
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Patience is a virtue.
(one I often don't possess myself, but nonetheless) |
Due to be delivered today!!! Did the seller already refund??? Glad to see your item has been relocated.
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I am glad this story will (hopefully) have a good ending.
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Out for delivery
Update... I awoke today to great news...the package is “out for delivery”. The seller never did refund my payment. Thanks to all for your comments and input. Wishing everyone a happy and healthy New Year!
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Patience is a virtue.
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Patience is a virtue
yes, and so are tolerance, understanding and forgiveness.
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Not so stolen after all...
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Correct
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I wonder if the OP will go back to the branch manager and ask the "lovely woman" why she told him the were "clearly stolen". Holidays + Pandemic = Have a little more patience than normal. |
I had two panicked eBay buyers in last two weeks, both sure their cards had been stolen because tracking wasn't updated for a while and delivery was crawling. They were 100% sure of theft. I apparently was the first person to alert them to the chaos in USPS. Still they were sure it was theft. It wasn't; both showed up late. The real kicker was one of them gave me a neutral rating on eBay after I politely walked him off the ledge of his building numerous times. Even sent him newspapers articles about the troubles in PA where he lived. Comment was something "It wasn't the sellers fault but it took me 16 days to get this delivered." Whatever. Not losing sleep over the neutral but that's what we used to call in the old days "a real dick move."
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I had someone file a paypal dispute and then, even after we talked (he had the tracking info) as soon as he could he escalated it to a claim. Only one of those so far out of the hundreds of end of year packages we sent, but still frustrating.
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It was delivered and he lost the claim. In my case it's even worse because the consignor has already been paid, so now I would be returning money that I don't even have anymore!
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Not real surprising
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When you get you’re package I expect you to not apologize to the sender for this fairly dramatic presentation. I expect you to bash him for not responding to you fast enough or at all.... during a global pandemic with the USPS short staffed experiencing extra volume during the holidays. |
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No
You can defend you’re friend all you want. He didn’t respond. I get it. The seller doesn’t have anymore information than the buyer. The usps portal had the info. Both parties had access to the same information. The seller doesn’t have magic bottle.
Patience was needed based upon the circumstances and any reasonable person would recognize that. Not to pile on... the seller was recovering from Brain surgery. The fact that you and the buyer pile on is frankly disturbing. |
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I can't blame people for getting nervous. I mailed maybe $2,000 worth of cards to someone in a small priority mail box and when it fell off the radar for 2 weeks I was apoplectic. It is a bit terrifying. And for heaven's sake don't blame the seller.
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Proper action for an item not stolen from the US Postal Service is first for the Post Office to check its system. At 7:10 p.m. EST time tonight, Audra tried calling me from the Congra, NY post office. I did not recognize the phone number because it isn't a regular phone number that I use, i.e. 845-268-8742. At 7:11 p.m. EST, the call was received again and wondering if this was a SPAM call, I coughed into the line. Audra identified herself much to my delight given this matter and indicated that item 9500115895080326668817 was delivered at 3:30 p.m. EST today to the address. My notification from the customer? Zip.
Here's the page from the USPS: https://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfi...95080326668817 No theft. |
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*PRIORITY MAIL FULLY INSURED AND/OR YOUR MONEY BACK ~ *EVEN IF YOU DON'T LIKE THE CARD! i've had maybe 2 bad transactions in the 21 years i've been here... one included a $15 lost check in the Mail... from when i was working in Iraq. The other? i'm sure someone might inform me of the tragedy... & "i'd Still Make it Right Today!" Now... When Brian(Hey there Brian, my prayers are with You Sir!) has Paid Back ToppsAholic... i'm Sorry, what was this guys name AGaiN!?!? Anyways... when the Card does Show up, Will He Return Brian's Money & Keep the Card? Return the Card(because it has this Stinky Stuff on it!) & Keep the Money? Or!?!? "Side Bar Your Honor"... *Where is Your Compassion Dude ~ ? Send me Your Paypal Address and i'll pay You back myself ~ "Truly!" |
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Second, the seller didn't tell the buyer he was ill, I guess he supposed to be a mind reader? I'll say it again, if the seller had answered one email saying "I'm sorry its delayed, I'm ill at the moment. I'll look into it" This whole thing could've been avoided. I'm not saying Brian is looking to scam anyone but I have been ripped off before and the first red flag is the seller ghosts you. It wasn't unreasonable that the buyer was worried. |
Check your pm Brian.
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Thank you, Larry. All good.
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All good
Thanks for responding to my pm Brian! So everyone knows, we’re all good.
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