Off Topic - USPS Problem/Receipt Question
 

Leon - if this is not in the right spot, please feel free to move.

I have a neighbor (seriously, not me) whom I am trying to help out. He sold a $2K item just over two months ago (beginning of October) on ebay and shipped it out via USPS Priority Mail with Insurance.

He never uploaded the tracking information to ebay and no longer has the receipt. He just figured that the package was delivered since he never heard from the buyer.

Anyways, he got a message from ebay yesterday that the buyer says that he never received the item.

He paid for the shipping with a debit card, so it is on his statement, but that is all the proof that he has.

He went to his local Post Office and the clerk told him that they only have access to the last 30 days of info at their terminals so she referred him to the main branch in the neighboring city. He went down there and they said that they have no way to access his purchase or print up a duplicate receipt and said that his local branch would have to help him.

Obviously, this is all his fault, but I would think that there has to be some way to retrieve a copy of his original receipt with the tracking number on it.

Any suggestions?

So if I am reading this right, he did not create the shipping label thru ebay? but mailed it on his own at a Post Office or mail center?

IF he did go thru ebay/paypal and create a shipping label, he can log into paypal and pull up the tracking #

One other thought would the debit card entry on his online banking show a transaction #, I believe most credit card charges do or at least the date and time of transaction down to narrow the search window. If so it might have a reference to the postal receipt # which may make it easier to retrieve thru the PO

Correct. He did not do anything through ebay. He mailed it on his own at the Post Office, never wrote down the tracking number and threw away the receipt after a month because he assumed that the package was delivered.

He did not have any experience selling on ebay and, unfortunately, did not follow any of the normal protocols.

hopefully your friend will be able to somehow get the tracking number so he can file a insurance claim with the usps.

I really think he may have learned a expensive lesson.

Insurance claims
 

Seems USPS doesn't want to pay for my insurance claims. My claim has been filed for over a month and is now in a first appeal mode. Denied first go around which my local post office folks couldn't understand either. Have copies of all the supporting documents and pictures and followed all instructions per their correspondence letters. I do have private insurance but USPS should anti-up! I recently received a USPS In-sight email asking my option of the USPS claim system and procedures --HMMM--- I will be patient but is irritating.

In this situation will some home owners insurance policy possibly cover some of the loss maybe less a deductible?--The sale and buyers information should be assessable for 90 days Ebay and Paypal. Maybe he can get a letter from the buyer he never received the item--just a thought!

Chronology correct ?
 

"I have a neighbor whom I am trying to help out. He sold a $2K item just over two months ago (beginning of October) on ebay and shipped it out via USPS Priority Mail with Insurance.

He never uploaded the tracking information to ebay and no longer has the receipt. He just figured that the package was delivered since he never heard from the buyer.

Anyways, he got a message from ebay yesterday that the buyer says that he never received the item. .."


Head-scratcher , in that a buyer waits two months to report a missing $2K item , and then doesn't contact the seller asking ''where is my item?'' but just goes straight to E-Bay for a ''never-received'' refund......I go nuts when a $50 card is a week late......

..

If you go to your bank and get the transaction number the postmaster in the local branch will be able to pull it up...be pushy...

I totally agree. It makes no sense. Who spends $2K and does not demand a tracking number or contact the seller if the item does not show up in a week?

Unfortunately, I think that my neighbor is screwed. He literally did everything wrong and it looks like it is going to cost him. No USPS employees want to help him at all.

USPS has a record of the purchase, it will just take persistence, time, and probably some yelling to get it, especially with USPS being backed up so much right now.... but that depends on how dedicated he is.

Speaking to clerks almost never gets results, he needs to speak to the Postmaster, in person. Be insistent.

Yeah, this guy obviously noticed tracking wasn't attached to his item, and figured an easy way to get it for free.

Unfortunately there's people out there that don't even see this as morally ambiguous. They think if the system allows it, you're a sucker if you don't take advantage of it.

It's considerably more head scratching to have someone sell something for 2K and not list the tracking number... or, even keep the receipt from the post office DESPITE not knowing if the package was actually delivered???

Totally agree. After a month or two with no complaints from the buyer, he thought that all was good.