Proper action for a stolen package from a Buy/Sell/Trade transaction

[Fred]

Jim, most of the people selling on the BST request F/F paypal because there are no fees associated with the transaction. Just curious, what does paypal charge for the sales/service selection? What does it cover? Who pays for the fee associated with sales/service transaction?

[Jim65]

Originally Posted by Fred

Jim, most of the people selling on the BST request F/F paypal because there are no fees associated with the transaction. Just curious, what does paypal charge for the sales/service selection? What does it cover? Who pays for the fee associated with sales/service transaction?

The fees are roughly 3%. I never ever pay by Friends and Family, I always pay the extra fees myself and pay by Goods and Services, no matter who the seller is. Its about protecting yourself. When you pay by Friends and Family, you are giving up any Buyer Protections that PayPal offers.

[bounce]

OP - can you post a picture of what the tracking says?

I've had a couple items go "missing" for about 3 weeks in the past month plus, if you get them to run a "trace" on the package at both your post office and at it's last known scan location, it wouldn't surprise me at all if it all of a sudden shakes loose in the system and turns up.

[LincolnVT]

Two words...registered / insured.

Originally Posted by LincolnVT

Two words...registered / insured.

Agreed. I never ship packages without insurance especially now with service being so inconsistent. Someone was correct above in that only priority mail comes with 50.00 insurance included. Anything else is on the seller and buyer to figure out. IMO if the seller offered insurance and it is refused then it's not on the seller. Doesn't sound like the case here though.

[Tyruscobb]

This board’s proper etiquette is to refund the buyer. However, proper etiquette and whether the seller must legally refund the buyer are potentially two different things. Although people often forget, they are entering into binding and enforceable contracts when they b/s/t. Words and phrases have meaning and legal significance. Did the contract’s terms state shipped or delivered?

In some states, if the contract just indicates shipped, the risk transfers from the seller to the buyer as soon as the third-party carrier takes possession. Thus, the buyer bears the loss if the third-party carrier losses/damages the item during shipping.

This is why it’s always good practice to specify “delivered.” This denotes that the seller bears the risk until the item is delivered to the buyer. Thus, the seller is responsible for a lost/damaged item.

So, this issue is not legally cut and dry. We need more information, such as the actual contract’s language, the terms and conditions, the parties’ jurisdiction(s), etc. However, the etiquette is cut and dry.

[Directly]

FYI--Good luck on filing a USPS insurance claim. I filed a claim for $650.00 10/26/20 for a lost card, denied, Filed first appeal, under review--sadly a suggestion to send overnight or registered mail is good advise right now.

[Eric72]

As a seller, I've found it helpful to use the USPS website when packages go missing. Speaking with a postal employee is good. If you've developed a rapport with the Postmaster, that's a great person to ask for help. However, also consider this site:

https://www.usps.com/help/missing-mail.htm

A couple items I've mailed this year got "stuck" at a USPS facility for more than a week. When I used the website, the package got "knocked loose" within a day or two and arrived safely at its destination shortly thereafter.

Something to keep in mind - in my case, it's possible that having a USPS account online helped.

Posting this as a "general help" topic for sellers here. With regard to the OP, the missing satchel makes this case more complex than what I've dealt with.

[Jim65]

Originally Posted by Eric72

As a seller, I've found it helpful to use the USPS website when packages go missing. Speaking with a postal employee is good. If you've developed a rapport with the Postmaster, that's a great person to ask for help. However, also consider this site:

https://www.usps.com/help/missing-mail.htm

A couple items I've mailed this year got "stuck" at a USPS facility for more than a week. When I used the website, the package got "knocked loose" within a day or two and arrived safely at its destination shortly thereafter.

Something to keep in mind - in my case, it's possible that having a USPS account online helped.

Posting this as a "general help" topic for sellers here. With regard to the OP, the missing satchel makes this case more complex than what I've dealt with.

The mail is so ridiculously slow right now but the OP said his branch manager thinks the package was stolen and a month later, its still lost.

The most troubling thing is this seller is choosing to ignore a buyer who has a rightful problem, especially when the seller has a history of this. Sellers should not have the right to ignore buyers when they have the buyers money in their pocket.

This site is great but really needs some kind of feedback system to protect members. If this buyer had read about the sellers previous problem, he could have chosen to pay for PayPal buyer protection.

[sportscardpete]

The seller has an obligation to get the card to the buyer. However, there’s no rule on the BST forum that states the item must be insured. I don’t think the seller owes you the money, but the right thing to do would be For him/her to refund you.

One of the reasons people use FF here is because it is a trusting group.