Refund for LOST in the post item

I am sorry if this has been talked about before.

A customer bought a perfume before Christmas. brilliant I posted it and he claims it has not arrived. I have put in a claim with the post office and have let him know. but then I get this email

""""Hello,

Please see my email below of 13 January and respond by return. The perfume has still not arrived, we have had no further correspondence from you and no refund has been received. Please note that we require this matter settled once and for all (whether it be that the perfume is sent out again and received or a full refund is given) by Tuesday 31 January 2012.

Regards,

Donna """

to which I reply


"""" Hi Donna. & Jamie
Thank you for this email. I did send another email to Jamie who is the purchaser of the product to see if the item had been received.

As you know the post office do not class an item as missing untill at least 15 working days. That said on wednesday I sent of the request for a refund from the post office and once that has been settled I can then either send you a refund or the perfume which ever you would like at the time. """"

I got this back
""""Hi, please let me know once it has been settled. It has been a month and a half. Whether it gets settled or not is nothing to do with me, i ordred the goods in dec for an xmas pressie and still havent received it yet. I would appreciate if you sent the perfume to me asap, im not a happy customer. It is your responsibility for not having the parcel recorded for an extra few pence or sent via courier, not mine so please send the perfume!!

J.Fegan.""""

I do not mind giving a refund but as he had no feedback I thought I would wait untill post office refunded me.

Where would I stand if I decided to wait for the post office.- I must say that I have been very lucky in that I have only had 2 other lost in the posts in 5 years.

Xmas post very very iffy to muck gos astray , post office say lost , i say stolen , no post is safe full stop, me myself i would take it as lost??? (stolen ) in post and re-fund strait away (not re-send) stop and think how you would feel if it happened to you?? a quick re-fund puts you in a good light, think on they do not no you ??? so how do they no you sent it??? and not just playing for time out??? (this dos happen) hope this is a help to you , but do please think on the buyers side as well

I had a buyer who's item was lost in the post recently and I asked him to wait 15 days to see if it turned up, it didn't so I refunded him in full and put in a claim to Royal Mail which they paid quite quickly. If you have a receipt for the item you'll get refunded in full, as I was, but if you don't you'll only get a book of stamps or something (according to my brother)

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Originally Posted by olivia8143

I had a buyer who's item was lost in the post recently and I asked him to wait 15 days to see if it turned up, it didn't so I refunded him in full and put in a claim to Royal Mail which they paid quite quickly. If you have a receipt for the item you'll get refunded in full, as I was, but if you don't you'll only get a book of stamps or something (according to my brother)

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I lodged a claim for £30 quid with proof of posting and did not even get a reply.

I have had two further "Lost in Post" claims that I have had to refund. Total losses £80 with nothing from the post office. :mad:

I'm going to have to look to using a courier and recorded delivery as shipping methods.

To be honest "I do think that some of these claims if not all are dishonest". :(

(1) their is no such thing as lost in post!!!!
(2) its been stolen by someone
(3) if this happens and they do not get back to you inform them you will go to the police and report it as stolen we have laws , use them , we have rights use them, plus i use magic water if i get lost in post i inform them i will have to send police round to take a statement off them plus they can tell if they or anyone has handled the goods, A WHAT DO YOU NO????, WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT IT???, WELL I DON'T NO, IT WAS LEFT NEXT DOOR???????
YEEEEEEEER

Well, Francis.........things DO get lost in the mail, or perhaps not even sent. I've ordered things (from another site), paid, and they never arrive. Contacted seller, who said they would send again. Second item never arrived. All other things from other sellers do arrive...............what is a buyer to think???

I'm sure mumof5 sent the item in good faith. The comment that she should have paid more to have it recorded is questionable, in my book. If the buyer wanted it recorded, or insure, he should have inquired and requested it, if it wasn't part of the standard listing. To say the seller should have, after the fact, seems to be clutching at straws to try to strengthen their claim. THAT being said, with some people it's easier to refund and move on.

Normally i send replacements or give a refund then make the claim with Royal Mail as it can take a month at best to even be looked at.

Strange it never happens with Ebid sales.

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Originally Posted by HerMajesty

Well, Francis.........things DO get lost in the mail, or perhaps not even sent. I've ordered things (from another site), paid, and they never arrive. Contacted seller, who said they would send again. Second item never arrived. All other things from other sellers do arrive...............what is a buyer to think???

I'm sure mumof5 sent the item in good faith. The comment that she should have paid more to have it recorded is questionable, in my book. If the buyer wanted it recorded, or insure, he should have inquired and requested it, if it wasn't part of the standard listing. To say the seller should have, after the fact, seems to be clutching at straws to try to strengthen their claim. THAT being said, with some people it's easier to refund and move on.

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Agree with HM, holiday post is notoriously unreliable in most places, though stuffs do get lost at other times as well, or sometimes just misdirected. It's possible the buyer is dishonest, but with only one purchase it's hard to make that sort of judgement; IMHO better to refund and move on as HM says. If you have tracking info. and have entered this into Paypal, you can file through Paypal to get reimbursed, this is what I did when I had a buyer claim an item wasn't received; according to the P.O. it was delivered, so I was refunded. This is why I use tracking on all packages, no exceptions; most buyers are honest and most items arrive at their intended destinatons, but this does CYA in case something goes awry.

Good luck and best wishes for many sales to all,

I don't like to be controversial but, you can always sue Royal Mail? They offer a service and if an item is lost in their care, they have a responsibilty of care, whether they like it or not, the court will hold them responsible.
Small claims court is cheap and when you win Royal Mail have to pay the costs.
Dont take it lying down, if you have lost a fair amount, you can add up a years worth of RM rejected claims and plonk a writ on their desk.
Just a thought....

Hi
Of all the stamps & coins i'v sold (1500+) on the other site, &e-bid, I have had only two items 'not delivered' both were coins,not expensive ,99p, (as a majority of my items only seem to get i bid).sent to india(surprise,surprise) i refunded the monies almost imediately.and promptly barred bidders from that country,i always get proof of postage, and any item over £10 i pay for recorded mail (75p extra).also all the stamps i have bought on e-bid & e-**** have all been delivered. Perhaps i'm lucky i don't know, happy selling to all,

david

Personally, I would feel obliged to refund the buyer whether the post office sorted out my own refund or not.

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Originally Posted by MagnetsAndHangers

Personally, I would feel obliged to refund the buyer whether the post office sorted out my own refund or not.

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Me too...I've always refunded first.

So far when something didn't arrive on time, I have asked the buyer to wait the 15 working days (which doesn't include Saturdays) before I can make a claim. If still nothing, then I refund the money and make my claim.

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I lodged a claim for £30 quid with proof of posting and did not even get a reply.

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This happened once to me, not a sale but a personal letter and gift to a friend, when I was a teenager, so I sent in a second claim for the original item again, AND a missing item claim for the previous claim that they had not replied to (mwahahaha) and spoke very clearly and audibly for the whole post office to hear when I explained why I wanted two claim forms. They replied very fast!
:p



Seriously though since Christmas, i have had several items (UK and overseas) arrive opened (slit with something sharp or heavily sealed flap peeled back to open) though nothing missing as far as I can see. I report each one, because even if its damaged and I dont think anythings actually missing, it looks like someone is nosing in my mail at the moment.

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Originally Posted by Pink_Panther

I lodged a claim for £30 quid with proof of posting and did not even get a reply.

I have had two further "Lost in Post" claims that I have had to refund. Total losses £80 with nothing from the post office. :mad:

I'm going to have to look to using a courier and recorded delivery as shipping methods.

To be honest "I do think that some of these claims if not all are dishonest". :(

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If they're International it can take 90 days for a refund (as I've just discovered this week when I asked what had happened to my Lithuanian claim) so don't give up hope Pink, I'll wait with you :)

Hi depending on the item if it was sent recorded delivery and should have mabye been sent special delivery then the postoffice will not pay out.
you item could sell for a penny but say if it's made of solid silver or a anything of value ie precious metals glass and antiques then they will not compensate you as they things should be sent special delivery.

I learned a little while ago no matter what it is send recorded or special delivery depending on the item. as most people are honest and an item genuinely gets lost with royal mail their are those that have found this to be a new way of getting an item for free saying it hasn't arrived.

signature provides proof to paypal and if they every open a claim for non arrival and their is a signature they won't get a refund. ask any seller to please wait the 15 days for uk and 25 days for abroad and if no joy then refund if proof hasn't been provided of tracking.

http://real-silver-and-gold.ebid.net/
http://vintage-collectables.ebid.net/
http://old-stuff.ebid.net/
http://the-household.ebid.net/

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Originally Posted by olivia8143

If they're International it can take 90 days for a refund (as I've just discovered this week when I asked what had happened to my Lithuanian claim) so don't give up hope Pink, I'll wait with you :)

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I've just got my refund cheque from the post office for this transaction today and it didn't take 90 days after all, less than 30 in fact, so I'm chuffed.

Good for you Olivia!
This is encouraging news and I'm so glad that you got it resolved so quickly. Hurrah!

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Originally Posted by Tropical_Trish

Good for you Olivia!
This is encouraging news and I'm so glad that you got it resolved so quickly. Hurrah!

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Thanks Trish, I'm at a loss as to why people are having so much bother when I've got nothing but praise for RM

I have to say that I have never had any major probs with RM.
Both my son, daughter and her bf and I buy loads of stuff ( well, practically everything apart from food!) and have them delivered here as I'm always in.
I cannot remember any of us being let down - I once had some car wheel trims which were damaged during transit, seller refunded immediately, upon receipt of photos showing damage.
As a seller, the odd item has gone missing. I once sold a Plumeria plant (not here) and buyer said it hadn't arrived, so I refunded.
I did intend to make a claim from RM, but never actually got around to it.
Several weeks later I received my poor Plumeria back - (I always have a return address on all mail sent out) - dead as a Dodo.
It had been sent recorded signed for delivery, recipient was not in, never collected plant from sorting office.
This was during a red hot summer heatwave a few years ago.
All food for thought, seems like some areas are worse than others for missing mail, and sometimes it just well maybe the recipient is at fault, for whatever reason.

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Originally Posted by mumof5sons

It is your responsibility for not having the parcel recorded for an extra few pence .......
I do not mind giving a refund but as he had no feedback I thought I would wait untill post office refunded me.

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Just a thought ......If its lost.....how did they know that it wasn't recorded?

or doesn't recorded mail go missing?

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Originally Posted by Cailleach

Just a thought ......If its lost.....how did they know that it wasn't recorded?

or doesn't recorded mail go missing?

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I have, so far, only ever had one item go missing - Sent Recorded Delivery. I was refunded the entire cost (item + postage) from Royal Mail.

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Originally Posted by BAGHAG999

Normally i send replacements or give a refund then make the claim with Royal Mail as it can take a month at best to even be looked at.

Strange it never happens with Ebid sales.

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8th April 2012. We have just recieved a letter from the Uk Royal Mail stating that in order to make a claim for a Lost item ,we now have to provide them with proof in the form of a reciept regarding how much we originally paid for the lost/stolen item.
It seems that they are not content with proof of posting and details of the value of the lost items any more.
This is scandelous, Iv'e heard of cut backs and reducing costs but this is wrong. May there is something here for the Media to make public.
Ps this was not an Ebid item that was lost/stolen.
Sid.

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Originally Posted by coolsid

8th April 2012. We have just recieved a letter from the Uk Royal Mail stating that in order to make a claim for a Lost item ,we now have to provide them with proof in the form of a reciept regarding how much we originally paid for the lost/stolen item.
It seems that they are not content with proof of posting and details of the value of the lost items any more.
This is scandelous, Iv'e heard of cut backs and reducing costs but this is wrong. May there is something here for the Media to make public.
Ps this was not an Ebid item that was lost/stolen.
Sid.

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They have done this for a while now , they use to accept the selling price on invoice but now i send a copy of invoice for goods with claim, they also sometimes write to the buyer to confirm goods didnt arrive and dont always get a reply back.
All this i suppose is to cut out the false claims they were getting.

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They have done this for a while now , they use to accept the selling price on invoice but now i send a copy of invoice for goods with claim, they also sometimes write to the buyer to confirm goods didnt arrive and dont always get a reply back.
All this i suppose is to cut out the false claims they were getting.

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Yep, but it is crazy, because they effectively accept other peoples property, on trust, (including outside post-boxes where you dont get a reciept) for an advertised delivery service, then break that "contract" and frequently refuse to recompense. I had quite a few things go missing a year or so ago, in a whole "spate", and had all the reciepts and proof etc. It was a hard fight to get compensation, and then they wrote to me and told me that I had claimed on too many missing items (depsite them having all the proof supplied) and they will not recognise any future claims unless sent "signed for", regardless of reciepts /proof of posting being supplied! I am utterly disgusted with RM to be honest. Not our local door-to-door postie, who is a gem, but the other machinations in the background.
Meantime this end, I have been having a spate of recieving a lot of letters and things slit open.

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Originally Posted by darklisruthven

Yep, but it is crazy, because they effectively accept other peoples property, on trust, (including outside post-boxes where you dont get a reciept) for an advertised delivery service, then break that "contract" and frequently refuse to recompense. I had quite a few things go missing a year or so ago, in a whole "spate", and had all the reciepts and proof etc. It was a hard fight to get compensation, and then they wrote to me and told me that I had claimed on too many missing items (depsite them having all the proof supplied) and they will not recognise any future claims unless sent "signed for", regardless of reciepts /proof of posting being supplied! I am utterly disgusted with RM to be honest. Not our local door-to-door postie, who is a gem, but the other machinations in the background.
Meantime this end, I have been having a spate of recieving a lot of letters and things slit open.

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I had them ring me about 4 claims i sent in, at the time i was posting 30 odd items a day they said it was below average and havant bothered me since

I have a package that went missing on me too. I bought some jewelry from a gent in the UK on the 6th and haven't yet received it. How do I get a refund without messing up the seller? I'm sure it isn't his fault, but... Can he file a claim? I'm in the US who do we file a claim against RM, or USPS?

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Originally Posted by RetroT

I have a package that went missing on me too. I bought some jewelry from a gent in the UK on the 6th and haven't yet received it. How do I get a refund without messing up the seller? I'm sure it isn't his fault, but... Can he file a claim? I'm in the US who do we file a claim against RM, or USPS?

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Only the sender can make a claim from Royal Mail , i would contact seller regarding this.

Ive had items go missing, but mostly on the receiving end since living in Cardiff ( a crime and theft hotspot)
One of my customer's didn't receive an item some time ago now, well over a year ago, I waited the 15 days like Meebo, then refunded them myself whilst putting in a claim with RM I am STILL waiting for a reply!
I mentioned it to the post office recently and they just told me to put in another claim with a cover note, yes but the original receipt etc was in the original claim form! As mentioned there is not enough accountability with them either

If you want a stroppy customer how about this:

Item purchased (eBid) 17th October, UK to India. Cost of item £18.99.

"Today is 20th Oct and the materials have not yet reached. The courier delivery time is already over in India and now its 3.30 pm (IST). Incase it is not arriving by tomorrow 1.00 pm (IST) thern I am going to report the same to International Consumer Forum and UK Consumer Affairs. My money has a value and I have paid in advance it not on COD basis."

"Today is 24-Oct-2011 and till now I have not received the material. I had asked for the reference no so that the same could have been tracked on-line but you have not bothered to share the same.

There are 2 options for you kindly suggest which one you would like to choose;

1) Refund 100 % of the Amount paid to you for the material plus another 100 % towards failure of services;
2) Pay refund of 2000 Pound through Consumer Court.

Your reply is awaited at the earliest."

The package arrived after about 3 weeks, damaged and with some of the contents missing. I sent a replacement which apparently did not arrive.

On a smaller scale

4th Buyer won item

6th ( Good friday) buyer paid

7th Saturday item posted

10th buyer asked inmessage why no goods yet (explained its not one working day yet0

12th buyer filed no arrival claim

12th gave up will to live and refunded full ammount

Value of order 1.75

But then another buyer sent message thanking me for posting Easter Saturday

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buyer asked inmessage why no goods yet (explained its not one working day yet0

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HEADDESK. Did you inform them that teleportation hasnt been invented yet?

Got another buyer the other day. Filed a non receipt claim with eBid. Sale was for 1 months supply of vitamins, no message until the claim. Now call me cynical if you want, but the claim has gone in just as the end of the months supply will be approaching. I will send another lot out and claim from the Post Office, after all we can't have unhealthy buyers can we.

its why tracking is so useful.
although of course, its a compliment in a way that they wanted more vitamins. :D

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Originally Posted by darklisruthven

its why tracking is so useful.
although of course, its a compliment in a way that they wanted more vitamins. :D

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I'm all for them having more, but I do prefer them being paid for. Though I suppose I will have to give them the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they did not arrive, and they left it a month before telling me.