Ebay estimated delivery times.

[nevillesdaughter]

Just sent off an item purchased last night, Express Post as requested and was advised by Aust Post that delivery would be 5 days because the recipient is outside of the Express network - this is apparantly faster than normal delivery, but obviously not overnight.

I went back to the listing to contact the buyer to let them know and lo and behold - eBay's estimated delivery time (presumably from yesterday) is 3 days!

I feel a defect coming on - and possibly worse......

Marina.

[joethenuts]

my mistake  jim

[joethenuts]

but 5 days express how long would normal parcel post take

[mbselections00]

Aaah ok, thanks lyndal   - quite amazing what one can and can't do - I had copied the reply ready to post and came back & saw your message, so I'll start by saying, I cannot believe how quickly I got a response - make of it what you will (and I'll take a bit of a chance, have deleted bits & added my questions, not very good at paraphrasing & don't want to lose the context or misquote anything)  :-

So in response to my first question : if a buyer states the delivery was NOT within eBays specified time, would the seller receive a defect  ?   . . . . . . . . In essence - no, unless buyer leaves a rating of 1 or a Case is opened against the Seller.

As a seller, these are the process that will be considered as defects.

The following transaction-related defects affect seller status:

• Detailed seller rating of 1, 2 or 3 for Item as described
• Detailed seller rating of 1 for Postage time
• Negative or neutral Feedback
• A return initiated for a reason that indicates the item was not as described
• An eBay Money Back Guarantee request or PayPal Buyer Protection *case opened for an item not received or an item not as described
• Transaction cancellation by the seller when the item was out of stock, or sold to another buyer

And in response to my second question :  are eBay going to use the information gathered from feedback to make their estimated delivery dates more accurate ?  . . . . . . . .

eBay asked these questions to know how accurate the seller delivers their item because there are case when we need this information once a member escalates the request/case and we need to investigate.   Refer above *

As of now, this will not affect the seller unless a request/case is opened against them.

I hope this at least gives everyone some peace of mind - assuming one hand knows what the other is doing,

[justajunk]

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@mbselections00 wrote:

I hope this at least gives everyone some peace of mind - assuming one hand knows what the other is doing,

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Thanks mb - yes it does, especially since buyers are allowed to say that an item didn't arrive in time (by the estimated date) when leaving feedback BEFORE the estimated date. 

[springyzone]

Joe said-

this is too all ,ebay state estimate delivery times    not aust post times for a start . if the op was quoted that they canot get there in the normal time ,then try elsewere , ala smartsend  pack-send ,officeworks ,couriers , mmmmmm

how many times do you have to read about aus post slow mail , just listen to the other posters if you want to use snail mail ,then adjust your handling time ,so that you have a few more days   [very simple]

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A lot depends on how much business a seller does & the circumstances.

Just talking generally now, but if an express postage price via Aust post was quoted in an ad, then a seller might not be able to switch to any other courier for the same sort of price.

Also, if you are talking about a small, private seller they may not know all the other options for a start, and secondly, may have to go out of their way to access them.

If someone lives out of the main city areas and asks for express post, they need to realise that express means different time frames in different areas.

I  also seriously have my doubts they mean express post at any price.

I've had an international buyer kick up an awful stink even when we quoted the exact base cost to get her item to NZ. She seemed to think we should be able to do it for less than what the ad had quoted for postage within Australia. I have had another customer who asked for a courier but was angry with the quote, even though my sister rang around and found the cheapest out of 3 or 4 in the area. The buyer found a cheaper one over an hour's drive away and wanted us to go use that. Peeved when we wouldn't.

Some buyers, I think, get lulled by the fact that some sales companies, because they have large turnovers, can charge a fixed low price for postage, while some items (from China for example) come with 'free' postage.

They can get an awful shock when asked to bear the full brunt of the postage cost.

I think the green quoted bit of your comment is probably the easiest option.

But the main problem is still that ebay estimates of delivery date may not match reality.

[jessicadazzler97]

I've never used express postage before, but perhaps its not worth me starting!!

[nevillesdaughter]

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@jessicadazzler wrote:
I've never used express postage before, but perhaps its not worth me starting!!

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I have an eParcel account which means I print my labels at home, and the system tells me the delivery time before I complete the postage and send. I do free postage for my listings but offer the option of Express for $4 extra and when I enter the details for an Express parcel Iimmediately get a message if the address is outside of the Express network. This enables me to contact the buyer to ask if they wish to go ahead with Express, or revert to normal post and have their $4 refunded.

Most people choose to stay with Express because even if they are outside of the network, it is still faster than normal and to be honest, most people have told me that their parcel arrives quite a bit faster than Aust Post's estimation. So maybe Aust Post are just being cautious with their predicted delivery dates which I prefer to eBay's overly optimistic predictions!

I find most people are perfectly reasonable if they know what to expect and eBay are creating problems with their predictions. For Express deliveries within the network, I have always found the service very reliable. As an aside, the Express delivery network has recently been reduced somewhat, and I can't help but wonder if eBay are up to date with this.

Marina.

[joethenuts]

to marina that is a fantastic way of doing business , so what are you worried about a defect ,when you have contacted the buyer and explained...

[joethenuts]

to springy .... this is a seller that has sent 8000 parcels, so not new ,

estimate delivery times does not say aus post delivery times.

also how does a buyer know what the area is for express postage ,maybe some sellers know.

when a buyer who wants an item thats free postage and pays extra to get it there fast ,and wont get it until 5 business days which is a week ,to australia is bad.

[nevillesdaughter]

My point about eBay's so-called defects is that they are being created where no defect actually exists ie by eBay underestimating a delivery time. You can't then blame a buyer for saying an item didn't arrive in the expected timeframe! But it's the seller who cops the fault and get enough of them and you can have your selling restricted, or sales reduced by negative feedback - all because eBay are making unrealistic promises.

If a customer wants an expected delivery date, it should be between them and the seller - not eBay who have no part in the exchange. I'm already carrying a defect because some buyer gave me a 3 for delivery time when every parcel is posted on the day of payment and tracking numbers uploaded immediately.

I work very hard at customer service and feel that it is eBay that's dropping the ball here.

Marina.