International item not received by buyer

[i-love-my-sheep]

I posted some collector coins via standard airmail to Germany on May 5th and got an email from the buyer yesterday saying they hadn't arrived yet. The listing said delivery in 5-20 days. I was grateful that he sent a message as opposed to opening a case! I'm wondering if it may've been intercepted at their customs as while looking around the Aust Post site yesterday, it says you can't send coins to Germany. What I'm wondering is, if they have been intercepted, do either the buyer or myself get notified that that has happened? Would they return the package to sender? Or are both buyer and seller just left in the dark. It's the first time I've sent an item overseas that hasn't arrived. I don't normally send with tracking unless the buyer asks for it, but I think from here on in, I might make tracking mandatory.....or just stop offering international buying.

Thanks in advance for any ideas you may have!

[sparrow2207]

The 5-20 days is just a guide which probably can blow out to 6 weeks or more from experience of receiving items from Germany.

Always send collectables with tracking and if it is illegal to send coins to Germany why would you.

[digital*ghost]

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@ilovemychooks wrote:

I posted some collector coins via standard airmail to Germany on May 5th and got an email from the buyer yesterday saying they hadn't arrived yet. The listing said delivery in 5-20 days. I was grateful that he sent a message as opposed to opening a case! I'm wondering if it may've been intercepted at their customs as while looking around the Aust Post site yesterday, it says you can't send coins to Germany. What I'm wondering is, if they have been intercepted, do either the buyer or myself get notified that that has happened? Would they return the package to sender? Or are both buyer and seller just left in the dark. It's the first time I've sent an item overseas that hasn't arrived. I don't normally send with tracking unless the buyer asks for it, but I think from here on in, I might make tracking mandatory.....or just stop offering international buying.

Thanks in advance for any ideas you may have!

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Not sure what will happen since it's coins, but I have recently found out that Germany is very strict about international mail; if your package had an invoice accessible to the customs officers, it will usually get delivered quite quickly. If there is no invoice, it can sit in customs for weeks. 

The last package I sent to Germany has been sitting in customs since May 10th. (I knew about the invoice thing, but it's inside the sealed package as I didn't have anything to use to place it on the outside. I used a very re-sealable box and figured customs would open it and re-seal, but nope. 😞 ).

[*crikey*mate*]

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@sparrow2207 wrote:

The 5-20 days is just a guide which probably can blow out to 6 weeks or more from experience of receiving items from Germany.

Always send collectables with tracking and if it is illegal to send coins to Germany why would you.

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They only realized it was illegal today. They did not know when they sent them.

No excuse for engaging in illegal activity, but they did explain when they became aware of their breach in the OP.

OP - fingers crossed for you that the package is just sight seeing and will arrive soon and crossed tighter that you don't get into trouble.

Don't wait for the buyer to request tracking, cos they have PayPal protection regardless of how you send the item. YOU need to include the cost of tracking in your postage quote so that the buyer has no choice. Why would anyone opt to pay for insurance that THEY don't need? The tracking number is YOUR insurance, not the buyer's.

[i-love-my-sheep]

Thanks everyone for the replies. Much appreciated. I think I might stop sending overseas. I don't sell that much offshore, so not like I'll be taking a huge plunge in sales. I don't have that much spare time whereby I can sit there and find out what you can and can't send to each country.

Thanks again!