topic Re: How long should I wait? in Buying

How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 01:06:20 GMT

There is a small parcel I bought from overseas (from Germany) that should have arrived by the 14th according to eBay.

I always got all items I bought from Germany, although on a couple of occasions they arrived a couple of days late.

The seller has 100% positive feedback.

A delay of a couple of days is hopefully not a reason to worry, as the eBay estimate is exactly that, an estimate, but my question is

1) if I should notify the seller now, I mean, just to let her know that i haven't received my item yet (clicking on "I have a question", not "I didn't receive my item") and

2) how long I should wait before possibly opening a request, although I really hope it will arrive next week, possibly even later today, although parcels usually arrive early in the morning here, so I really don't think it will arrive today.

Having always received everything from Germany and considering the seller has 100% positive feedback I really hope the item is just late, but I did ask the seller if she had a tracking number and she didn't reply.
The listing didn't mention the item would be sent tracked, but as I mentioned in another post sometimes sellers don't indicate a tracking number, but if I ask them they do send it to me, so that's why I asked.

According to eBay the average time is 6-9 business days. Is it reasonable to wait 18 business days before formally saying that it didn't arrive?

I will make my feedback public before contacting the seller if I do decide to contact her as I have nothing to hide, I just like my privacy.

Thanks.

Re: How long should I wait?

twyngwyn — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 01:41:07 GMT

what state are you in? have you factored in the public holiday....which generally creates a backlog.

Way too early to worry yet

Re: How long should I wait?

digital*ghost — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 01:41:14 GMT

I give regular international mail at least 3 weeks before I have any concerns, sometimes a bit longer if it's coming from a place I know slow mail is common.

I've only bought from Germany a few times so don't have a lot of experience with mail from there, but if memory serves the packages arrived in fairly standard timeframes so would generally give it the same (3 or so weeks) and then contact the seller, presuming that still leaves enough time for follow-up by the seller.

Re: How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 01:49:21 GMT

I am in NSW, but I don't know if the item went through a facility in some other state (usually items from overseas arrive in Sydney though).

Re: How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 01:53:30 GMT

Yes, I think I will wait until next week before I contact her (still without opening a request, just to let her know).

It is also unclear how she sent the item, as it is relatively small and "could" have been sent in a padded envelope, and if she used a padded envelope AusPost could treat it as a letter and it could take longer.

Re: How long should I wait?

lyndal1838 — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 02:03:26 GMT

If it is from Germany and sent by Deutsche Post it will arrive in Australia with DHL. Usually they deliver their own items although it is possible they will give it to Australia Post.

Re: How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 02:11:10 GMT

It is Deutsche Post Brief, which means "letter", although quite a few times I received small, light parcels called "Brief" from Germany. I don't remember in the past, but recently, in the last couple of years or so they were delivered by AusPost. (I have always bought relatively small items, never anything really big and heavy).

Re: How long should I wait?

lyndal1838 — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 02:19:48 GMT

If it is a letter then it probably will be handed to AP for delivery.

DHL usually delivers parcels as they are a courier company so are not set up for delivering letters.

Re: How long should I wait?

kopenhagen5 — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 02:42:21 GMT

I have found items sent with German post can take 3-4 weeks.

Re: How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 02:46:59 GMT

They are quite generous with their definition of "letter", as L+W+H is maximum 90 cm, so basically a small parcel...

https://www.deutschepost.de/de/b/briefe-ins-ausland/verpackungen-warenversand-international.html

If the seller had been more communicative when I asked if there was a tracking number I would ask if the item was sent in a padded envelope or a proper box, but I think I will ask next week when I will have to contact her if the item still hasn't arrived.

I know that padded envelopes usually take 2 weeks to arrive, sometimes even a couple of days more, so longer than parcels (based on previous experience).

Of course with no tracking I have no way to check if the item was sent when it was marked as sent either...

It is possible that it was sent a couple of days later.

Re: How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 02:45:56 GMT

It probably also depends on your location.

It once happened to me too, but it was in December, so I think it was because it was the pre-Christmas period. The item arrived a whole week after the last day of the estimated delivery.

Re: How long should I wait?

padi*0409 — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 02:54:28 GMT

@papermoon.ladywrote:

The item arrived a whole week after the last day of the estimated delivery.

Anecdotally, eBays ETA for OS parcels refers to the ETA of arrival in Australia and doesn't include the shipping time/customs delay within Oz.

Re: How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 04:41:31 GMT

Good to know!

Re: How long should I wait?

shoppingbag* — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 06:58:10 GMT

From my experience, things can take a lot longer than expected to arrive, no matter where they are coming from. I usually wait a week after the estimated date, and just "nicely and politely" let the seller know that you are still waiting patiently, item is taking a long time to arrive. Keep this up weekly until almost 30 days from the last estimated delivery date, then if necessary open and "item not received case" Don't listen to sellers who offer to send another, or urge you to wait longer.

Re: How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 07:16:29 GMT

In this case there would not be another totally identical item, as it is a vintage item...

You are so right about not listening to sellers who offer to send a second item when the first one doesn't arrive.

Second items in most cases never arrived, and once, about two weeks after a Chinese seller had said they had sent me a new item, I contacted them to tell them that the first item had arrived and to ask if I should just write "Back to Sender" on the envelope when the new item arrives, and the seller said "Don't worry, we actually hadn't sent the new item yet". What? They had said they had two weeks earlier!

Re: How long should I wait?

digital*ghost — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 08:58:12 GMT

@shoppingbag*wrote:
Don't listen to sellers who offer to send another, or urge you to wait longer.

Well, that's actually pretty disappointing to see, TBH.

Asking people to wait a little bit longer is pretty standard if the package isn't late enough to be fairly certain there's a problem. I had a buyer from Italy message me 2 weeks after purchase complaining that the package hadn't arrived yet. I was very polite and professional in my reply, explained how long international mail tends to take, and what options were available if it went past that, and asked them to contact me if it hadn't arrived in the timeframe I'd given them.

Next thing I know the buyer opened a case against me and said I wasn't being helpful at all because I asked her to wait. To say I was mad is an understatement. I will never sell to that buyer again, and it was the straw that broke the camel's proverbial back (I was sending large letters at that point, starting from $3 P&H, but because of this and a few other issues, I won't send to Italy unless it's a fully tracked parcel, which starts at $33).

I also offer to send replacements if the buyer has waited long enough, as more often than not, they genuinely want their purchases. I always send replacements fully tracked, to help reassure them that a package is on the way, even if it was a <$5 item sent as a large letter.

Any buyer who refuses to wait a reasonable time is intantly sus to me as a seller, especially if they are gunning for a refund over all other options, and I will block them without hesitation.

I realise some may not be fussed about that, but I wanted to show how "not listening to the seller..." can look to the actual seller you're not listening to.

Re: How long should I wait?

englishrosegardens — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 09:34:32 GMT

I soooo agree with everything you've said. If it's a Chinese seller with heaps of negative feedback, sure, don't let them string you along, but if it's a seller with excellent feedback and communication then there's no reason not to trust them.

I had a $20 item not arrive in Sydney in early December and the buyer really wanted a replacement. I know that being in Sydney meant their envelope (large letter) was probably either doing the rounds at Chullora or completely lost there so I asked would she mind waiting another week. It didn't turn up so I sent her another one, which she received a few days later and thanked me for. She received the second one with 30 days of the latest estimated delivery date for the first one and if both had turned up I'm sure she would have put return to sender on it as I requested.

People can't blame ebay for everything when they're so distrustful of others, as has been expressed here. It seems that some view everyone else as a liar, but maybe they judge others by their own standards!

Re: How long should I wait?

countessalmirena — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 10:25:48 GMT

@mariq7

You've probably got all the replies you need, but as someone who purchases from Germany very frequently (not on eBay, although I do, just occasionally, including something about an hour or so ago), I can add that 3 weeks is not an unreasonable amount of time to wait. Unless I've specified a fast courier method, which I usually do when I combine lots of parcels (often from various different sellers), I am resigned to waiting 3-4 weeks, and sometimes longer. If the item arrives more quickly than that, halleuljah - but that doesn't reset my expectations.

It doesn't seem to me to make sense to trust eBay's estimated delivery time. I always expect those delivery estimates to be prefaced with the words "Once upon a time" and finish with a "And they lived happily ever after". Instead, I take into account what I know (from personal experience and from the actual postal/courier service (AP, DHL, TNT, Fedex, UPS, Colissimo, etc.)) about actual postage time from seller to my address, local or international weather conditions or events that might affect postage, the seller's handling time (for whatever reason they may have such handling time), in-stock status, and human error causing delays - to give myself a more realistic idea of just how long it will take.

I keep telling myself not to order time-sensitive items online, but sometimes (mea culpa) I do. Sometimes those items will arrive on time, and sometimes they won't. I accept that risk at the time of ordering, and if the parcel does not make it to me before the day on which I want/need that item to arrive, it is in no way the seller's fault (unless they have failed to send the parcel, mis-addressed the parcel, inexplicably used carrier swallow (laden) instead of the delivery method indicated, or sent me a pair of fuzzy dice instead of Maxwell Scott luggage in chocolate brown).

So...

I wouldn't notify the seller at this point; assuming the item has been despatched and is in transit, there isn't anything that the seller can do to speed things up. (Of course you can decide at what point you'd like to contact the seller, but I think - were I a seller - that being asked about an item in transit whose real delivery time is rather longer than eBay's apocryphal delivery estimate would tend to create a sense that overseas deliveries to Australia are just too problematic;
I would wait (were I you) for the time period that I estimate is a more exact period - of course not waiting beyond the time when a claim can be made if the item does not turn up.

I check tracking numbers if they're supplied (for items that I am hoping will arrive by a certain time), but otherwise I do not worry about tracking numbers. Smaller items from Germany (using Deutsche Post - ECONOMY - Brief oder Paket) may not even have a delivery time stated by DP, and might not be tracked.

Just as a comment from my own experience and opinion, I don't consider that an item is late arriving if it arrives after the time that eBay estimates. Using the word 'late' (even just mentally, when thinking about it) somehow tends to imply that I was guaranteed a delivery date, and sets up an expectation that I have the right to redress and/or annoyance if the parcel arrives after that time. I deliberately do my best not to think like that; the world does not run on a perfect schedule, missed connections do happen by millliseconds, and so on. I don't ever mark down an eBay seller's delivery time unless they've not actually posted the item within a reasonable timeframe. If the item arrives later than the eBay delivery estimate (the seller having done all that they are expected to do), the only one I blame is the eBay Chimæra who set up the false expectation. (I might shake my fist at that monstrous eBay hybrid, roll my eyes melodramatically, sigh heavily, mutter animadversions under my breath - general venting as a hobby sport, but how satisfying can that be when I know full well that eBay's decision-makers neither know nor care...? And the Olympic Games just refuse to allow massive pouting and heavy sighing to be included as competitive events - No, I've taken up other hobbies instead.)

Re: How long should I wait?

papermoon.lady — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 15:21:57 GMT

@countessalmirenawrote:
@mariq7

It will be 3 weeks at the end of next week.
I hope it will have arrived by then, but if not, I will politely contact the seller.

The problem is that not all sellers are the same. Some actually seem to wish to be contacted early if an item has not arrived. Occasionally I have seen neg fb indicating that an item had not arrived and the seller replied "Why did you not contact me immediately?"

Ebay often doesn't get it right, that's absolutely true, and probably the reason why some sellers overseas indicate "may not post to Australia", even if they do if you ask them. Some have explicitely told me that it creates problems to indicate details in the listing, and I think a problem might be the expected delivery frame, as theoretically buyers can open a case if the item does not arrive by the expected date if they click on "I didn't receive my item".

Re: How long should I wait?

digital*ghost — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 16:52:46 GMT

@papermoon.ladywrote:

The problem is that not all sellers are the same. Some actually seem to wish to be contacted early if an item has not arrived. Occasionally I have seen neg fb indicating that an item had not arrived and the seller replied "Why did you not contact me immediately?"

A feedback response like that usually indicates the neg was left without contact - it's actually quote common for buyers to leave feedback as a way of notifying sellers of problems, either that or they just can't be bothered working with the seller to resolve a post-transaction issue, so you'll see it most often left for cheap, readily available items.

Timing of contact about a non-arrival issue can seem tricky - contact the seller too early and they might be put off side from not allowing enough time, contact at a much later stage and they may wonder why you waited so long.

Personally, if it's a domestic order sent regular mail (not express), I appreciate it if the buyer waits at least a week, but contacts me around the 2 week mark as by that stage it's rare for a package to turn up (it does still happen, but the chances are lower every day after that point). International orders I prefer they wait the same kind of timeframes I do (3-4 weeks, since I can't make any real enquiries with Aus Post until then, again unless it was an express package).

That's not set in stone, as it can also be circumstantial. I'll surely raise an eyebrow and so forth if someone contacts me after 3 days, but I will also feel frustration if someone contacts me after a couple of weeks but mentions something like they needed it by the day they contacted me, as then my options to help are significantly affected and limited, but at the end of the day, timing isn't anywhere near as important as approach.

I have one regular who lives relatively local to me so usually gets items the day after I post. Since I post on Sundays most weekends, often they'll get an order on the Monday. One time they contacted me on Tuesday, worried that something had gone wrong (item had been posted on Sunday, as normal). She wasn't rude, accusatory, or demanding, or anything like that, just seemed genuinely concerned and curious. In the end she reprimanded herself for being so quick to worry, everything was friendly and polite, and I never felt any concern etc over her contacting me about it, rather I actually understand that anomalies can cause anxiety, because they do for me as well sometimes, but her attitude meant I was happy to help and provide more info (package arrived on the Wednesday).

On the flip side, if a buyer has waited a week or two but just sends a message that contains a few words (eg "I never got this ?? ", or "Still waiting", both of which are verbatim genuine messages received from buyers), most of the time when I get one of those, I sit at my desk, staring at the screen, blinking slowly and resisting the urge to shrug. o.O By which I mean it doesn't immediately inspire good relations and a willingness to assist. I respond to those and offer the same assistance, but it's often more perfunctory, and I'm less likely to go above and beyond to try and help, like sending replacements immediately via express.

I'm not trying to suggest sellers (or maybe just this one ), are delicate creatures that need to be approached with caution lest they be set off, just that it can do wonders simply to include a "Hi" in a message (things like that are increasingly absent in messages these days), and even more if you start out by advising the situation, mentioning the concern, and asking if they can provide any further info or check into it with the postal service. It shows the seller you're not blaming them, just asking for their help. (If they then are not willing to help, then of course they can be blamed, as it were).