Help/advice pls - Aust Post contractor signed for my item & it's missing

[the3coopers]

We've lost a very expensive item that was delivered from the USA via USPS Express last week. Yet the AP tracking shows that it's been signed for!

Last Sunday we arrived back from an Easter Holiday, and it seems that the AP Contractor had come Tuesday 10th at about 7:38am -  there is a hangup on our home Answering Machine (my home phone number is on the vendor's invoice) at that time. The delivery status says delivered at 7:42am.

I phoned AP customer service and they say there's a scrawled signature with my first name on it. I am unable to get a copy, but I've asked the vendor to request it via USPS. I never sign my name that way, and anyway I can easily verify that I wasn't here on that day. The item should have been carded, not dropped.

Item was paid by Paypal, funded by a ANZ Visa Debit card. Theoretically I cannot claim INR since the item was delivered - and it'd be really unfair to chargeback on the vendor since they certainly did deliver something to us.

AP seemed to be saying "too bad", claim back via the vendor. Yet the only reason it's missing is because the AP employee seems to have either delivered to the wrong address or signed for it themselves and left it sitting on our front porch for nearly a week!

So, how on earth should I handle this? The item cost me almost $1000, so it's not a loss that I can "absorb". I'm wondering if anybody has had similar experiences, especially with making a claim against Australia Post for such a loss.

Thanks heaps for any advice you can give me. 🙂

[lemmayj]

Just a thought, but it might be worth bringing this up on the Australia Post facebook page. They do have representatives there who look into things and this might help escalate your problem to a stage where it is looked at by a human with the power to actually make things happen....

Good luck

Ellie

[beach_and_home]

coops, have you talked to all of your neighbours to check if anyone saw the parcel being left? Maybe it might help to check. You never know, maybe someone saw the delivery guy leaving it somewhere. If you have a witness to that then you can pursue it further.

[leader-of-the-band]

Oh and Coopes just a thought which may hurry things along.

The next time you call AP refer them to this discussion.  That is, point out to them that their past conduct has forced you to seek advice, and as such, that conduct is now in the in the public domain, with thus far in excess of 870 hits, the vast majority of which are by people who either buy and sell on line, and therefore use their product.

Bad advice in my opinion. I wouldn't do this.  The reason I wouldn't is that IF it ends up that the contractor DID NOT sign for the item then maybe they could sue you for defamation because the comment has been put in a public forum and has been seen by many members!

[leader-of-the-band]

Just a thought, but it might be worth bringing this up on the Australia Post facebook page. They do have representatives there who look into things and this might help escalate your problem to a stage where it is looked at by a human with the power to actually make things happen.

But don't make unsubstantiated claims.  Just state facts - someone who was not authorised to do so has signed for the parcel and it is now missing.

In coming weeks your claim that the contractor signed for the item may be substantiated, BUT, think of the consequences if it didn't happen that way.

(Coops, you've been around long enough and I have read many of your posts, so I know that you will act appropriately.  I have only put these last two comments so other eBayers who find themselves in a similar situation to you might read an alternate view to those suggesting seriously flawed actions that could lead to real life legal ramifications)

[digital*ghost]

Just a thought re: confirming if it was the deliverer who attempted to call. If you can't/don't get the information you need from Optus, would it be possible to check the outgoing calls on the phone the deliverer would have used instead? (I'm assuming you'd need a court order or somesuch, unless they agree to having the record provided, but it may be another way to get the info. Also, if it was a company phone, can AP make the decision about whether to have the records pulled?)

[lyndal1838]

I think you will find that AP contractors and couriers use their own mobile phones, not company phones...they are all sub-contractors not employees of Australia Post.

To get any records you would need to know who the contractor was that delivered in your area and what his number was. I do not think it would be possible until he was officially under suspicion and the information was being sought by the authorities.

[the3coopers]

Thanks for all the comments and support, they are very much appreciated. 🙂

I am currently holding off for a few days until I hear back from AP and USPS. Australia Post have definitely created a "Case Number" and the online tracking website now shows that a customer inquiry and investigation is underway.

Both the Vendor and myself requested a copy of the POD Signature from USPS, and we both recieved a reply yesterday that USPS are unable to obtain this. That is a bit strange considering that the signature was certainly "on file" a few days ago 😉

The Vendor spoke to USPS yesterday and was told that the investigation from their side is not completed, but they are awaiting a POD from Australia Post.

My own gut feeling is that AP will (suddenly / accidently / have already) "delete" the POD Signature to cover their tracks, and then let it go down to a standard "item was lost in the post" situation. In which case USPS will then reimburse the Vendor under the standard insurance policy of the service that they used.

Right now I do not think that Paypal will be much use, nor a chargeback via my credit card. But I still have plenty of time to do those if the standard process fails.

I also trust the Vendor and they are actively working with me to resolve this. It's a medical supply company, not a standard eBay seller, and I have no reason not to trust them for a few more days while they await a response from their carrier. If the USPS cannot supply a POD, then they've told me they will just make a claim for loss.

[the3coopers]

Today I received a helpful reply from Australia Post, as follows:

I refer to your enquiry concerning the Express Courier International article EC*********US from The United States.

We have investigated with our delivery area, who has confirmed this item was delivered as addressed on the 10th of April 2012.

If you still have not received this item, please refer this enquiry to the sender and ask they lodge an investigation through their posting agent.

Any requests for compensation for the non receipt of this article should be referred to the origin postal administration by the sender of this article.

We apologise for any inconvenience which may have been caused as a result of this matter.

Feels just like I am dealing with eBay :^O

[davewil1964]

At least you knew what the outcome would be, coops. ;\

[tall_bearded]

Okay Coops.  In response I would send something like...

Thank you for your email of XXXX.  I’m afraid it fails to address the core issue re my complaint.

The method of delivery chosen and paid for precluded Safe Drop, and though you say you have documentation which proves it was signed for at the time of delivery, neither I or anyone else authorised to take delivery was at home at the time you say it was delivered.

Therefore there are only two possible reasons why I did not receive my parcel.

1,    Though the method of delivery specifically precluded it, it was safe dropped and then subsequently went missing; or

2,    It was handed to and sighed for by someone not authorised to receive it.

In either instance you are liable for the loss, liable because, if safe dropped the item was lost because you provided a less secure mode of delivery than that paid for.  In the alternative, if it was signed for by someone not authorised to take delivery, then the loss is attributable to a failure on the part of yoru contractor to properly verify identity before handing over the parcel.

Now for present purposes I have been willing to leave it you to sort it out.  However if I do not receive what I consider to be an adequate response within 7 days of this correspondence, I will be left with no alternative but to file a complaint with the ombudsman.