Hi, looking for some help regarding postage not as described

[gunncomp]

Hi,

I have a problem with a seller that doesn't seem to have been addressed by ebay's or paypal's resolution processes.

On 7/12 I purchased an item from a Canadian seller with the postage option to Australia being "Canada Post Xpresspost - International" which has a 4-7 business day delivery time to Australia.  (I have a screenshot and an offline copy of the ebay listing web page which proves this.)  Based on the information on this listing I purchased from that seller as I required it before Christmas.

As of 22/12 I hadn't received it so contacted the seller asking for tracking information.  His reply was that he had used surface mail instead (which takes 2 months and has no tracking) to save money. 

To me, this is blatant fraud but I am not sure how to raise a dispute about this.  The seller is not prepared to issue any from of refund or even an apology.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,

James.

[padi*0409]

Firstly the 4 - 7 day delivery time is totally unreasitic, even within Australia postage to adjacent suburbs will often take longer than that.

Since the seller has decided to use surface mail, then open a case with Paypal for "item not received" and go from there.

To add, buying from or selling to Canada there has always been a problem with delivery delays, unless they go across the border to the US and post from there.

Could you post the item number so that members can give you better advice? 

[kopenhagen5]

The eBay and PayPal system is mostly automated and I wouldn't have confidence in the Phillipine call centre being able to handle this situation. You buy from other sellers you don't buy from eBay.

I would contact the seller asking for a refund of the postage cost as they did not supply what you purchased and you will not have it in time for Christmas.

If the seller is not prepared to assist I would immediately open a case in eBay for INR and seeing as the seller cannot supply tracking you will get a full refund. Then when the item arrives repay less postage costs stating you gave the seller every opportunity to partly rectify.

Edit - Padi, I suggest a case in eBay just in case seller provides postage proof as that is all needed for PayPal as opposed to delivery proof req by eBay. Also means you can try a case in PayPal if the eBay one fails for some reason.

[lyndal1838]

Unfortunately it is not too unusual for Canadian sellers to send items via Surface Mail "to save money" as Canadian postage is very expensive.  In my experience your item could take as much as 6 months (average 4 months) to arrive.....the 2 months quoted by Canada Post is very much wishful thinking.

I would definitely recommend starting a dispute as soon as possible.....you can start one in ebay as soon as the estimated delivery time has been exceeded.

[gunncomp]

Thank you all for your quick and helpful replies, particularly given the time of year.

padi:

I thought the delivery time was a bit optimistic too (although I have received international packages in this sort of time frame from other countries before). However, it still left another two weeks for it to arrive in time, had it been sent according to what was specified in the listing. The 4-7 days is also stated on the Canada Post Website for their Xpress International service.

I wasn’t sure if an INR was appropriate as I have never been in this situation before. (I haven't bought much over the years, most of my feedback is from when I was a seller.) Thanks for the advice.

Regarding the item number, I didn’t think it was allowed to post anything that identifies a buyer or seller but your f/b and post count indicates that you know what you are doing. It is 272679398376

As you can see, the seller has now amended the listing, adding another postage option (surface mail) and changing the price of the pre-existing express postage method from C $20 to C $82.57 I can post a link to a screenshot of the listing before he altered it, if that doesn't break any rules.

Interesting to note that the cost he specified for surface is C $51.55 and the actual cost is C $12.50

kopenhagen:

I haven’t bothered with ebay support for years now, I find the community message boards to be the most reliable, accurate and timely method to solve a problem.

Thanks for the advice, makes sense.

lyndal:

I really had no idea that it was that bad, I thought Australian postal standards were atrocious.

[padi*0409]

Wow, you must like the sauce !!! LOL. I guess it's a collectable though................

The listing doesn't give an ETA, so I'm  wondering, did you buy it from the Canadian site? If so that would explain the devilery ETA you posted before.

Jacking the price for the surface mail option's a bit rude though.

[gunncomp]

It was going to be a present for a chef I know who happens to love the Big Mac sauce and it just isn't available to buy in Australia.  I specifically purchased from this seller as it had the quickest delivery option. 

I purchased through ebay AU and I can't find the 4-7 days any more so must have been changed to "Varies for items posted from an international location" in the recent updates the seller has made to the listing.

And yeah, the price hike is very rude but at least he won't be selling any at that price.

Thanks again for your help.

[digital*ghost]

Seems like a pretty poor decision on the seller's behalf, all things considered - by which I mean, aside from the postage issue and all that's involved with that, I hope the sauce has an expiry date that's not in the near future, would remain unaffected by the conditions in the months of travelling time, and meets Australian import standards (the standards and whether it's ok for import are less the seller's responsibility, but I still believe a conscientiuous seller should consider them when deciding to list items and make them available internationally, when food items are on restricted lists and will almost certainly be inspected by customs). 

To have such a drastic change to delivery time on a food item, even if considered absolutely necessary for whatever reason, if nothing else the seller should have contacted you before shipping and asked if it was ok. 

[gunncomp]

Hi digital*ghost,

I agree, it is a very poor way to do business - I doubt that he is going to do very well as a seller.  I also share your concerns about the use by date and the conditions under which it is being shipped.  Fortunately I have received a full refund from the seller without having to force them into it.  So, I am not out of pocket but certainly not happy about their level of service.