Sellers who say posted but didn't really for a couple of days

[wifetoalfred]

I've had a pretty good run with Sellers in the years I've bought things off eBay. Some Sellers go the extra mile and others have excellent customer service and are very quick at answering questions.

A few times when I've bought something I've got notificiation within an hour or 2 to say the item/s have been shipped. I've thought wow that's super fast but at times there is a 2 days delay before the item has actually been posted. I am assumeing the items are in the red and white postal bag and they have listed the item/s as shipped when they actually haven't been. Is this common practise with some Sellers?  As a buyer I'm just glad to have tracking info to follow parcels and still enjoy the eBay buying experience very much and continue to do so.

I never expect Sellers to post over the weekend and if I do a Buy It Now on a Saturday I don't expect it to be posted before Monday. I'd just like to have Sellers notify when the item is actually shipped. For those who are Sellers what is the reason for saying you've shipped them before it physically was?

[curraone]

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@wifetoalfred wrote:

I've had a pretty good run with Sellers in the years I've bought things off eBay. Some Sellers go the extra mile and others have excellent customer service and are very quick at answering questions.

I never expect Sellers to post over the weekend and if I do a Buy It Now on a Saturday I don't expect it to be posted before Monday. I'd just like to have Sellers notify when the item is actually shipped. For those who are Sellers what is the reason for saying you've shipped them before it physically was?

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If sellers are like me - they like to prepare the parcels as soon as the item is paid - using ebay postage labels or click and send does generate an automated tracking number and does mark the item as posted -  the automated process is not in my control - and obviously sometimes I am  preparing postage labels after hours and or  in the middle of the night.

The fact that the buyer gets an "item posted" immediately is offset by the convenience of using the labels and being able to do them when I want - not queue at the PO.    

So the next day, even it is a Saturday or Sunday,  I can drop the packed items off at the local mail collection centre which is only a few streets away.   They do not scan them - they send the mail bags to Nambour Mail Centre the next working day and you will see the tracking pop up there the day after that.   So you see,  the buyer has  received the tracking number, and it is marked as posted, and I HAVE posted it - it will just take a while to scan at the sorting cente.

The nearest actual PO means an hour trip so the above method is better for me.   The only advantage at the PO is that the buyer can see the "item received" tracking straight away  - but the actual postage is the same - they send the items the next day to Nambour for sorting.

In my opinon that automated emails and the postage labels are a good innovation.   Quick and easy, and it complies with the ebay requirements.

I agree that the tracking number does not show to the OP sometimes for a day or so but it does not mean that the item has not been posted.

[thecatspjs]

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@wifetoalfred wrote:

I've had a pretty good run with Sellers in the years I've bought things off eBay. Some Sellers go the extra mile and others have excellent customer service and are very quick at answering questions.

A few times when I've bought something I've got notificiation within an hour or 2 to say the item/s have been shipped. I've thought wow that's super fast but at times there is a 2 days delay before the item has actually been posted. I am assumeing the items are in the red and white postal bag and they have listed the item/s as shipped when they actually haven't been. Is this common practise with some Sellers?  As a buyer I'm just glad to have tracking info to follow parcels and still enjoy the eBay buying experience very much and continue to do so.

I never expect Sellers to post over the weekend and if I do a Buy It Now on a Saturday I don't expect it to be posted before Monday. I'd just like to have Sellers notify when the item is actually shipped. For those who are Sellers what is the reason for saying you've shipped them before it physically was?

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As a buyer I do not rely on the eBay notifications that an item has been sent as it is an automated eBay process that is triggered when a label is created or tracking uploaded.

If I check on the progress of an item that has been marked as sent and it has not yet had a tracking event recorded, I double check the handling time nominated by the seller in their listing - this is viewable on the original listing under the Postage and Payments tab. 

If you do this you can then make a more informed decision as whether sellers are posting within their stated handling time or not.

For example, if I purchased and paid for goods on a Monday and the item was automatically marked as sent by eBay later that day (due to the seller commencing  preparing the goods for post) and I can see that the seller has  a four day handling time, then I would not expect the goods to be posted until the Thursday or Friday.  If it is mailed sooner than this I would think it was a bonus.  If there are no tracking events at this time I would also not be concerned as many sellers don't lodge parcels over the counter to get a tracking scan.

[black*poppy · Accepted solution]

Agree about the automated tracking with ebay and C&S label creation.

The other thing to remember is that most sellers using prepaid satchels (assuming they have them at home already) will add tracking and mark as sent when they write the address out at the time, while they are in front of the computer/tablet/whatever with ebay open cos this is where they get the address from.

Waiting to add tracking etc after lodgement adds more work.  It involves recording the tracking somewhere against that particular buyer... trek down to the PO... maybe 2 or 3 days later.... come back, open ebay again and THEN add the tracking number - hopefully with no mistakes.   Way easier to do it all at once.

It can be a hassle to post every day.  Sometimes I let the parcels accumulate for a couple of days and take them all at once, especially if I have work commitments or I just don't feel like going out that particular day. But I get them ready as orders come in so I can just grab them when I do go (or take the opportunity of someone else in the household going into town who can drop them off) 🙂

My posting routine tends to align with a need to go out and get more bread. Way more efficient incorporating a couple of errands, totally resent going into town just for posting.

[lizzyamelia]

There is no "due date". That is a made up and a very inaccurate date created by Ebay. AP takes as long as they do to deliver. Cpould be anywhere from 3-28 days - nothing to do with sellers.

[louisas_lines]

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@lizzyamelia wrote:
There is no "due date". That is a made up and a very inaccurate date created by Ebay. AP takes as long as they do to deliver. Cpould be anywhere from 3-28 days - nothing to do with sellers.

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Agreed. If you have a 3-day handling time but post on the first day, the clock does not start ticking early.  The estimate from the time that the item was purchased remains the same.

[springyzone]

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@lizzyamelia wrote:
There is no "due date". That is a made up and a very inaccurate date created by Ebay. AP takes as long as they do to deliver. Cpould be anywhere from 3-28 days - nothing to do with sellers.

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I realise it is not the fault of a seller if AP takes a while to deliver something.

But there is indeed a due date range. It shows on every ad & yes, it may be an estimate and it may be imposed by ebay, but there is a due date and sellers ignore it at their peril.

Buyers see it and buyers take it into consideration when buying an item. They start to expect that item and look out for it within the due date range. They start to worry if it has not arrived by then.

You are not going to change that & in fact the date matters a lot because if it passes and a buyer has no product, then they can start an item not received claim.

The delivery dates on your ad do matter, that is all I am saying.

[lyndal1838]

But sellers can not do anything about the dates that ebay puts on their listings....they cannot alter those dates so there is not much use stressing about it.

All the seller can do is post within their handling time and hope for the best.

[davewil1964]

And/or extend their handling time to minimise late delivery defects.

[digital*ghost]

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@springyzone wrote:

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@lizzyamelia wrote:
There is no "due date". That is a made up and a very inaccurate date created by Ebay. AP takes as long as they do to deliver. Cpould be anywhere from 3-28 days - nothing to do with sellers.

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I realise it is not the fault of a seller if AP takes a while to deliver something.

But there is indeed a due date range. It shows on every ad & yes, it may be an estimate and it may be imposed by ebay, but there is a due date and sellers ignore it at their peril.

Buyers see it and buyers take it into consideration when buying an item. They start to expect that item and look out for it within the due date range. They start to worry if it has not arrived by then.

You are not going to change that & in fact the date matters a lot because if it passes and a buyer has no product, then they can start an item not received claim.

The delivery dates on your ad do matter, that is all I am saying.

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"Estimate" and "due date" are contradictions in terms, and what you're saying is precisely why so many sellers have a problem with eBay displaying these dates on listings, i.e. because an estimate is being interpreted as a due date.

When you get a bill, or borrow a book from a library, they give you a due date for payment, or a due date for returning the book. 

When someone buys an item on eBay, they get an estimated date (or date range) of arrival.

They'll never go away, now that the MBG uses them for timeframes, and they'll probably never stop being interpreted as due dates by some, but the distinction should be important. 

[anydaysunday]

Well yes, but it’s also a sneaky way of
1: Falsely impressing the buyer, because let’s face it, most of them will think it’s been lodged at Australia Post
2: Sellers are entitled to special deals and privileges if they offer same day or next day postage.