What's the main issue with ordering on ebay in Melbourne? Delivery of ebay items to your door!

[hpc6656a]

Hi,

I live in Melbourne and I am a frequent ebayer - and my main problem is getting things delivered to my door. How annoying is it when you get home from work and you find a slip in your mailbox saying "pickup from local post office" or "pickup from local collection centre". Those places are usually only open from 9-5 Mon-Fri - the exact times I work! I end up having to take time off work just to collect my item from the post office or collection centre.

There must be an easier way? Any ideas out there? I once heard of local ebay pick-up centres, which charge 1 receive and store your goods and who are open till late most nights of the week - anyone heard of this?

Thanks

Dave.

[curraone]

Australia Post do offer pick up lockers in some locations- there are a few in Melbourne - this may be an option for you

http://auspost.com.au/parcels-mail/parcel-lockers.html

[curraone]

more details from Australia Post

Our 24/7 Parcel Lockers offer you the ultimate delivery convenience when shopping online. No more waiting for your parcel - just quick and easy collection at a time that suits you.

Benefits

• Accessible 24/7 at more than 140 locations across Australia
• Self-service parcel collection; get your parcel when it suits you
• Free registration. You can also register for lockers at different locations
• Private and secure - we'll text or email you a unique code to access your parcel
• Easy to use: just register, shop and collect!

[trulyspecialgoodies]

Check with your local post office/collection centre - a lot of them have early parcel pick-up available from 7.30am. I'm in a Brisbane suburb and my local post office has it - you ring a bell by a little flap (it's clearly marked) and someone opens it so you can hand over your card and collect your parcel. Very handy

[harley_babes_hoard]

Ask at your work if it's ok to have your parcels delivered there.

[zanadoo_56]

I feel your frustration....and it doesn't help when sellers state standard delivery without mentioning you are going to have to organise pickup and sign for something you've bought which was of low value and hardly worth the trouble.  Grrrrr.  (There was a card waiting for me yesterday, dammit).

I have mobility issues and the parking and long queues situation makes my local post office a no-go area....plus the limited opening hours of course.  My answer is to have a carded purchase transferred to another post office by filling out an Aust Post online transfer request - in this case to a subagency with longer opening hours, less customers and best of all, disabled parking right outside the entrance.  But there's a downside of course.

Aust Post seem to be dealing with a backlog or something as normally I would hear from them in a couple of days to let me know my parcel is on its way to the new destination.  Lately it's been taking longer or I've had to chase them about it.

If the parcel weight is over 500g there's a fee - even slightly over...like 503g.  Yep, I got charged a fee to move a tiny featherlight parcel.

If you want your item in a hurry this isn't the answer - it can take a couple of day or almost a week.  You never know.

At the moment it is the only way I can get my purchases...sigh.  I wish I could sign something that tells Aust Post to safe drop all the larger items and stick all the small ones in my letterbox as usual and forgo a seller's paranoia and the need for the item to be signed for.  That really would be the most efficient method to get my purchases.

And a note to sellers who think signed for is fully trackable etc.  My last purchase didn't show up in tracking at all.  Mind you it didn't help that the contractor who left the card wrote down the number wrong.  But even when I got the right number, for some reason there was still no tracking.

[2106greencat]

All due respect - if you buy on line, and know AP (or courier) is going to deliver, why are you so 'amazed' that an oversized or (sig req'd item) that  is undeliverable because you are not home and has to be collected.

What do you want to happen ?

Leave it on the front door step (which you are free to request BTW, it is called 'safe dropped') and then get the snits when it is stolen.

Seriously, how can a seller be blamed for any of this ?

If you can't be home to take delivery, or you can't be bothered (or unable) to collect from a safe point, my advice is purchase form BM - on line is not for you.

edited to say Not aimed at you zanadoo, just a genralisation.

[cherry*135]

There is also this service  from Aust Post that I noticed recently  - My Deliveries

There are extra costs though - $2 a delivery to reschedule the time for delivery. Redirect to a different address in same state is $5.70.

• Redirect or reschedule your deliveries for another day, choosing a 2 hour delivery window in the morning (7am - 12pm) or afternoon (12 - 5pm)*

*  Where the following parcel types are lodged for delivery with Australia Post via either the eParcel or Click and Send lodgement systems.

http://auspost.com.au/parcels-mail/my-deliveries.html

[zanadoo_56]

You've missed my point.  I 'blame' sellers who don't specify that they will only post parcels signed for. 

If I was buying something expensive then I wouldn't be at all surprised if the item was registered...in fact I'd expect it.  But when I've spent less than $20 (sometimes much less) and the seller specifies standard delivery and what they really mean is signed for....then it gets tedious.  Still, once bitten, twice shy.  I make a note of whether a cheap purchase is registered....and that seller is added to my 'never again' list.

BTW I have a safe drop spot where nothing has gone missing.  Of course it isn't a front door step!

If you have mobility problems BM shops are most definitely not always the solution.  That's why I prefer to buy online....and (fingers crossed) those purchases will be delivered to my home and not carded.  It's just annoying that info provided by some sellers doesn't include some key details re postage.  I've seen enough listings on eBay to know the option to include what AP method they prefer is there - so why don't they use it?

[ajarnjenny]

One reason that they used signed for is that they have been burned by buyers claiming INR, when proof of delivery is not used.