Buyer Claims item not recieved but has been marked as delivered by A.P

[86norman]

What are my responsibilities? I want to do the right thing by the buyer but also don't want to get shafted.

[foxette-in-sox]

What do you mean 'marked as delivered' ?

Did you post using registered or click n send or did you post using ordinary express ?

[86norman]

Was posted click and send.

[the-kazbar]

Message the buyer and remind them that the parcel was delivered on such and such a date and ask them to check with other household members to see if someone has put it somewhere safe for them.

[***super_nova***]

If you send it by C&S you have PP protection, however just because AP have marked it as delivered does not mean it has been delivered to the right address.  Please, do not assume that the buyer is a scammer.  Confirm that the address is correct, tell them to see if it is sitting in their PO awaiting collection, both of you contact the AP Consumer Support on 13POST.

As C&S satchels do not have to be signed for, it is easy for them to be delivered to wrong house, or if left sticking out of mail box, to be taken.

[putney32]

As C&S satchels do not have to be signed for, it is easy for them to be delivered to wrong house, or if left sticking out of mail box, to be taken.

--- or some inventive posties leave them behind a cushion on a sofa on the front porch, or in the electricity box, or behind that huge potplant...... etc..... your buyer may need to do a bit of a property search before heading off to the PO to check!

[tall_bearded]

“What are my responsibilities? I want to do the right thing by the buyer but also don't want to get shafted”

Your legal responsibilities ended the instant you handed it over Aust Post (the carrier) at which time risk passed from the seller to the buyer.

That is if you can prove, which you already have, that the item was posted, then any issue arising out of failed receipt, is an issue between the buyer and the carrier, However that said, there is an onus on you, at a customer satisfaction level, to assist the buyer in any way you reasonably can.

Therefore, what I would do is lodge a claim under the Aust Post Discretionary claims process, (the process requires the seller complete the paperwork), and then assign all rights to any compensation to the buyer, which means, if AP agree to pay the compensation it will go to the buyer and not you.

Apart from that, aside from compensating for the buyer out of you own pocket, and I reiterate there is  no legal requirement for you to do that,  there is little more that you can do.  

[86norman]

Thanks for all the responses, really what I was after was advice on what to do after all of the processes above have been tried. I'm guessing A.P rarely compensates, so it ends up with me having been paid, buyer saying they've not receiving the item and A.P saying it was delivered.

[phorum_junkie*]

If it is showing as delivered then they will not be able to win a Paypal dispute however unless you had signature required the buyer may be telling the truth so although you won't be out of pocket you may get less than favourable feedback.

If the buyer is genuine then it is up to them to fight it out with Paypal, if they are prepared to jump through hoops and spend a lot of time doing it they may end up with a discretionary payment from PP but that will not be taken from your account.

[*new2vintage]

There was a case last year where a click and send item was signed for and the buyer claimed non receipt. The seller panicked and gave a refund and the buyer was probably one happy scammer. When members pointed out the seller's error he spat the dummy and we haven't seen him since.

Never give a refund if you don't need to.