Damaged by AustPost - what to do?

[dr_pocket]

Hi,

I've sold a set of phone screen protectors and the buyer has indicated they were severly bent by AuistPost during transit. He supplied a photo which certainly looks like the postie was bloody careless. Anyway, buyer is asking for replacements. There was no insurance, and I don't see how I should be liable for AustPost carelessness. The items were packaged appropriately, and postage was free - I'm making a very small margin on these items and can't supply replacements without losing money on the deal.

What should I do?

Cheers,

[nevillesdaughter]

Aust Post offer no "fragile goods" type service and state that as a guideline, your item should be able to withstand being dropped from about waist height, and able to tolerate up to 20kg parcels landing on it, because this is the weight of parcels they handle. As Devil's advocate, with this in mind, it is probably necessary to put some very stiff cardboard or such, in with items to mitigate against their being bent, if bending them is going to render them unsuitable for use.

Ebay's attitude is that as the seller, it is your resposibility to get the goods, in a suitable condition, to the buyer regardless of the carrier.

My advice would be to replace the goods for this buyer, and take steps to prevent it happening again, because Aust Post are never going to be able to say that bendable items won't get bent.

Hope this helps,

Marina. 

[phorum_junkie*]

If they could be bent then they were not adequately packaged. They should have been sandwiched between two pieces of board strong enough not to be bent. While you can ask a buyer to take the item and packaging to the PO it is extremely rare that AP will accept any responsibility unless the packaging is ripped to pieces or there are tyre tracks showing it has been run over.

If it were me I would either send a replacement or a refund, whichever was more cost effective, and put it down as a customer service expense exactly as I would if a buyer said an item with no tracking to their exact address hadn't arrived. I have a few cents built into the cost of every item I sell which more than covers the occasional refund or replacement without return.

[dr_pocket]

So I refund the dudes money and the b'stard still gives me a negative! I was polite and apologetic, and still got scrooed. And to top it off he starts accusing me of sending him spam email and threatening to call the cops!! I don't have have the dudes email address, and his postal was a PO box and his ebay handle!! The guys a nutter. Geez. Live and learn. I really hate that it's just so easy for someone to leave a negative, and sellers have zero recourse.

[davewil1964]

You have recourse. If the threats are sent through eBay messages. If the comments on the neg are not related to the item or are not abut the item.

There is also the defamation route. I don't know the link, but I'm sure it is on the site map.

[coast_golf]

Wow, check out the FB left for others. Yet another one for the BBL, I'd definitely be asking eBay to review the feedback on the basis of his/her history.

[thecatspjs]

OP I would contact ebay for feedback removal. 

That buyers feedback shows clear signs of them being a scammer.  Too many negatives for lost items in that profile.

I will also report them, and urge others to do the same, the more that report the more likelihood that the pest will be NARU'd

Good on ya fellow posters for your poor advice to this OP

[ozcraftsptyltd]

Giving the buyer a good experience of buying from you is important, as any company with the wisdom to run a loyalty program will tell you. THAT's why you send a replacement - you want repeat sales and sending a replacement will show the buyer you are a seller who can be trusted - especially if they know you don't have to.

Sure Australia Post may eventually cough up if the buyer puts in a claim, but it takes months and a lot of effort. So it's better to resolve it yourself.

If you need to, add a small cost to each sale to compensate for the occasional mishap. It is fairly rare that things are damaged, after all - never happened to me - more commonly, they are lost. But PayPal covers that if you use tracking.

[ozcraftsptyltd]

Unfortunately, you strike the occasional buyer like that. It's partly due to the attitude shown by one or two sellers who have written in reply to this post. One bad experience leads the buyer to adopt a 'me vs them' attitude.

When you strike one of those, you can write to eBay customer service, though it's unliely they'll be able to help. So you just have to take it with a grain of salt. No point in stressing out over it. Just remember the 99% of buyers who are polite and reasonable and never let yourself - and other sellers - down by losing your temper - it's just not worth it.

[thecatspjs]

How typical that the refund the buyer advocates earlier in the thread all go quiet now ......