Delivery: How long is too long?

[ockarocka]

Hi. I sold a CD to someone in Italy (I'm in Australia) and posted it via Air Mail on the 9th of November. About 2 weeks later, he started asking me (almost on a daily basis) where it is. I must confess that after 4 or 5 times, I stopped replying. It's been less than 4 weeks and he said he's going to talk to Ebay about me. So my question is: how long is too long? Is it foolish of me to think that it could still turn up, or should I just refund him now? Thanks.

[tstore]

Italy takes FOREVER. Their customs is very slow. International post should take no less than 3 weeks to Europe (based on previous experience). But places like Russia, Italy and Brazil easily 6+weeks ... have you checked their feedback to see the 'type' of person you are dealing with?

[ockarocka]

No, I haven't yet but I will. Thanks very much for the info. Yeah, I'm still confident that it'll turn up. It's just hard getting through the language barrier and chilling him out. There's not a lot I can do I guess, although I feel better having read your answer. Thanks tstore 🙂

[tstore]

No worries 🙂 The guy should know it takes customs a while to release items. I would personally block buyers from those countries for this reason.

[svartee]

Because of the language barrier, you could try sending your message to your buyer in English and then underneath in Italian. You can paste your text into a free online translator and paste back the Italian version. Just a thought.

(Never sell to Italy due to delivery times!)

[digital*ghost]

Unfortunately, Italy's postal system is relatively notorious for lengthy customs delays and lost mail. There are some sellers that post there frequently and rarely experience issues, but it is probably one of the top countries sellers refuse to post to (after Nigeria). 

The package would have a customs number, which stands a small chance of being traced to a point - you can't use it with AP's online tracking tool, but if you contact them directly, they might be able to tell you the last known location, what date it left etc. I'm not sure if you can use it to find any info once it's left Australia, though.