Item delivered and signed for but buyer says she has got nothing

[ozstockman]

Hi guys,

I posted an item on 19.02.14 from VIC to SA via eParcel and according to tracking it was delivered on 25.02.13

However the buyer contacted me today saying she received nothing.

I provided her a tracking #  and all tracking details that shows it has been delivered.

She said even though tracking says it was delivered she did not sign for it. She said that there was a card in her mailbox but when she went to pick a parcel up there was nothing on her name at her local LPO. 

I have just called AusPost today and they have told me it has been delivered exactly as it says in tracking details. It has been signed by a person with the same surname as the buyer's and the first name starting with J. Her starts with a different letter. AusPost also has told me that my customer should contact them with the tracking # and they will investigate it for her.

I have passed all these details to her and asked her to call Australia Post. Now the buyer says she does not know anybody with this name and she lives alone. Also she tells that she has called AusPost and they cannot help her.

Moreover she starts   threatening  me with a paypal dispute.

What would you do in a situation like this? 

[tstore]

In a nutshell, if she opens a PayPal dispute, she will lose once you provide PayPal the tracking ID. I will allow other sellers give you a more comprehensive response. 

[5kazam]

I think her main residence is down in the bottom of the garden...!!!

[digital*ghost]

tstore is correct; an INR dispute will get your buyer nowhere, so it is in their best interests to work with you - I would let them know this, too. Not in so many words, I would let them know that I would like to help resolve the issue and arrive at a good resolution for them.

AP don't exactly make it easy in situations like this, giving conflicting information to each party, but despite the tracking details, a missing parcel investigation with Australia Post should still be lodged (I don't know much about eParcel - can the packages be insured, or was there any cover on the one that's missing? that could make a difference), and possibly a complaint about the LPO if they allowed someone with no card and no ID to collect and sign for the package. 

Whatever I could do my end to initiate things with AP, I would, and keep the buyer involved and informed as much as possible - unless they indicated they were not willing to work with me / let me help (and frankly, if they open a PayPal dispute, I would take that as an indication they want someone else to resolve the issue for them). 

[ozstockman]

Thanks everybody for your replies.

eParcel has insurance but it costs extra $1.50 per $100. I am not offereing for orders less than $100 because eParcel comes with signature on delivery.

I have just offered the buyer to post her a replacement with 50% discount but  she has refused it saying that she needs it for a wedding and she won't receive it by the time she needs it. She wants full refund which I am not going to give considering the situation. I will for sure lodge a missing parcel claim.

[green-gifts-mkd]

digital*ghost has hit the nail on the head: "...and possibly a complaint about the LPO if they allowed someone with no card and no ID to collect and sign for the package."

Some buyers only give a first name or a name like Mr/Mrs Smith. Some parcels are posted to minors without ID. That is why the name is of the person who signs doesn't matter, only that the PO staff has sighted ID with the delivery address on it. This is AusPost procedure. When a parcel goes to the front door, the contractor does not view ID of the person who opens the door. Any person who opens the door, except maybe a minor, can sign for the parcel.

If person-to-person delivery is purchased above and beyond 'Signature on Delivery' or 'Registered Post', then the person collecting must show ID with both the parcel name and address on it. This costs quite a lot extra and is a service that is rarely used (only for the most secure documentation/situations).

It's like a registered article I sent yesterday to Buyer's Name @ Roadshow Entertainment, Pyrmont. The mailroom person would have signed for the article at the collection point, then later passed the article onto my buyer. If that mailroom person keeps the article, and doesn't do his/her job by passing it on, it isn't my responsibility. It has gone to Roadshow Entertainment @ Pyrmont. Story over. AusPost sees it that way too, unless there appears to be a major discrepancy with the delivery of that item.

The person who signed would have had to show ID with the parcel's address on it, so it is a bit confusing as to what is going on here...

[ozstockman]

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@green-gifts-mkd wrote:

digital*ghost has hit the nail on the head: "...and possibly a complaint about the LPO if they allowed someone with no card and no ID to collect and sign for the package."

Some buyers only give a first name or a name like Mr/Mrs Smith. Some parcels are posted to minors without ID. That is why the name is of the person who signs doesn't matter, only that the PO staff has sighted ID with the delivery address on it. This is AusPost procedure. When a parcel goes to the front door, the contractor does not view ID of the person who opens the door. Any person who opens the door, except maybe a minor, can sign for the parcel.

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That's exactly what I told to my buyer. There is no way that her parcel could be given to someone else at her post office because this person had to show some ID which confirmed the same address as the parcel delivery address. And I know that her parcel was collected from her post office because AusPost tried to deliver it to her address and left a card.

Now with all these restrictions on a person identification in LPOs and the fact that the person that has signed for my buyer's parcel has the same surname  I guess that my buyer is lying.

She still insists on the full refund and tells me that she is going to do something about it.  I have told her that I will lodge a claim with AusPost and if they agree that it is their fault the parcel gone missing and refund me its postage cost that is the only thing I am happy to refund to my buyer.

[sillysillysheep]

In most cases the obvious answer is the correct one.  The buyer says she was carded, and the post office has evidence of someone with her name signing for it.

You have met all your requirements as a seller,  that item has left your inventory and was forwaded successfully, I would pretty much put it out of my mnd and move one.

To quote X-files TRUST NO ONE 😉