Late shipment defects

[jimmyjoejoe_jnr]

I just looked at my seller dashboard and I have 7 late shipment defects,it is ticked as carrier says late not buyer.How does what the carrier says count as a defect.Five arrived within the time and two the buyers asked me not to post until they returned from holidays.

Can someone enlighten me to how this works.Thanks

[davewil1964]

If the delivery date is after the eBay estimate, it is a defect. The carrier doesn't report it, it is taken from the tracking data.

The trick is to counter lodge within your handling time (not chuck it in a red box) and get a lodgement scan, then you won't get a defect.

[rocket2retro]

I can't answer you question as to the carrier, however many sellers (myself included) have extended our handling time to 4-5 days to allow more 'grace' with this ridiculous system. I still post every day (sometime twice) and so far it seems to working.

If you have the emails from the buyers requesting you defer posting I'd say this would be evidence for these defects to be removed.

Unfortunately buyers don't realise that answering 'no' to the question 'did your item arrive by date/date/date?' results in the seller receiving a defect.

[collect247]

If the head of ebay had a brain then he would get rid of the **bleep**en stupid defect system all together.

Why would a business hand out defects thus resulting in a seller eventually being restricted or suspended,

when the seller is ebays bread and butter.

You might say well if the seller goes with the flow then no defects will be issued,but why put sellers through this **bleep**?

I will never fathem ebays defect system,but as they say easy come easy go.

[amber-eyed-girl]

Because the defect system was conjured up to retain buyers.

Which is where the money, ultimately comes from.

seller standards = increased buyer confidence = increased eBay sales, would be the gist of it.

on paper, anyway.

[clarry100]

There are really few options available to guard against these late delivery defects.

First and foremost you MUST have tracking.

Then with that tracking you also need one of two other things (or both).

FIRST... (this is the best option)

Lodge the item over the counter inside your stated handling time. Some sellers cannot always get to a PO to do this. But avoid dropping into the red street boxes as most often no scan events happen until delivery.

Lodging over the counter gets a lodgement scan event and trumps any late delivery after that.

It should even trump any item not received claim. ie lost and never showing as delivered.

SECOND...

If you do not have the lodgement scan event HOPE that your item is scanned as delivered inside the ridiculous ebay estimated delivery dates. You can push out your handling time to 3-days or more to help offset this one.

Even if after the above your buyer still ansers NO to the delivery date question you should be able to use your tracking status to get them to revoke the late delivery defect. But do this within 90-days (maybe 60???) or they will not remove it even if the tracking evidence is good.

If you are using Aust Post (other carriers to be added later I believe) as your carrier then given that you upload the tracking number onto the order your buyer will not even be asked the delivery question if the tracking shows it was either lodged on time or delivered on time.

If the tracking shows late delivery (ie after the ebay estimated delivery date) with no on time lodgement then you will get a defect that says the carrier said it was late. And you will not be able to have this one removed by ebay.

If you are using large letter without any tracking (registered mail gives tracking on these) then you are totally at the mercy of the buyer's answer to the delivery date question. If they answer NO then you will get a non-removable defect. Again, you can push out your handling time to 3-days or more to help offset this one.

[collect247]

It works both ways,no sellers then no buyers,no buyers then no sales.

So to be much fairer sellers shouldn't have to stress out with defects hanging over their heads.

Late shipment defects is just the same as the fees on postage,both unfair on a seller.

There are so many unfair policies in place on ebay and I hope the day comes when a member can fight

ebay on issues that are unjust towards them. 

[davidc4430]

as we small sellers have noticed, ebays focus has changed, they are now looking at 'the big picture' of big players in the bricks and mortar world for the future ebay growth.

bigger stores bigger sales bigger ebay profits

maybe in another 5 or 10 years there will be a split in the ebay world where small time sellers will be forced off ebay and over to a revamped gumtree, also owned by ebay.

has anyone notice ebay and myer joining forces to open a 'virtual reality' store.

look it up on google, and its not april 1

[amber-eyed-girl]

No buyers = no sales.

That is what sellers, need to think of, too.

If the newish rules are harsh, they are here due to the sellers that were slipshod, fraudulent, or otherwise not providing a good environment for buyers...who left in droves.

That is unfortunately, why the sellers still here have now to abide by far more stringent rules than before. As a lot of them, were previously a courtesy to a buyer. So up to the seller to decide...and these days, it is more than a neg or two that puts off buyers. Bad experiences taint eBay as a whole on social media, more people hear bad news and it travels faster than before.

Posting, quickly.

Providing good communication.

Providing, what was paid for.

These are all things a good seller will do, anyway. eBay has made it difficult to keep those standards up...for a reason. If it's too hard, for good sellers...eBay, if it cares to keep them, will make adjustments. I believe it already has amended what is and isn't regarded as defects since introduction.

The more sellers who take their reasoned arguments against the way the defects system works, to eBay, not just here, the more chance of any changes.

But don't blame eBay entirely for the system. If self-regulation is seen to fail, rules happen.

[collect247]

I was an excellent seller and it was the fraudulent buyers that ruined it for me,where's the safe environment for the seller?

It only takes a buyer to lie to ebay and the seller gets the boot.

I'm at the stage of complaining to ebay on a daily basis but am banging my head against the wall as it's falling on deaf ears.