More unfair late shipment ratings

[rocket2retro]

Like many sellers I've pushed out my handling time to 3 days (from 1)

I've just received a late shipment defect. The parcel was delivered within the quoted timeframe but not picked up by the buyer until 5 days later from the post office.

Of course I can contact eBay & prove it was delivered on time (and waste time on the phone).
There are so many variables with scenarios like this (and of course Aust Post delivery times).

I feel like pushing all my listings out to 30 days handling and adding a footnote to every listing to ignore the handling time (and that I post daily etc).

When will eBay wake up to the fact that this system is an abject failure.

At best it rates Australia Post's performance (and not the seller).

[*tippy*toes*]

If it was a tracked item you only have to prove that it was posted within your handling time. If that was the case, get onto them. Use the call back option so you're not sitting on hold all day. I believe you also get someone who is marginally higher than pleb status by using the call back option. Or, you could just try your luck and email. I've had some successes using that option.

[lane-ends]

Still no guarantee you will get it removed unless you have lodgement within time frame or buyer selects delivered on time. If buyer hasn't left feedback yet drop them a note.

[rocket2retro]

Yes I have the lodgement date (it is in the tracking info). I do realise I can contact eBay and have it removed. The problem is all of this takes time & if it going to happen regularly (which it seems it will) I can see myself sitting on the phone to eBay when I have better things to do.

[*tippy*toes*]

Use the call back option, that way you're not sitting around all day. They call you when someone is free to talk to you. It's your call if you do nothing about it. It's your business that's going to go down the gurgler, not ours.

[bluedolphin7640]

totally agree! I normally post off items as soon as payment is recieved and I currently have a buyer that left a very vage message to not send her item to her "old address".  I immediately responded to ask to confirm her correct postal address  and its been close to a week  that she has not responded to my messages!! No doubt this will incur a defect for late shippment when clearly this isnt my fault! Whoever thought of this silly shipment defect obviously didnt think of these things such as unresponsive buyers and Australia Post issues! Totally unfair! 

[clarry100]

We use large letter and if we get vague messages like that we will normally give them 24-hours to respond otherwise we just send to the PayPal address given with the order.

We have set our handling times to 3-days to give us a bit of breathing space.

However, as a user of large letters we are totally unprotected against any INR claims or late arrival defects, regardless of what address we use.

[*tippy*toes*]

---

@123-crowey wrote:

totally agree! I normally post off items as soon as payment is recieved and I currently have a buyer that left a very vage message to not send her item to her "old address".  I immediately responded to ask to confirm her correct postal address  and its been close to a week  that she has not responded to my messages!! No doubt this will incur a defect for late shippment when clearly this isnt my fault! Whoever thought of this silly shipment defect obviously didnt think of these things such as unresponsive buyers and Australia Post issues! Totally unfair! 

---

If the item is being sent with tracking, then you have to send to the address given by PayPal to keep your seller protection. If you send to any other address, even at the buyers request, you leave yourself wide open and have no protection. If the buyer does get back to you with a different address, tell them you can going to refund the payment and they are to pay again after changing their address in PayPal.

If your items are sent without tracking, don't worry because you have no protection anyway.

I've had a few buyers buy a few things and paid straight away. When I'd seen they had bid on other items I sent them a message telling them not to pay for anything else until they have finished buying. I also ask if they want the already paid items sent or to wait and have them sent together. They have all said to wait. I then tell them that due to eBay's silly rules, I will mark the already paid for items as posted (that was before the current defect system).

I take a risk by doing that, but when I upload the tracking number, it works on all their transactions, so at least as far as eBay is concerned, all items were sent with tracking. Now the new system has come in, if someone pays early and keeps buying, those paid for items will be sent with no option to hold them back.