on โ27-11-2012 07:35 PM
I recently posted an item and the buyer hasnt received it yet. He messaged me twice and I told him the date, time and the PO it was posted from. I also emailed him a copy of the receipt.
He then told me he had opened a case with Paypal as he was covered by them for loss.
Immediately Paypal puts a freeze on the funds ($70) and I replied in the resolution centre that the item had been sent. This was 10 days ago and the buyer hasn't responded at all to the dispute since.
I offer registered post with tracking and signature on all my items and the buyer chose not to register. The item was sent to his work address also, which I dont like doing as you dont know who is receiving the parcel.
My questions are: should I escalate the dispute to a claim and will Paypal see in my favour as he didnt choose the registered option?
on โ28-11-2012 02:20 AM
If I was silly enough to offer a buyer a choice of not registering a $70 item and I didn't pay for registration myself and the parcel went AWOL, then I would wear the loss as a cost of being silly.
Surely if it's not an auction you would build the registration cost into the item or postage price, thereby not giving the buyer a choice. If it's an auction and it went for more than you anticipated then pay for registration out of your better than expected profits.
Or use Click & Send. For satchels (and probably boxes) it's cheaper with signature required ($1) than a standard satchel without.
on โ28-11-2012 03:32 AM
I think it only proves that you paid for post and not actually handed it over to the post office.
If you use paypal quite a bit tell them you will stop using the service if they keep your money (or dont use it for your stock purchases). They will lose out in the end
Maybe also put in a complaint with the financial services ombudsman. Like you say the buyer elected not to use the registered post.
https://www.fos.org.au/
What wise words. If the OP stops using Paypal they will need to offer Paymate and unsafe payment methods. In this case I believe the OP will be wasting the ombedsman's time. The fact that there is no insurance isn't the buyer's problem so be prepared to lose your money OP.
on โ28-11-2012 04:16 AM
The fact that there is no insurance isn't the buyer's problem so be prepared to lose your money OP.
According to Australian consumer law, it's supposed to be the buyer's problem.
That won't change too much at the PayPal dispute level, but I'm quietly confident the ombudsman will take an interest in the case should the seller lose their funds.
Personally, as has been mentioned by other posters, I would have registered a parcel of that value regardless, and I would also voluntarily refund for an INR regardless, but it continues to baffle me as to why buyers are quite happy to shop via a means that carries unique, inherent risks that they're legally responsible for, yet so few think they should have any responsibility for minimising those risks and protecting their purchase. (And note that I made a distinction between purchase and money).
on โ28-11-2012 07:04 PM
Ebay (aka paypal) takes the seller as the liar in every case.(why else are we treated as we are) and its up to you to prove you sent the item to the address on paypal. NEVER send un-registered because plenty will try and make a claim back.
on โ28-11-2012 07:33 PM
Ebay (aka paypal) takes the seller as the liar in every case.
How do you make that out? How on earth does a receipt from the PO with only a date and the suburb on it prove that the seller sent anything to the buyer's address.
If that was all that was required we could all pack up a bag of fresh air and address it to some random address in the same suburb as the buyer and then present that as proof that we had sent an expensive item to the buyer.
If Paypal did find in the seller's favour I am sure the buyer would report the seller to the on-line auction fraud report site, I am sure the police would not be as lenient as Paypal when they saw the so called evidence the seller had sent what the buyer paid for.
I wouldn't send a twenty buck item without proof adequate for Paypal never mind something worth $70.
As click & send is cheaper than regular post or red satchels it is a no brainer to use that at the very least.
on โ29-11-2012 05:53 AM
I wasnโt going to contribute to this thread, because DG, at post 12, had covered the relevant points: namely, once the seller had proved they sent SOMETHING to the suburb in which the buyer resides, that, coupled with the sellersโ assertion that THAT SOMETHING was the item purchased by this buyer is sufficient to prove postage; and once postage is proved the buyer has no right of recovery against the seller. That is, once postage is proved, the item is at the buyersโ risk, and as such, if the buyer doesnโt insure against that risk, then itโs they (the buyer) who is out of pocket if the item is lost or damaged in transit. Distance trading consumer law 101 as it has been for the past 150 years or so.
Then along came PJ with โIf Paypal did find in the seller's favour I am sure the buyer would report the seller to the on-line auction fraud report site, I am sure the police would not be as lenient as Paypal when they saw the so called evidence the seller had sent what the buyer paid for.โ
The police deal with criminal matters, and in criminal matters, it falls to the Police (DPP) to prove BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT, not only that a crime has been committed, but that it was this particular individual who committed that specific crime.
So letโs put PJ opinion to the test.
Buyer reports seller to online fraud because they didnโt receive the item.
Online fraud contact seller, and seller says โI sent it on XX/XX/XX. From this point onwards how exactly can the police be less lenient than PayPal. That is, as criminal activity is suspected, it now falls to the police to PROVE EVERYTHING. As for the suspect (the seller) they have to PROVE NOTHING. In fact they have THE RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT and the fact that they chose to remain silent canโt be entered into evidence.
But Iโm a cooperative individual, So when they ask โwhat evidence I haveโ, I hand over a receipt that shows that contemporaneous to the transaction I sent something to the suburb in which the buyer lives and I say โThat parcel contained the item xxxxx bought from me on xx/xx/xxโ .
From that point onwards, and in light of the multiple other potential reasons why it may not have been received, each of which on their own CREATE A REASONABLE DOUBT, it will fall to the police to prove BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT that THE ONE AND ONLY reason why the item wasnโt received was because I, the seller, decided to accept the money and keep the item.
So what are those other potential reasons?.
The label could have been damaged during sorting and itโs now sitting in the Non Deliverable (Dead Letter) Office.
It could have been stolen of tampered with by an Aust Post employee or contractor.
It could have been delivered to the wrong address
It could have been delivered to the correct address, the buyer wasnโt home so it was safe dropped ,and someone came along and took advantage of a five fingered discount.
Oh and letโs not forget the truck transporting it caught fire and it was destroyed.
Yes you could lodge a complaint to the Online Fraud Squad, but if all they have is a โI didnโt receive itโ countered by โbut I sent itโ, as the onus of proof is squarely on the police, the complain will give rise to a very short investigation, resulting in another complaint destined for file 13.
on โ29-11-2012 09:56 AM
Good luck if you take TB's advice.
on โ29-11-2012 10:16 AM
What advice. Iโm simply pointing out that if someone lodges a complaint with online fraud, and they have no other evidence other than โI didnโt receive itโ, then the file will close on the grounds of a lack of evidence.
So they can lodge their complaint. But, having in my time successfully initiated a number of fraud enquiries, quite of few of which have resulted in successful precautions, Iโm inclined to think it takes a lot more than a simple โI didnโt receive itโ to successfully prove it was never sent, and mind you, as this a criminal matter, the seller doesnโt have to prove they sent it, the prosecution has to prove they didnโt, and that may be the reason why, though Iโve looked high and low in the legal reports, I have yet to find one instance of a successful prosecution on that basis alone, but maybe you know of one.
on โ29-11-2012 10:34 AM
Not read all the posts but i suspect that you will lose the case.
I had one similar, but not one over $50, otherwise i would of paid the registered myself.
Sent in the blue parcel post plus satchels with tracking, tracking showed item delivered, but as i had no proof of postage, ie registeered post, i lost the case, even though i told paypal and gave them tracking info that tracking showed delivered. Even though i told paypal that this buyer had done the same thing to 8 others sellers, even though those other sellers all reported this buyer, it made no difference.
If you want to win a case send with registered post, its YOUR proof you posted it.
on โ13-12-2014 02:42 PM
I find it ludicrous that ebay reward / encourage sellers to offer express post / or "free" post
which we all know there is no such thing ! tracking numbers on express or regular satchels
offers no protection for the seller if a "not recieved" dispute is opened
The only way I consider myself protected is by using
ebay satchels with PRINTED labels & tracking numbers
you pay for postage costs online ($7.15) is charged to your seller account
easy ! So if any dishonest buyer claims they dont have their parcel
I have all the proof I need .. Printed address of buyer
& online tracking with delivery status
ahh the peace & tranquility x