Slow postage - chances of a refund?

[indigorosey]

Customer service 101 - managing customer expectations. Ebay don't do this well.  They are turning our customers into spoiled brats! I'm getting a little tired of the hoop-jumping and wandwaving needed to keep up!

Customer bought a pair of pants and requested I post item to a different address, no explanation or expected time frame, but I duly posted to requested address the next day. 

A couple of weeks later I got an email to say item had not been received and she was only holidaying there so where is the item? I checked the tracking and the item was due for delivery that day, reminding her that the Easter holiday was in this period. I  double-checked the next day and it was showing as delivered. Now, a week later, I get this:

I made the purchase way before the Easter weekend and I got them posted to where I was going to be on the Easter weekend as delivery said it was around that time. Now I'm home from my holidays and they arrived there last week I had left. Won't be back there til July so won't get them til then.

Customer paid 29/3 (Sunday) and I posted 30/3. I can't see how eBay could have estimated that it would arrive from WA to non-metro NSW in four days. Also the customer ran the risk of not receiving it in time and at no stage asked for express postage or even mentioned the limited window of time she had allowed for postage.

Tue 14 Apr 2015 11:43

Delivered

TOOWOON BAY NSW

Tue 14 Apr 2015 06:10

With Australia Post for delivery today

TUGGERAH NSW

Mon 13 Apr 2015 11:48

Processed through Australia Post facility

CHULLORA NSW

Thu 02 Apr 2015 13:32

Processed through Australia Post facility

CHULLORA NSW

Mon 30 Mar 2015 13:55

Received by Australia Post

SEVILLE GROVE WA

The postage took forever!  I emailed the customer saying I'm not sure what outcome they expect but suggest they get their parcel forwarded and I can't offer any more assistance. Rather snippy I know but really?  I've resigned myself to a red splot but will the customer get their money back if they lodge a dispute?

[springyzone]

Where you may have gone wrong is in being too helpful and posting it to an address they requested, rather than to the registered paypal address. (I am assuming that is what happened anyway).

All I can suggest is to keep every message and all those records of tracking and try to explain to ebay reps if it does go to dispute, but I don't like your chances.

As you say, ebay is not managing buyer expectations that well. You can understand customers take the estimated delivery as a geunine guide. And after they buy, the biggest visible tag their list of purchases of the bought items is "Return this item'.

No wonder sellers have trouble.

[joethenuts]

it was in nsw on the 2nd   and did not get delivered until the 14th to nsw , i think you should take that up with the post office , and maybe they can pick it up and re deliver to the other address ,just to keep the good books with the buyer , and sure the buyer ran a risk of not getting there on time ,

[clarry100]

I'd be inclined to find out what holiday flats/units/motel or who lives at the address you sent to and ask them to have it returned to you.

If you get it back then if/when you lose the INR case and suffer the forced refund at least you will have your product back.

Sorry but I think you will highly likely lose an INR case, if one is opened by the buyer, as you have not shipped to the address given by Paypal.

The two major reasons you will lose an INR case is not having tracking and/or proof of lodgement and not using the address given by PayPal. Seems like you have the first part OK but not the second part.

I am assuming that the buyer requested the address change thru messages.

If a buyer requests an address change this way and you wish to maintain your seller protection then you have to cancel/refund the original transaction and ask them to re-buy the item and complete checkout via Paypal with the alternate address provided via Paypal. Otherwise you leave yourself wide open to this kind of thing.

[crazyplacecostumes]

Unfortunately OP your parcel seems to have been stuck on the Chullora merry-go-around and that is not unusual. Perhaps point out the tracking and agree with your buyer that Australia Post have definitey taken too long but that as a seller, you have posted the first working day after payment and could  not have posted any faster. 

We do not change addresses after payment any longer when requested. 

We email them:

Unfortunately due to ebay and paypal rules, we are unable to ship to an address that is different than your paypal payment. 

At this stage we are able to:

Send to the address on the payment, or

Cancel the transaction, refund you, then ask that you repurchase and pay with the correct shipping details. 

[indigorosey]

Thanks guys - I did hear faint alarm bells when they requested a different address - to a holiday park; well more like a single alarm gong, then it stopped 😉

I have kind of burned my bridges by saying I can't assist any further, but as the purchase was a best offer and I had already marked it down to almost cost, I wasn't willing to refund or cough up any more for postage or whatever they had in mind (they didn't say).

Will remember your advice in future,( thankyou!!) about posting to a different address. I do have a reminder that it is posted from WA and this can take up to 10 working days in my newer listings, I might make it more prominent.

WILL THIS WORK??

[clarry100]

If you know its a holiday park I would be on the phone to them asking about it.

If they still have it arrange for it to be returned to you.

If they don't then what have they done with it?

Perhaps the buyer has already been in touch with them and asked for it to be sent on to them.

[crazyplacecostumes]

Probably not - it blends in a bit too much 

[rapadaan]

Check out this still havent received my parcel back yet Ccustomer service told me up to 10 days on the 17th of april  Still sitting at the mail centre in Sunshine Vic going around in circles The automated sorting system is stuffed !!  Lost the sale, refunded the customer, out of pocket $16 on the postage  and dont have item back  yet

Wed 29 Apr 2015 10:15
Processed through Australia Post facility
SUNSHINE WEST VIC
Tue 28 Apr 2015 15:38
Customer Enquiry lodged
MILTON QLD
Thu 23 Apr 2015 13:37
Processed through Australia Post facility
SUNSHINE WEST VIC
Mon 20 Apr 2015 08:10
Processed through Australia Post facility
SUNSHINE WEST VIC
Fri 17 Apr 2015 12:26
In transit
MITCHELL ACT
Fri 17 Apr 2015 12:15
Picked up from sender
MITCHELL ACT
Fri 17 Apr 2015 09:10
Returned to senderOpen tool tip
DICKSON ACT
Thu 16 Apr 2015 16:09
In transit
FYSHWICK ACT
Thu 16 Apr 2015 16:09
In Transit
DICKSON ACT
Thu 16 Apr 2015 11:53
Attempted delivery - customer not known at addressOpen tool tip
HACKETT ACT
Thu 16 Apr 2015 09:10
With Australia Post for delivery today
FYSHWICK ACT
Wed 15 Apr 2015 14:17
Processed through Australia Post facility
FYSHWICK ACT
Tue 14 Apr 2015 07:43
Processed through Australia Post facility
SUNSHINE WEST VIC

[clarry100]

That's ridiculous.

I'd be taking this tracking log to Aust Post and complaining bitterly about this.