Weird feedback from problem seller
 

I've just reccently started buying items on e-bay and have been very happy with the experience. No problems, except for one.

I won an auction for a few dolls at a great price. I sent payment via paypal that same night. A week went by without any notice the item had shipped so I sent the seller a query asking if they had gone out yet. He said no, but would send them the next day. Three more days passed and I still received no notification from him so I sent another email. This time he told me he did indeed ship them three days earlier, but tracking "wasn't available". This was the first item I'd purchased that the seller didn't use tracking. I don't know how much it is for tracking from the US to Canada but it can't be that much, I've had it on three dollar items that charged three bucks for shipping.

A month has gone by and I haven't received the item so I opened a case with Paypal. A week went by without any explanation from the seller, so I today I escalated the case.

Now the seller has left feedback on this auction, highest praise, which doesn't make sense. Am I supposed to take that as a sign of good faith? Is he being sarcastic?

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Does the seller have negatives with other buyers complaining about his shipping speed/handling time?

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Actually, tracking on any international shipment is ridiculously expensive. Cheapest international shipping method that provides tracking is Priority Mail International. I just calculated a price for a 1 pound Priority Mail International Package from the US to Canada, and its 22.09.

You may have gotten a "tracking number" if the seller shipped first class international and purchased their postage from ebay, but did you actually see tracking updates on it? There's a customs barcode label on those shipments, and ebay usually sends it to the buyer as a tracking number, but it's not a tracking number. If you try to track it with that number, you might see it as "ACCEPTED" at the point of origin, but you shouldn't see any updates after that.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

The person's feedback all looks good, except for one instance of a person claiming item was never shipped. I got this item for just fifty cents over the opening bid, so I assume the seller decided they don't really want to sell it that low. I just wish he would have told me a month ago so I didn't have to waste my time waiting and emailing him about this item.

Interesting, I'll have to check that the time I buy something. However, although it may not be "tracking", it is confirmation the item has been sent, something this seller has been unable to provide.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Luckily for you Paypal and Ebay don't give 2 craps about the seller in any situation so it'll be easy for you to get your $ back in the event you are getting screwed, which I hope you aren't.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

The cheapest way to ship international with any kind of tracking is Registered First Class International mail, I usually add Return Receipt so the buyer has to sign the card and it gets sent back to me.

From everything that I have read, and i've done a lot of research on this, Priority Mail International does not offer any type of delivery confirmation once the package leaves the US. You can add a Certificate of Mailing but that only proves that a package was mailed. My post office guy says that it might be scanned when it's delivered but again there is no guarantee once it leaves the US.

If the tracking number, the seller sent you, starts with LC then it is just the customs form number. You can try checking it but it usually just gets scanned at the last place it goes through before it leaves the country. If the package never shows Delivered you'll get your money back if you file an INR (Item Not Received) claim within 45 days.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Which model(s) of the Real Dolls did you order?

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Thanks for the info JCWBobC. It's not the "tracking" part I need, it is the confirmation the package was actually sent. If I had the confirmation it was infact posted, I certainly would have given it more time before filing a dispute (I believe I have 45 days), but since the guy couldn't be bothered to mail it until a week after the auction (if he even did) or answer my e-mails, I'm assuming they aren't coming.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

I was not aware of this because you can't print this online, and I print all my labels at home.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

I print all my labels at home as well except on the rare occasion that I agree to ship outside the US. Without some form of delivery confirmation Paypal will refund the buyers money and they get to keep the item so I very rarely ship out of the US unless the person is willing to pay the higher shipping cost.

You have from 1 day to 45 days to file and INR claim with Paypal, I had someone file an INR claim the day after he paid but because I buy my labels on Paypal they gave me the money back right away since their was no way it could have been delivered in 1 day. If you paid with a credit card you usually have up to 6 months to dispute the charge but some credit cards give you more than 6 months.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Buying from the States, I always wait at least 6 weeks before I start getting concerned about a lost shipment. I have a feeling stuff sometimes gets stuck in Customs for weeks, and/or U.S. Mail is ridiculously slow (I know it isn't Canada Post because items sent from Europe arrive comparatively quickly).
Anyway, I would've waited a bit longer before filing a complaint, however the seller unquestionably should have employed better communication.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Yeah, don't worry about it. Follow through with your Item Not Received claim. You'll get your money back. If you do happen to receive it later, you can simply resend the money again, or contact eBay/PayPal to reinstate the transaction. In fact, I believe eBay even has an option in your Case in the Resolution Center after it closes to indicate that you received the item later.

Don't wait too long! Don't forfeit your rights to dispute. The 45 day limit that eBay/PayPal put on it is concrete. If it's past the 45 day limit, you will have no option to open a case. I had a problem with an auction that the seller was actively working to correct, but because it ran up to the 45 day limit while we were still working on getting it resolved, I still opened an Item Not As Described case anyway, and told the seller I had to preserve my rights. We just let the Case languish in the buyer/seller communication phase until I received the correct parts a week later, and then I just cancelled the case. But if I had delayed, thinking that it would be resolved later, and the seller had not come through, I would have had no recourse to open a case later.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

You're absolutely right, but I have had non-Paypal-related orders take 6+ weeks to arrive. So, if you're using Paypal, file before the 45-day deadline; otherwise, I would wait a bit longer before complaining. Chances are the package isn't lost, but sitting somewhere in a warehouse waiting to be rediscovered.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

I shipped something to Canada one time and I didn't have tracking and it took 4+ weeks before the buyer recieved it. Luckily he was cool and waited it out. In my experience shipping internationally, Canadian customs is generally slower than any other country I've shipped to. If I ship something to Canada and something to Argentina on the same day, I can almost guarantee that the buyer in Argentina will recieve it first, and I live 20 minutes from the Canadian border.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

I guess it is hit and miss. I've ordered about a dozen action figures from the States in the last two months and received them all in about two weeks, one I got today took over three weeks, and that's the longest. Maybe I should have given this guy more time. I will of course make sure he gets paid if the dolls show up.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Doubt anyone is craving closure, but paypal refunded my money and the next day the dolls showed up. Looked like something weird had happened, cause the box was all battered. I immediately reversed the refund and sent the money back to the seller.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

:up: for being honest. most would just keep the item and not repay.

Re: Weird feedback from problem seller
 

Agree with deftones :thumbsup: