HELP with USPS: Need advice!

Hey there,

(If this is the wrong forum for this, feel free to move)

I recently sold a manual focus lens to a fellow member on this forum and sent it out via USPS online Priority Mail. Everything seemed right until I received the confirmation of arrival via email. A few minutes later I have the buyer sending me PM's saying he never got it. I told him to wait a day or so and we'll see if they just screwed up and might figure it out.

I also asked him to reconfirm his address to which my tracking info is perfect. The address matches exactly. I'm kind of at a loss here on what to do. Does the buyer need to go to his local post office to see what's up? Can you call them? I'm just trying to help him out to since I don't want to seem like a dead-beat seller, but this seems to be really weird.

Any advice would greatly be appreciated!!
Aaron

buyer should contact local office...from your end, you have delivery confirmation, so you've done your due diligence...IMO...

Did you have insurance on the package? What's the value of the lens?

It is usually better to ask for verified signature with delivery confirmation. That way, you have a name for who signed for it. The problem with delivery confirmation alone is there is no proof of accurate delivery. The PO working could put it in the wrong box, leave it on a door step, or leave it with anyone and scan the bar and delivered. It's really worthless, IMO. But, with verified signature, the PO worker has to have someone sign for it. Then, you have proof.

As for insurance, that won't matter because the PO is reporting the package as delivered. All the PO worker has to say is 'I delivered the package." Insurance won't cover anything if the package was delivered. It's the PO workers word against the seller. The PO is not going to pay for it if the PO worker says it was delivered to the right address. You have to request a signature, it is the only way to make sure it ends up in the right hands.

I had a package coming to me once with a guaranteed delivery time on it. You know what the PO worker did? Scanned it in as delivered on time, but I didn't get the package for another two hours. I went to the PO office and raised hell with them and they gave me my money back. I was home the whole time....waiting for the package. The guy just scanned it and lied.

Honestly, I trust UPS and Fedex more than I do the PO.

Oh my...I sure hope there was just a lag in time frames and that he got the lens. I NEVER send or agree to receive any package without having it be by getting a signature. This sounds scary because if an error occurred and your lens was delivered to someone else you are sh@t out of luck. If I was the buyer I would expect the seller to come good since it is your responsibility to ensure it gets to the buyer. I would have to ensure tracking IMHO for peace of mind. This is your reputation as a creditable seller that is on the line. Good luck and let us know what happens.

yup...always use signature confirmation. delivery confirmation just mean that the item reached its destination. the mailman can just leave it on a porch, or in the bushes, underneath the car, or where ever they want to.

usps tracking also sucks... there is usually a lag in update, but in your case, since it's showing it's delivered, i would be a lil worrired. either the package is lost, or the buyer is not honest.

I just thought I'd jump in here and add some more details, see if anyone can provide that "golden solution":

So I'm akeefer's buyer. First off, I'm sure he's an outstanding guy and this was in no way his fault, and I'm pretty sure the whole deal is with USPS.

The package was to be delivered yesterday, and I was at my apartment the whole day, but no one knocked. Additionally, we've one of those street mailboxes for apartments, where all the tenants have individual boxes within these large multi-mailbox things, with bigger boxes for parcels underneath. It's kind of hard to describe, but anyone who's lived in an apartment, I really hope you guys know what I'm getting at.

Anyways, when I'd miss a package, the postman would leave a slip if it requires a signature, or a key to the parcel box if he left it there. Yesterday, no slip and no key.

I waited until the mail was delivered today in hopes of a premature scan, but the package didn't arrive either. I called my local post office, and the woman on the other hand said that there was no package at the facility (meaning it had been taken to be delivered already and never came back), and would talk to my postman to see if he forgot to leave me a key or if he just did something stupid with it.

So if Mon/Tues comes with either no news or negative news, what else can I do to get my lens back? This is the first time I've ever had a shipping mishap, so any suggestions would be great.

r31ncarnat3d wrote in post #11151918
I just thought I'd jump in here and add some more details, see if anyone can provide that "golden solution":

So I'm akeefer's buyer. First off, I'm sure he's an outstanding guy and this was in no way his fault, and I'm pretty sure the whole deal is with USPS.

The package was to be delivered yesterday, and I was at my apartment the whole day, but no one knocked. Additionally, we've one of those street mailboxes for apartments, where all the tenants have individual boxes within these large multi-mailbox things, with bigger boxes for parcels underneath. It's kind of hard to describe, but anyone who's lived in an apartment, I really hope you guys know what I'm getting at.

Anyways, when I'd miss a package, the postman would leave a slip if it requires a signature, or a key to the parcel box if he left it there. Yesterday, no slip and no key.

I waited until the mail was delivered today in hopes of a premature scan, but the package didn't arrive either. I called my local post office, and the woman on the other hand said that there was no package at the facility (meaning it had been taken to be delivered already and never came back), and would talk to my postman to see if he forgot to leave me a key or if he just did something stupid with it.

So if Mon/Tues comes with either no news or negative news, what else can I do to get my lens back? This is the first time I've ever had a shipping mishap, so any suggestions would be great.

If the PO lost it, they should have to resolve the situation. This is their screw up. My bet is the PO delivery person put the key in the wrong box and someone else probably got your package. It happens quite a bit in apt mailboxes, especially the ones with all the goofy codes to the boxes. Years ago we lived in an apt and I have had that key left in my box only to find the package was not for me. I was honest enough to get it to the right person. But, someone less honest would have just kept it or if they were mean they might have tossed it. You just never know with people.

I would hound the PO until they fix it.

while i agree that insurance should've been used, i usually leave that up to the buyer...as a seller, s/he got delivery confirmation...so this, IMO, is the PO's issue...sounds like they screwed up somewhere...but will they come clean since no insurance? doubt it...

I'll offer my two cents since I recently had a not-so-pleasant experience with USPS. First of all, if you live in an apartment with a multi-mailbox type thing, USPS will most likely just leave it there, REGARDLESS of whether you had insurance or signature confirmation. This was one of the reasons for my unhappy experiences with USPS. Here goes:

I had ordered an older manual 50mm f/1.4 lens for $80 on Ebay. The shipper had sent it with insurance (which requires signature according to a USPS manager I spoke with) but unfortunately, I was not there the first time they tried to deliver it. They failed to leave a notice to inform me and I had to track online to determine that I had to either schedule a redelivery or go pick it up myself. I schedule a redelivery for two days after the original delivery date but USPS does not deliver once again. No note, no package, nothing. This time, I go to the post office itself and after waiting for an hour, I finally speak to a manager, who told me to call them right after closing so they can grab the package off the trucks so that they can hold it for me. The next day, I go to check again and after waiting for them to scour their holding areas for two hours, they told me the package was still not there. I was given the same instructions as before and the manager on duty noted down my name and address this time.

The third day I go to check, I had the same experience as before but was stuck there for another two hours before the manager finally confirmed with the guy in charge of the trucks that all redeliveries for the past several days had been delayed and would be going out today. The manager told me that since I had been waiting in the post office for two hours that I probably missed my delivery (which required a signature). She promised to personally find it and hold it for me if it came back again. Guess what: I walk home and I find the package, on the ground in front of the mailbox without me ever signing for it.

My story has a happy ending but the entire experience has left a bad taste in my mouth. I just want to say that all the USPS people who I dealt with directly were quite nice and happy to help me find my package but the carriers themselves and the delivery system as a whole can be sloppy. Best of luck with your package, akeefer and r31ncarnat3d.

thaking wrote in post #11152225
while i agree that insurance should've been used, i usually leave that up to the buyer...as a seller, s/he got delivery confirmation...so this, IMO, is the PO's issue...sounds like they screwed up somewhere...but will they come clean since no insurance? doubt it...

This is incorrect. It is the seller's responsibility to get the purchased goods into the buyer's hands. Insurance is to cover the seller and should always be figured in the sale price. In this case the seller's contractor, USPS failed to deliver the lens so the seller is ultimately responsible.

according to the PO, it *was* put in buyer's hands...from all the info the seller has, this is indeed what happened...

thaking wrote in post #11152645
according to the PO, it *was* put in buyer's hands...from all the info the seller has, this is indeed what happened...

Unless he purchased signature confirmation or insured the item for $200 or more he has no proof of that. Plain delivery confirmation and/or insurance under $200 provides no signature or even delivery address.

if i'm understanding the OP, he states he got delivery confirmation via email...

There are two types of USPS delivery confirmation.

Regular delivery confirmation only shows the date and time delivered, city, and zip code. While PayPal considers this as proof of delivery, the credit card companies and courts do not.

Signature confirmation does provide the signature as well as the address. This is good for the credit card companies and courts.

I've had to deal this directly with the credit card companies with chargebacks and had to learn the hard way. The USPS has been known to misdeliver packages as well as show the items "delivered" when they arrive at the recipient's PO. Hopefully it shows up, most likely it was misdelivered.

As I posted earlier sellers should always figure insurance in the price so they're covered if the item never shows up.