For this reason, I always ship USPS Priority Mail with Delivery Confirmation ... if you purchase postage online through usps.com, then Delivery confirmation is free.
USPS.com also allows you to send an e-mail notification to the receiver that the item is shipping with the delivery confirmation tracking number.
At times, I will post immediate feedback (instead of waiting to get my feedback from the buyer), but I will include the tracing number in the feedback, so if anyone tracks the package they can see when it went and whether or not it was delievered.
I even do the same on books.
I won't ship Media Mail because a) it requires a trip to the post office, instead of allowing me to just drop the item in the company outgoing mailbox, and b) slower and no tracking.
If someone insists on Media Mail, I charge a $10.00 handling fee, which makes it cheaper to send Priority Mail.
I've got 2 eBay IDs (sheffield99 and flahute2004) ... so far, both are 100% positive feedback.
Steven L. Sheffield Eerste van vier uit Zoutmeerstad, Utah
On Thu, 27 Jan 2005 07:22:22 -0800 (PST), Peter Naiman wrote
> Wonder if anybody has had buyers get testy or nasty
> with them on Ebay. I've noticed a few occasionally
> getting this way lately and I've written other buyers
> who have purchased on a regular basis from my auctions
> and they've all experienced similar things going on.
> Take in mind, once my auctions are over I contact the
> buyer usually within 24 hours of the end of auction.
>
> Just shipped a small item to a buyer, unnamed in NYC
> on the 18th, but as of yesterday he had still not
> received it. USPS can occasionally be very slow, as
> I've had items occasionally take more than two weeks
> to get to a location within the U.S. I ship everything
> by either USPS First Class or Parcel Post. Two days
> ago I received my first email since the item was
> shipped with the buyer threatening to report me to
> Ebay Fraud alert and ask Paypal for a refund. I
> replied to him in a brief, firm, business and
> non-confrontational as to why he hadn't as least
> initially asked me what date it was shipped out on, or
> if it had been shipped. Also included in my note was
> why he had to be so confrontational in a first letter.
> He replied with a very quick answer saying only
> Thanks !! Will wait another week. Hate to rant onward,
> but what a jerk. Have you had this happen. Just
> another quick addition, is that it took me about a
> week, and three or four invoices for me to get him to
> repond to pay for the item.
>
> Please take in my mind that the auction closed on
> January 12th, and I had to send atleast two or more
> invoices and a another reminder through Ebay to this
> seller asking for Payment, without any response until
> he finally paid on the 17th, but without ever
> responding directly to me. The item was promptly
> shipped on the 18th. In none of my invoices or letters
> to the Buyer was I ever confrontational asking why he
> never responded, as the content of my notes only asked
> for payment.
>
> Another note is that when I went to the Post Office to
> find out about collecting on a missing package that
> was insued for which I still have my receipt, I was
> told to wait until it was 30 days old and I could come
> back to the PO. If I wait 30 days and do not refund
> the buyer, if he does not receive his item, I'm sure
> he'll respond with negative feedback. OUCH !!
>
> Peter Naiman
> Shorewood, WI
>
> =====
> Peter Naiman Alias Hetchinspete4420 North Ardmore AvenueShorewood,
> WI 53211-1418
>
>
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--
Steven L. Sheffield
stevens at veloworks dot com
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