Every year around the holidays, I have a negative experience with one of my Ebay shipments. Last time it was a package that I put in my mailbox for carrier pickup. A few days later I discovered that there was no tracking info in the system and the package had disappeared never to be seen again. The latest package to disappear was an order I received on December 19, 2024. The item was a Dallas Cowboys cap which was listed for $12 plus shipping. I thought “Great, another order!”. But I had some concerns when I saw that the buyer had zero feedback and was located in an apartment building in Washington, DC. In cases like this I usually look up the address in Google to see if the destination is legitimate. I also try to avoid shipping orders to buyers with zero feedback but have not found a way to exclude them in Ebay. We also just had a big snowstorm, so I decided to ship the item using UPS Ground Saver because there is a UPS store close to my home.
UPS Ground Saver is advertised as their most economical shipping service. They transport the package to the designated city and hand it off to the local USPS for final delivery. It costs a few dollars more than USPS Ground Advantage, but it was my best option to get the package there by Christmas. I made two major mistakes. #1. I should have cancelled the order when I saw zero feedback and an apartment building address. #2. I should have contacted the buyer to let the buyer know that the delivery would arrive after the 24th. After the fact, I checked the destination in Google and found a street lined with 3 story apartment buildings and unsecured mailboxes. I say unsecured because the mailboxes are outside of the building and there is no safe place to put a package.
On December 26th, I received a message on Ebay saying that the customer wanted a refund on the order. I checked tracking and it said that the package was delivered. I contacted the buyer and to let them know that the package had been delivered, In/At their Mailbox. They replied saying “No package was delivered today to my mailbox”. So, I asked them if they could verify their mailing address and suggested that someone may have taken the package. This was before I looked up the destination on Google. The buyer did not reply. So, I waited 24 hours to see if the package would appear. Ebay only gives you 3 options in this situation. Refund the buyer, send tracking info to the buyer, or contact the buyer. They also state that if you do nothing, and the issue goes to Ebay for resolution, it could impact your performance rating.
One of several things could have happened. The buyer changed their mind after receiving the item and saw that I did not accept returns. The package was delivered to the wrong address. Or someone took the package as they were walking past the apartment building. UPS will take a photo of the package to show that it was delivered, but USPS made the delivery, so there was no photo. Either way, I don’t see how this was my fault. Ebay also put a hold on my funds. I felt that my only option was to refund the customer. I briefly looked into getting reimbursed for the value of the lost/stolen item from UPS or Ebay, but it is not worth the trouble for a $12 item. Lesson learned, no selling to zero feedback buyers with apartment building addresses!