TOPIC: Suspicious (?) eBay auction

USPS claim?

I had a couple of Volunteer tokens mailed to me in a paper envelope and the same thing happened, a rip in the envelope and missing tokens. That one really stung.

So, the question becomes, does the responsibility lie with the shipper, ultimately?

Be aware of who you buy from. Keep to folks who back up with replacement or full insurance. Or take your chances.

In this case, if there was no USPS insurance, he should be protected by PayPal and eBay, right?

Wade Schwendemann wrote: So, the question becomes, does the responsibility lie with the shipper, ultimately?

Yes. It is the sellers responsibility to get the paid for goods to the buyer safely. This includes items lost or damaged during shipping.

The seller may have recourse to the USPS, or to a private insurer - none of that has anything to do with the buyer.

Lequinian wrote: In this case, if there was no USPS insurance, he should be protected by PayPal and eBay, right?

USPS insurance is irrelevant. That insurance is for the shipper, not the recipient.

Dave should be protected by eBay/PayPal.

edwin wrote: Be aware of who you buy from. Keep to folks who back up with replacement or full insurance. Or take your chances.

While you can save yourself some potential hassle by avoiding an apparently shady seller:

If you buy on eBay, or pay Goods and Services on PayPal, then eBay or PayPal will side with you and issue you a refund (billed to the seller) if you and the seller can't agree in the clear cut case where the advertised item never arrived.

Whether or not the shipper puts insurance on things is no concern of the buyer.

He did mention insurance.

Then have them file a loss of contents claim on their side. It will take a number of days after that before they can file for insurance.

edwin wrote: Then have them file a loss of contents claim on their side. It will take a number of days after that before they can file for insurance.

This is bad advice.

There is every indication that this seller is either completely incompetent, or is conducting a fraud.

Do not extend your interaction by waiting for them to resolve their insurance claim. Scam artists seek to extend, extend, extend the interaction - each step and delay makes it less likely you get what you deserve. If on the other hand the seller is not a scam artist, there is no reason for them to not refund/replace immediately before they get the insurance settled.

Postal insurance is for the protection of the sender, not the recipient - for all you know this guy shipped you a torn empty envelope and is trying to conduct insurance fraud.

You are going to be much better off working this through eBay, who can go into the sellers pocket if you two can't resolve it. The shipping insurance won't even talk to you, let alone ensure you get a satisfactory resolution.


P.S. - Be willing to help the seller out by sending pictures of the damaged package, etc. - but don't let that interfere with you getting them to resolve the situation promptly - their problems with insurance are just that - their problems. Be aware of when your buyer protections from eBay expire.

so I agree with Matthew. eBay / Paypal seems the best way to go especially considering you already had to do so to get everything in the picture, but... to be pedantic, it looks like addressee can make a USPS claim within 60 days (presuming you have a proof of insurance).

Sources:
Either the person sending the mailpiece (Mailer) or the person receiving the mailpiece (Addressee) may file a claim for a damaged or missing article.

faq.usps.com/s/article/Domestic-Claims-The-Basics#Who_may_file_domestic_claim

and a 1st hand account: cashmoneylife.com/how-to-file-an-insurance-claim-with-usps/